Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson began her proclamation at the Seattle Sister Cities Street Fair at Lake Union Park on Sept. 19 when a keffiyeh-wearing protester interrupted the self-declared socialist.
“Divest from Beersheva,” the protester shouted. “It is a f***ing genocide.”
The mayor told the protester, “I agree with that. I agree.”
Seattle and Beersheva are “sister” cities.
“I believe we can maintain connections with people and with culture even as we abhor the actions of a government,” the Seattle mayor said.
Seattle established the relationship with Beersheva—one of 20 Seattle maintains—in 1977. During his time as Seattle mayor, Ed Murray traveled to Israel to meet with his mayoral counterpart, Ruvik Danilovich.
The Seattle-Be’er Sheva Sister City Association, which is seeking new members, works with the Israeli Consul General to the Pacific Northwest, according to the city. At the street fair on Saturday, the city unveiled a street sign, with arrows pointing toward each sister city, including Beersheva.
Be’er Sheva Park sits at the edge of the Orthodox Jewish community in south Seattle. Though its sign is frequently vandalized—with the name “Be’er Sheva” scratched off or written over with “Palestine"—the park recently underwent a major renovation, which included signage welcoming visitors in many languages, including in Hebrew.
Regina Sassoon Friedland, director of the Seattle chapter of the American Jewish Committee, told JNS that when she was in second grade, she attended the dedication of the park. Now in a Jewish communal leadership role in her home city, she said that she has “made attempts to speak with Mayor Wilson” and would “welcome the opportunity to do so.”
“The mayor’s assertion agreeing that Israel is committing a ‘genocide’ is problematic on many fronts,” Sassoon Friedland told JNS. “Validating the word ‘genocide’ is serious and directly impacts her Jewish constituents.”
“Israel’s military campaign is against Hamas and other terror organizations,” she said. “It is not a campaign directed at the people of Gaza. While civilian deaths are tragic, they are not a genocide. Genocide has a legal definition under international law. It refers to the attempt to destroy an entire group based on their identity.”
“The Hamas attacks of Oct. 7 were a step in the attempt of genocide to wipe Israel and the Jewish people off the map,” she told JNS. “They have reiterated that they will continue to pursue this path.”
