Alexandria joined 136 other cities around the country supporting peace in the world following a vote at Tuesday's City Council meeting. But it wasn't unanimous. The vote was 5 for the resolution, 1 against and 1 abstention.
Councilwoman Joyce Woodson first proposed a resolution at a legislative meeting in February.
"When I first brought this to you two weeks ago, there were just over 100 cities that had passed such resolutions," she told Council Tuesday. "The effort is growing because now there are 136. Two weeks ago, only Charlottesville had passed such a resolution in Virginia. Now there are similar efforts in Williamsburg, Roanoke, Blacksburg and other cities around the state. I believe that it is very important for us to express our concerns to our national leaders."
THE RESOLUTION asks that UN inspectors be given more time to do their job in Iraq and that the federal government produce more direct evidence that Iraq is a threat to its neighbors and to the United States, before this country enters into a war against Saddam Hussein.
At Councilman David Speck's request, a reference to the fact that Iraq is a direct threat to its neighbors was deleted.
"I cannot support this resolution," said Vice Mayor Bill Cleveland. "I am the only member of this Council who fought in Vietnam, and I believe that we need to support our troops. We heard Mr. [Phil] Sunderland say earlier that there are 10 of our own employees who have been called to serve in the armed forces. There are 23 Capitol Hill police officers who have been called to serve. Right now, we have 265,000 young men and women stationed in the Middle East ready to give their lives. I believe we ought to support them, and I will not vote for this resolution."
WOODSON POINTED OUT that the resolution specifically says that the city supports the men and women of the armed forces. "Of course we support our troops," she said. "We will always support our troops."
Councilwoman Claire Eberwein chose not to participate in the debate. "I have heard from very few people that this is something we should be discussing," she said. "I do not believe that it is properly before us because I was not elected to make foreign policy decisions and am not privy to national security information that would allow me to do so. At the very least, if we are going to vote on this, I believe we ought to hold a public hearing on the matter. I will not be participating in the vote."
Councilman William D. Euille supported the motion. "I believe that we ought to step forward and set an example as the elected leaders of the city," Euille said. "I am going to be wholeheartedly supporting this matter."