MADERA, Calif. – The rural, farmworking city of Madera this week did something no other city in California's agricultural heartland has done: it approved a Gaza ceasefire resolution and called for an end to violence in the Middle East.
The decision came quickly – and unanimously – among the seven-member council where a majority are Latino and one is Black.
City officials had called a special meeting to discuss the vote, even though the mind of the council appeared to have already been made before the meeting.
Dozens gathered inside the council chambers to witness the signing of the proclamation. They wore the colors of the Palestinian flag, and members of the Palestinian community spoke about the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
The moment marked a different tone in the region from just two months ago – when Merced County to the north failed to pass a similar vote, and tensions were high in Fresno County to the south as the Palestinian community pushed for recognition amid the war.
But in Madera, disagreement was largely absent.
“I believe our community is a loving community,” said Madera Mayor Santos Garcia on Wednesday night. “When we encounter pain in the eyes of our people, we share that pain – regardless of where we're from.”
‘An obligation to reject hate’
Madera has a population of roughly 66,000, and nearly 80 percent of residents are Latino – a reflection of many communities in the middle of California, where industries like agriculture dominate. This region is far from the liberal populations on the coast. Madera County is nearly evenly split between Democrat and Republican voters.
The U.S. response to the ongoing conflict has become a political challenge for the Biden Administration among voters.
The reason the Madera council gave for voting on the ceasefire resolution wasn't purely politics — but because the conflict in Gaza had grown “difficult to ignore.”
“We have an obligation to reject hate, antisemitism, and any other channel that devalues human life,” Councilmember Jose Rodriguez told the room. “As a public official, I feel obligated to speak out for world peace, and more importantly, to advocate for peace within our diverse communities here in our city.”
Each member on the dais spoke briefly about why they supported the ceasefire resolution. For Councilmember Anita Evans, a Black woman, the cause resonates deeply.
“I have seen people hanging from trees in Jackson, Mississippi,” Evans said. “I have seen my ancestors that were put in the bottom of ships that were brought over here. You are my brothers and sisters.”
At one point, Garcia, the mayor, hinted that despite the council’s agreement on the matter, “there were a lot of exterior forces telling [them] not to go there.”
Pro-Palestine advocates say they will continue pushing for similar support in other Valley cities.
Residents watch war with ‘heartbreak’
About 1,200 Israelis were killed during the Oct. 7 attacks that triggered the recent attacks in Gaza. More than 28,000 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip have been killed in response.
This month, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the Israeli army to evacuate Rafah, the southernmost city in Gaza, in an attempt to eliminate Hamas troops.
According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, more than half of Gaza's total population is now ”crammed” in Rafah, and military operations there "could lead to a slaughter in Gaza."
For Ahmad Alkhayyat, a Palestinian Madera resident, “what's happening over there is very heartbreaking.”
“The lack of justice is horrible,” he said. “Hopefully [the resolution] will awaken some minds.”
Though Alkhayyat has lived in Madera for nearly 25 years, his family is originally from Gaza. Holding onto his daughter’s hands, he says the city’s call for a ceasefire represents a moment of unity.
“I'm proud,” Alkhayyat said. “I'm proud to be amongst these decision makers, my friends and family, and just the whole community.”
