Last Sunday, this full-page ad appeared in the Chicago Tribune: a hate-filled diatribe against Mayor Brandon Johnson for his support of the recent city council ceasefire Resolution. Here it is, in full, along with my commentary.

Criticizing one resolution for “doing nothing to substantively affect the outcomes in the Middle East” is a straw man argument. No one who supported this resolution has any illusions that it alone will change the terrible facts on the ground in Israel-Palestine. It does represent, however, a civic statement of conscience. To date, over 70 US cities have passed similar ceasefire resolutions. Taken together, they constitute collective moral call for an end to the humanitarian nightmare that has been unfolding and escalating in Gaza for the past four months.

The letter makes the unsubstantiated claim that the City Council’s resolution proceedings “fanned the flames of antisemitism.” This is a serious accusation – and it is exceedingly irresponsible to level such a claim without any examples or proof. No, ceasefire resolutions do not cause antisemitism – and protesting Israel’s genocidal violence against Palestinians in Gaza is not antisemitic. It is a call for justice.

Chicago’s ceasefire resolution was based on a resolution passed by the UN last December, which emphasized that “the Palestinian and Israeli civilian populations must be protected in accordance with international humanitarian law.” It also called for “the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages, as well as ensuring humanitarian access.”

This is an exceedingly fair resolution. No, it did not absolve Hamas for the war and civilian deaths, neither did it condemn Israel for its outrageous prosecution of a military assault that international experts and courts have have claimed fits the definition of genocide.

The letter then goes on to say that Hamas “misused humanitarian aid” – another unsubstantiated claim – and criticizes the resolution for failing to demand that Hamas disarm. Since this is an Israeli demand, to include this would be to inject an egregiously partisan statement into the resolution.

The January 30 high school walkouts were powerful demonstrations of collective student conscience that Mayor Johnson was right to support. The claim that “hundreds of CPS parents, students and teachers” were harassed during the protests is completely anecdotal and in fact, outrageous. If harassment on such a scale actually took place, there would surely be widespread press and investigations into these alleged actions. In fact, the press around the walkouts cited “worries from some CPS parents and Jewish groups that Jewish students could be targeted or made to feel uncomfortable.” There is, of course, a world of difference between “uncomfortable” and “unsafe.”

Palestinians have long pointed out that the call “from the river to the sea” is not a genocidal threat, but a demand for equality and justice for all. If that makes some Jews uncomfortable, they should interrogate their support for “the world’s only Jewish state” – an ethno-nation that does not afford equal rights to the Palestinians who happen to live between the river and the sea.

The “compromises” suggested in this letter are exceedingly more political than anything Mayor Johnson supported – and slamming him for having no expertise or empathy is hateful in its own right. What these signees really want is for him to submit to their own personal opinions about “the Jewish American experience, the underpinnings of our (sic) connection to Israel and the history and the history of the Middle East.”

For shame. These individuals speak for themselves – not for the growing numbers of American Jews who are actively protesting Israel’s genocidal violence in Gaza – and who fully support Mayor Johnson’s courageous moral leadership.