Davis council OKs some measures on bias against Muslim, Arab and Palestinian residents
The Davis City Council on Tuesday accepted some recommendations from the city’s Human Relations Commission aimed at better supporting Muslim, Arab, Palestinian and allied residents, following a contentious report on anti-MAPA discrimination.
Dozens of speakers weighed in on whether the council should approve the measure, disagreeing strongly on the scope of the problem and the path to a solution. The crowd spilled out of council chambers, surpassing capacity.
Issues surrounding anti-Muslim discrimination and antisemitism intensified in the Davis community since the October 7, 2023, Hamas attacks in Israel launched the region into conflict and sparked protests around the United States. University campuses like UC Davis were hotbeds of protest and political action in opposition to the war, which led to demonstrations against the state of Israel that made many Jewish students feel unsafe.
The council voted unanimously to accept three of the commission’s recommendations after more than three hours of public comment. Members also unanimously approved a separate motion acknowledging antisemitism and all other forms of discrimination.
The MAPA report and recommendations
Davis’ Human Relations Commission formed a subcommittee to study bias against Muslim, Arab and Palestinian residents in October 2024.
The subcommittee determined that community members feel like the city and its leaders “have ignored voices of concern and have not openly condemned harassment, intimidation and silencing of MAPA communities,” according to the April 2025 report.
“This has caused great harm, distrust, sadness and disappointment to members of the MAPA community” the report states.
The report drew on interviews and surveys asking whether respondents felt censored or had experienced discrimination in Davis. Respondents reported feeling excluded from cultural conversations and said the city and UC Davis did not do enough to address discrimination, according to the report.
The commission forwarded six recommendations to the council last year, including acknowledging anti-MAPA discrimination, affirming free speech and developing anti-bias training in coordination with UC Davis and the Davis Joint Unified School District.
City staff offered a modified list of recommendations that did not depend on outside agencies and were broader in scope, prompting objections from some residents.
The staff proposal asked the council to receive the report, acknowledge anti-MAPA discrimination, promote free speech awareness and develop broad anti-bias training. It did not require specific policy action.
Supporters of the commission’s report called the staff version “watered down,” while opponents argued the original report was inaccurate and divisive.
The California Commission on the State of Hate has reported increases in both antisemitic and anti-Muslim hate crimes since October 2023. The Human Relations Commission also formed a subcommittee to study antisemitism last year.
A packed meeting
Speakers were roughly evenly split between support and opposition. While disagreeing on the extent of anti-MAPA discrimination, many said any level of bias was unacceptable.
Supporters said the recommendations should not be controversial and would likely have been adopted quickly if they focused on another group.
Opponents questioned the report’s methodology, citing a small sample size and anonymity of respondents. Others said international conflicts should not shape city policy.
“The protection of the dignity and rights of all people in a community will always be city business,“ a UC Davis student who introduced himself as Thomas said during public comment.
“Davis is for everyone,” another speaker, who did not share their name, told the council. “We are all important. Everyone has the right to live free and without harassment.”
Several opponents who identified as Jewish described experiencing antisemitism since the Oct. 7 attack, including harassment and vandalism.
The report ignores antisemitism, said longtime resident Alan Brownstein.
“If you adopt the recommendations you would be slapping the Jewish community of Davis,” he said. “The MAPA report harms the Jewish community.”
MAPA report co-author Ellie Kaplan disagreed.
“It is not antisemitic to support Palestinian justice or MAPA community members,” she said.
Amir Kol, an HRC commissioner who objected to the report, said it was asking the city to take a political stand. “It’s being portrayed as if the report is just asking the city to stand with the Palestinians, with the Arabs, with the Muslims,” he said. But, to him, the report is asking the council “to stand with them against me,” he said. The report accused the Jewish community of inhumanity, he said. “I don’t want to be portrayed as a fascist or as a supremacist.”
“Today, speaking up for Jews doesn’t risk arrest by masked agents,” Davis resident Josh Livni said. “Speaking up for Palestinians does.” Livni said the MAPA report is needed because the voices of the MAPA community are not always heard.
Council deliberation
Mayor Donna Neville said the council was not voting on the report itself but on individual recommendations.
Antisemitism “is rampant and needs to be recognized,” Neville said, adding that addressing other forms of bias does not diminish that concern.
Bapu Vaitla, who represents the first district, said he supported three of the HRC’s recommendations as written, those that were not reliant on cooperation with the university and school district. He acknowledged the deep hurt on both sides, but echoed Neville’s point that recognizing anti-MAPA discrimination does not mean discounting antisemitism.
About a dozen attendees left the meeting in protest after Vaitla said he believed the death toll in Gaza amounted to genocide.
Councilmember Linda Deos said acknowledging reported experiences “is not the same thing as taking a position on an international conflict.”
Councilmember Gloria Partida, a former member of the commission, suggested a more rigorous community survey to address concerns about the report’s methodology.
“We have two communities that are at odds with each other on the world stage and who share space in our community,” she said.
The commission, she said, was created for difficult conversations like these.
“Unfortunately the path to understanding has never been easy,” she said.
“It pains me that our community feels this pain,” said Councilmember Josh Chapman, who added that the city has a responsibility to ensure residents feel safe and heard
The council unanimously approved Vaitla’s motion to accept three recommendations. It later unanimously passed Deos’ motion affirming a commitment to combat antisemitism and all other forms of discrimination.
The council also agreed to partner with the Hate Free Together Initiative to develop cross-cultural anti-bias training.
Despite sharp disagreements, the meeting remained largely civil.
“This is the beginning of an ongoing conversation,” Neville said. “We have a lot of work to do as a community, there are hard conversations we have to have.”
