From Maplewood Deputy Mayor Jamaine Cripe, who faced questions, criticism and some calls for her resignation following her comments at a ceasefire event on December 17, 2023:
The following statement and the views expressed here are my own and do not represent the Maplewood Township Committee.
We are living in liminal times. We can’t keep being the same people we have been, holding the same beliefs and ideas about how we should act as global citizens. We must change! And change is scary but necessary if we want to grow. Our little township wants to be a truly diverse and inclusive community, but fear causes us to act in irrational ways, pitting ourselves against each other instead of taking the uncomfortable step of sitting down and listening. I truly believe we can stand up for each other, call for change and disagree in the ways we do it without being disagreeable or disrespectful towards one another.
It was in the spirit of standing up for both sides that I attended a vigil calling for a ceasefire in Gaza on December 17th. The week prior, a serious bombing campaign had begun decimating entire communities filled with innocent civilians. Palestinian members of our Maplewood community reached out and asked for some elected official, any elected official, to come and stand with them as they called for peace in the region. Stand with them as I had already done by attending several vigils in support of the return of the innocent Israeli hostages taken and condemning the violent actions committed by Hamas. I believed the call for peace raised by these event organizers should be supported as well. Hostages had been returned during the first ceasefire. This time, they could all be freed and the bombing could stop! And then Israeli, Palestinian, and other world leaders could come to the table to work towards a viable, two-state solution. So, I attended this vigil for the ceasefire but not the march afterwards.
Since the vigil, I’ve spoken to friends and religious leaders who have helped me see that some of the words I spoke had an unintended impact on members of this community. I’ve been accused of being antisemitic, of only listening to one side, and that my use of the word “pushback” was in support of the barbarity of October 7. All of this is completely untrue. The pushback I was referring to was another reason for the rally – standing in support of the Palestinian families who pushed back by refusing to leave the safety of their homes for the uncertainty of a refugee camp when the Israeli government told them they had to leave so their neighborhood could be bombed. They pushed back by choosing to stay home, many dying together as a unified family so that no one would be left alone to mourn. What a horrible choice to have to make.
It’s ironic that one of the things I said that day that WASN’T picked up was that if someone hurts you that you have the right to say, “Hey, you hurt me.” Well, many of you did just that and I am grateful to the dozens of Maplewoodians, sympathetic to both sides and some in the middle, who were courageous enough to speak up. Thank you for your willingness to engage in conversation, sharing your stories and resources to help me learn more of the history of Israeli-Palestinian relations. For all who were hurt by my words, I sincerely apologize. My intent was not to hurt you and, because I wasn’t clearer in my earlier statements, it’s on me to own my impact. I’ve got a lot of learning to process and changing to do but I’m looking forward to navigating this time of great possibility with you as neighbors and, maybe someday, friends.
At the same time, to those who have actively maligned my character or twisted my words to fit a narrative of your own imagination, you’ve hurt me and you need to change, too. To even hint that I would support Hamas (a terrorist organization that has committed atrocities towards innocent men, women and children on both sides of this conflict) is a brutal punch to the gut and proof that you know nothing about who I am. I’d be happy to speak with you and hear your stories and share mine in person or via email but I will not engage on social media.
I didn’t run for political office to be popular. I ran because things need to change, even in our bucolic Maplewood. And if I can help facilitate conversations around that change for the better, I will do everything in my power to help make that happen. Maplewood’s Township Committee is actively working with local and national organizations to create opportunities for dialogue circles – places where we can come together and get to know each other as neighbors, share our stories, and see that we don’t have to polarize ourselves to live in harmony with each other. My congregation has been actively doing this for years in Summit and I’m looking forward to us curating a Maplewood version of these types of engagement opportunities.
The work of change is hard and the road is long but I have faith that we can get there. If we truly want to create a community where “hate has no home”, we’ve all got to be willing to put in the work to change our minds and our hearts.
May this year be filled with blessings for you and your beloveds.
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Together, we rise.
Committeewoman Jamaine Cripe
