Cleveland Mayor Justin M. Bibb was the only Ohio mayor to attend the North American Mayors Summit Against Antisemitism in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on Nov. 15 and Nov. 16.
Bibb was one of 50 mayors from across the United Stated to attend the conference to determine how to continue to combat antisemitism in their cities, he said.
Bibb told the Cleveland Jewish News on Nov. 20 that there was excitement and hope with Cleveland being represented because it has one of the largest Jewish communities in the country and one of the most prominent Jewish federations.
“I committed to going to this conference before the tragic events that we experienced in Israel on Oct. 7,” he said. “And so, the event really was just a renewed commitment for us to combat hate, combat antisemitism and really brainstorm collectively as mayors about some of the best practices we could deploy in our respective cities.”
Three Israeli families, who have members that were killed or are being held hostage by Hamas, spoke at the summit. Bibb said it was difficult to hear the stories of the pain, trauma and sadness, but he was inspired by their courage, optimism and continued efforts to combat hate and antisemitism.
“I recognize that as mayor of Cleveland I have more (of an) obligation to combat hate and to fight against antisemitism wherever I see it in my city,” Bibb said.
He said there were conversations about the respective cities coming together to commonly define what antisemitism means and he thinks they are all working toward adopting the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s common definition, so they have the “right standards to address it.”
Bibb spoke at a plenary session on Nov. 16 about the time his grandmother went to Israel when she was a member of a Baptist church and when he went to Israel in 2018 to join a group of Black civic and business leaders from the Midwest.
He said the goals for his trip were to learn more about Israel, the Jewish people and Jewish faith and tradition, recognize and elevate the historical relationship between the Jewish people and African-American leaders across the country, and lastly to find common ways to work together in their respective cities, he said.
“It really opened up my eyes to the importance of supporting the Jewish community given the historic relationship that African-Americans and the Jewish people have in terms of the work that they did with us getting the Civil Rights Act passed and the Voting Rights Act passed,” Bibb said. “… It is so important for us as African-Americans to really continue to engage with the Jewish community because when we are aligned together, there’s nothing stopping our potential in terms of making our cities and our society a more just.”
Bibb said he looks forward to his continued collaborations with law enforcement, college universities and presidents and other Jewish leaders to make sure that Cleveland “can be a safe place.”
At Cleveland City Council meetings, there have been Palestinian protests and on Oct. 23, protesters called on Bibb and council leaders to retract their support for Israel.
Protesters also gathered Nov. 20 outside KeyBank State Theatre in downtown Cleveland, where the Greater Cleveland Partnership’s All In Leadership Forum occurred and in which Bibb spoke on a panel.
Ideastream Public Media reported the message the protesters had for the officials was to “divest from Israel and show support for the nearly 13,000 Palestinians killed in the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.”
