During Thursday’s regular session, Glenwood Springs City Council unanimously voted to pass a resolution calling for “an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza and occupied West Bank.” 

The vote established the city of Glenwood Springs as the first municipality in Colorado to pass a resolution calling for a ceasefire in the four-month war in Gaza, according to Ceasefire Now Roaring Fork Valley. 

Israel’s ongoing military operation in Gaza began following the Oct. 7, 2023 terrorist attacks by Hamas which killed roughly 1,200 Israelis and took about 250 hostage.

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Members of Ceasefire Now RFV, a citizens group based in the Roaring Fork Valley calling for an end to the United States’ support for Israel’s military operations in Gaza, attended the meeting holding signs the read “Save Gaza,” “Don’t look away,” “Your tax dollars are funding genocide,” and “They had dreams too,” among other statements.  

They approached Council during the public comment portion of the meeting to present them with copies of a resolution supporting a ceasefire in Gaza. 

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“We’re here to speak on behalf of the majority of people in this valley who are not in favor of continuing to supply weapons to Israel’s ethnic cleansing in Gaza,” Carbondale resident Will Hodges said during public comment. 

Of the 9 to 12 members present, six delivered public comments during the meeting, expressing their own feelings about the conflict and the complicity of the United States through its financial contributions to the war. 

“How we use our voice locally, matters,” Ceasefire Now member Maya Hunt said. “U.S. policy is supporting ongoing violence against civilian populations … I do not condone the actions that caused this, I ask that you do better to represent me while my national government fails to.” 

“I also know that we are capable of promoting the safety of Jewish people in our community, the safety of Palestinian people in our community, and human rights, all at once,” Hunt continued. 

Their impassioned speeches listed grim statistics about the approximately 29,000 people in Gaza killed under Israeli bombardment and shelling, including 12,300 children, as well as what innocent civilians have had to endure. 

“A month ago, if you were to attend one funeral for every child who has died in Gaza since Oct. 7, you would attend funerals every day, for 27 years,” member Jessica Richardson said. 

The group in their speeches made the point that, although this conflict may feel very far away, Glenwood still has a moral obligation to help their Palestinian neighbors as much as they do to their Coloradoan ones. 

“These are all war crimes,” Seth Bontrager of Ceasefire Now RFV said. “Dropping bombs that you know will result in civilian casualties is a war crime, as is bombing hospitals and schools. And there’s absolutely no moral justification for this violence … As Americans, we are complicit in these atrocities. There is a $14 billion aid package going through Congress and I would much prefer this money be invested back into our communities instead of funding death and destruction overseas.” 

Immediately following public comment, Councilor Jonathan Godes made a motion to add a consideration of the resolution to the meeting’s regular agenda, which passed unanimously. 

“There’s not a great way to respond to a group of people who come in that want to say something,” Godes said. “I would love to at least have a conversation on this since we have a lot of young people here that took the time out tonight.” 

Godes then made a motion to support the resolution, the boldface of which read as “an immediate and permanent cease-fire in Gaza and occupied West Bank, immediate unhindered humanitarian aid into Gaza, and release of all hostages and arbitrarily detained Palestinian civilians.” 

“I think that asking for more peace is always better than a continued genocide, which is what we’re seeing,” he said. 

Everyone on Council expressed gratitude toward the group for their attendance and spoke favorably about their efforts. However, some said they weren’t comfortable with immediately passing the resolution without having adequate time to consider the full text and for it to be reviewed by their legal team. 

“There is a deeper message, there is a deeper responsibility, I am speaking on behalf of our entire community of Glenwood Springs,” Councilor Erin Zalinski said. “I don’t feel comfortable taking on this decision tonight … I just want to make sure that the specific message doesn’t say something we didn’t intend it to.” 

Councilor Sumner Schachter was especially cautious about some of the writing in the resolution, which they said made political points that could lead to Council’s intentions to be misinterpreted. 

“I have no problem voting for the resolution, however, that’s just the boldface,” Schachter said. “I do have some issues with some of the whereas’s, that I can’t agree with or aren’t up to date.” 

Schachter suggested approving only boldface, which excluded more detailed mentions about Hamas, with the alternative option being amending the resolution and pushing back their vote by at least three weeks. 

“My biggest concern is … I am horrified by the violence and the hatred and escalation of it.” Councilor Shelley Kaup said. “I don’t want to pick sides, but it’s gone beyond the pale, and it’s very disturbing to see our country supporting this type of violence … I don’t really want to go with just the title, but then again, it’s a lot to digest.” 

Kaup suggested one addition to the end of the resolution’s title: the phrase “…in order to work towards a long-term, lasting peace.” 

The words were added to Godes’ motion, which was amended to pass only the title of the resolution. It passed by a unanimous 7-0 vote. 

“We did not expect the response that we got,” Ceasefire Now RFV member Paul Kulas told the Post Independent. “We were just thrilled with the outcome.”

Kulas explained that their visit to Glenwood Springs City Council was only their second time sharing their resolution, and that it was not well-received when they took it to Aspen’s City Council.

“It was the complete opposite,” Kulas said. “At the Aspen city council meeting, one city council member turned his back and would not look at the group while we were speaking, and the other one … was not paying attention.”

“Aspen bills itself as a cultural center … and we got the response that we did,” Kulas continued. “Then we go to Glenwood Springs, and (we get) the complete opposite response … Judging by the (Glenwood) City Council members’ response, they all were well aware of what was going on. Their response shows that they’re not for wars.”

Kulas said that although the resolution is merely symbolic, the group hopes it will inspire other councils to follow the city of Glenwood Spring’s example.

“We hope that citizens will see what can be accomplished when one becomes five and five becomes 10 and 10 becomes 20,” he said. “Hopefully we’ll see more of these resolutions passed around the country, and then we’ll see a peaceful resolution for both the Jews and the Palestinians.”