An open letter to residents and students

This is not a letter I ever imagined having to write.

Hon. Farrah N. Khan Mayor of Irvine 2020-2024

UCI students and IBC residents have told me they no longer feel welcome. They ask whether an Irvine City Councilmember who speaks this way can represent them fairly.

I served with Kathleen Treseder, and I do not reach this conclusion lightly.

This is not about demanding agreement on Israel or Palestine. One can condemn antisemitism, and still refuse to dehumanize Palestinians or vilify students and residents mourning terrible civilian suffering.

Hon. Farrah N. Khan

Mayor of Irvine 2020-2024

The posts

Read it for yourself.

Original clips from the letter.

Original post

Sunrise OC: In solidarity with Palestine. When people are occupied, resistance is justified. — Sunrise OC Tap image to enlarge

Kathleen Treseder’s comment

Incumbent Councilmember · @drtreseder

Screenshot of the comment attributed to drtreseder in the letter. Full public comment follows. — @drtreseder Tap image to enlarge

Full Public Comment of Incumbent Councilmember Kathleen Treseder (WARNING: explicit):

Kathleen Treseder · @drtreseder

This post really hurts me and makes me afraid. You say "resistance is justified." This tells me that if you're aggrieved enough, you would be willing to break into my home, tie my husband's, kids', and my hands behind our backs, gouge out my husband's eye, cut off my breast, cut off my son's fingers, cut off my daughter's foot, kill us, then eat our food at our table. Or rape my little niece until her pelvis broke, then kill her. Or use my phone to film 25 guys raping me, then killing me, then send the video to my mom. Or tie my son and me together with wires, then burn us alive while I held him and tried to protect them. Or, when I was pregnant, cut my babies out of me and behead them in front of me, then behead me. Then say that we deserved it. I, on the other hand, can't imagine a thing that anyone could say or do to me to compel me to commit any of those acts.

I've appreciated our collaborating in the past, but I want nothing to do with your group going forward.

Some of the Public Responses

@xmaribel8

City of Irvine Council Member Kathleen Treseder, do you care to explain yourself? @drtreseder councilmemberkathleentreseder (main page- does not let me tag her) This behavior is unacceptable.

@jennalikesbirds

@drtreseder Please point me to any statement Sunrise OC made saying they would be ok with any of the heinous things you mentioned in your comment. You can act willfully obtuse all you want. Your comment de-centered the loss of Palestinian lives—actually completely overlooked them—and then you distanced yourself from a group calling for a ceasefire. It’s clear what you meant. If you did not mean to completely dismiss the mass murder of Palestinians is Gaza, then I’m surprised you aren’t better at choosing your . . . .

Additional response

Your response is shameful. But regardless, thank you for revealing who you truly are. I met you once at an event. I, too, want nothing to do with you going forward. And for the record, if anyone tried to hurt your children the way Israel is hurting Palestinian children, I would fight for them just as fiercely. Because I actually value the lives of children.
#freepalestine

@emma.martiin_

@drtreseder it amazes me how you became a professor considering your level of ignorance.

Additional Comment

incredible how you manage to center yourself on a post condemning the mass murder of Palestinian civilians.

P.S.

There is an alternative to this establishment incumbent. His name is Scotty Hong. Scotty Hong