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Advancing social justice and building power with working-class Vietnamese and immigrant communities in Orange County. Garden Grove, CA 92843 I wwwvietrise.org I @vietriseoc December 5, 2023 Dear Mayor Amezcua and Santa Ana City Council Members, My name is Tracy La and I am the Executive Director at VietRISE, a community non-profit organization based in Orange County, CA. VietRISE advances social justice and builds power with working-class Vietnamese and immigrant communities in Orange County. On behalf of VietRISE, I am writing in strong support of agenda item #19 and urge you to further discuss and pass the resolution in support of a sustained ceasefire in Gaza. For an agonizing 75 years, the people of Palestine have endured displacement, violence, and occupation by the state of Israel. In just the past eight weeks, Israel's bombing campaign in Gaza has killed more than 15,000 Palestinians, wounded over 40,000 people 2, and displaced most of the 2.3 million residents of Gaza3. Since World War II, the United States has given more than $260 billion in military and economic aid to Israe14. Due to Israel's total control over Gaza, the region has been described as "the world's largest open air prison 5." Therefore, our tax dollars have aided the state of Israel in causing the death of tens of thousands of Palestinians, the violation of Palestinian human rights, and the displacement of millions. In this context, experts such as Raz Segal, the program director of genocide studies at Stockton University, have called Israel's killing of Palestinians in Gaza a "textbook case of genocide" While the genocide happening in Palestine is an international matter, local voices and decisions like this one can have an impact in urging our country's leadership to call for an end to the state of Israel's bombing campaign in Gaza, an immediate ceasefire in order to save Palestinian lives, and to discontinue the use of our tax dollars for military aid to Israel. As a city that has pushed for inclusive communities, this resolution in support of a sustained ceasefire is one way to further demonstrate Santa Ana's commitment to justice. The humanitarian crisis in Gaza is deeply alarming, and the impact of the ' United Nations. (2023, May 15). UN marks 75 years since displacement of 700,000 Palestinians. The United Nations. bk2a.//news.un.orq/en/storv/2023/05/1136662 2 Sawafta, A. (2023, December 5). More than 15,900 Palestinians killed in Gaza since Oct. 7 - Palestinian health minister. Reuters. httgs:// reuters.com/world/middle-east/more-than-15900-galestinians-killed-gaza-since-oct-7-galestinian-health- mi n i ste r-2023-12-05/ 3 Masoud, B. (2023, December 5). Gaza families flee again to shrinking, overcrowded pocket of land. Reuters. httgs:// neuters.com/world/middle-east/gaza-families-flee-again-shrinking-overcrowded-pocket-land-2023-12-05/ 4 Wolf, C. (2023, October 10). How Much Aid Does the U.S. Give to Israel? U.S. News. httgs:// usnews.com/news/best-countries/articles/2023-10-10/how-much-aid-does-the-u-s-give-to-israel 5 Hovring, R. (2018, April 26). Gaza: The world's largest open-air prison. Norwegian Refugee Council. httgs:// nrc.no/news/2018/april/gaza-the-worlds-largest-open-air-prison/ 6 Burga, S. (2023, November 14). Is What's Happening in Gaza a Genocide? Experts Weigh In. Time. httgs://time. com/6334409/is-whets-haggen ing-gaza-genocide-experts/