By NEIL ZOLOT
WAKEFIELD – Motions for indefinite postponement were passed for a number of articles at last week’s Town Meeting, including two dealing with international issues during the meeting’s second session, on Thursday, May 2 in the Galvin Middle School auditorium.
Articles 22 and 23 were about the current Israel-Hamas war. Article 22 was a proposal for the Town Administrator to send a letter to the president and senators and congressmen representing Wakefield urging them to use their positions and best efforts to stop all transfers of arms without exception to Israel, stop scheduled and potential future transfers of funds to Israel and restore and funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian refugees.
Article 23 was a proposal for the Town Administrator to send a letter to the President and Senators and Congressmen representing Wakefield stating the town urges them to use their positions and best efforts to increase all transfers of arms without exception to Israel, increase transfers of funds to Israel, stop funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian refugees and release all Israeli and international hostages, including eight Americans held in Gaza.
Both Articles 22 and 23 were the result of citizen’s petitions.
David Bisson spoke on behalf of Article 22. “This will have a huge impact and compel Israel to negotiate,” he said of eliminating funding. “Seventy percent of Israel’s arms are from the United States. The war couldn’t continue without supplies from the United States. Nothing else had worked.”
He cited statistics about the damage Gaza has incurred and peppered his remarks with terms like apartheid, genocide, occupation and war crimes.
He also called for the release of all hostages, including Palestinians he considers being held hostage by Israel.
Resident Risa Webb said “Your idea is abhorrent,” to Bisson. She also said his remarks were anti-Semitic.
“You want us to accept terror,” she added.
Moderator William Carroll warned her and others to speak to the matter at hand and not attack people personally.
More in sync with that, Webb said, “There are no merits to this being at Town Meeting. It doesn’t belong at Town Meeting.”
Bylaw Review Committee member Daniel Lieber agreed, “This is not a matter we should be discussing at Town Meeting. This is not the place to discuss international issues.”
“This is not a foreign policy body,” resident Christopher Bossi added.
“I disagree,” Bisson answered. “We can have an impact on American foreign policy. If we can send this message from Wakefield, it’s important. Hundreds of lives are at stake.”
Carroll noted this has been taken up in other communities at the municipal level.
Eventually, Robert Mitchell motioned for indefinite postponement.
Finance Committee member Douglas Butler said he was against postponement. “This matter was brought to us,” he said. “Let’s vote on it.”
Resident Elizabeth Freeman also spoke against postponement. “We should vote it down,” she said.
Town Counsel Tom Mullen advised the Town Administrator cannot be ordered to follow the Article and postponement is the same as a negative vote.
Regardless, he pointed out “the significance of the Article is legally nil.”
Indefinite postponement was approved by a show of hands.
Freeman, who sponsored 23, then motioned for it to also be postponed indefinitely. “At Town Meeting we’re supposed to discuss local budget issues,” she said. “It’s not a forum to debate an international conflict.”
Despite Carroll’s warning to others not to attack anyone personally, Bisson commented that 23 was a plagiarized version of 22.
Speaking of Article 23, Bossi remarked, “There’s no sense to consider an issue the petitioner wants withdrawn,” after which it was postponed by a show of hands.
Articles 9 and 10 were also postponed because sponsors were not at Town Meeting.
Article 9 was a proposal to amend the General Bylaws to offer “trash removal and recycling to all residential properties regardless of the number of dwelling units there may be in any multi-family residential building.”
Article 10 was to amend the General Bylaws related to billing residents of multi-family dwellings for water and sewer by determining consumption attributed to each unit in a building with a single master water meter.
Article 13 was also postponed. It was for implementation of collective bargaining agreements between the town and the clerical Town Hall American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Council. “We are not ready to bring this forward,” Town Administrator Steve Maio reported.
Local resident expresses opposition to Article 22 at Wakefield’s Spring Town Meeting 2024 (Photo from WCAT)
