Dozens of residents urged the Alexandria City Council on March 15 to adopt a divestment resolution and end city contracts with companies they said are complicit in abuses in Gaza.

Grassroots speakers cited a United Nations Human Rights Office report published March 13 and said local investments and contracts with companies such as Amazon, Hewlett-Packard and Motorola indirectly support technology and equipment used by Israeli authorities. "This is what our investments are supporting...We must divest," said Melissa Albert, a resident who opened the first public-comments block, quoting verified testimonies she said appeared in the UN report.

Advocates described a range of steps they want the council to take, from declining to renew specific city contracts to asking the city's appointed representatives to influence retirement-plan allocations. Carrie Ann Schwartz, a longtime local organizer, told council members: "Your constituents have Palestinian family and friends...You have power. Use it." Several speakers pointed to past local and national divestment campaigns, including Alexandria's 1985 resolution on apartheid South Africa, as precedent for city-level action.

At the same time, members of Alexandria's Jewish community told council members they were concerned about rhetoric at some rallies and the safety of residents. "The relentlessly divisive rhetoric of those demanding divestment ... leaves me concerned about the safety of Jews in Alexandria," said Cassandra Newell, who identified herself as a longtime Jewish resident.

City staff did not propose a specific divestment ordinance at the hearing. Speakers asked the council to review city purchasing contracts, the city's supplemental retirement plan holdings and the city's participation in pooled state funds. Several speakers asked for a transparent accounting of active contracts with companies named in testimony.

The council closed the public discussion after a motion by Vice Mayor Bagley and a second by Councilwoman Green; the motion carried by voice vote.

Why it matters: Petitioners asked the council to use municipal leverage over procurement and investments to take a public stance on an ongoing international crisis, arguing that even symbolic action could affect larger political outcomes and offer support to community members here in Alexandria. Opponents and some residents cautioned about the local government's legal and administrative limits and urged measured, civil debate.

What's next: Speakers requested information about which city contracts are active with the companies mentioned and asked council staff to report back; council members did not vote on a divestment measure at the March 15 meeting.