Northern California Municipal Leaders Convene for Collaborative Forum on City-Level Push Against Antisemitism

A dozen local leaders from across Northern California convened at Palo Alto City Hall on Wednesday for a collaborative dialogue organized by the Combat Antisemitism Movement (CAM) on cities-oriented approaches to countering the proliferation of Jew-hatred.

Wednesday’s gathering was hosted by Palo Alto Mayor Vicki Veenker and Vice Mayor Greer Stone, and the roundtable discussion was moderated by CAM Chief Government Affairs Officer Lisa Katz, who leads CAM’s work with North American mayors and is a former town supervisor of New Castle (New York).

In addition to the host, other cities represented at Wednesday’s closed-door meeting included: Albany (Mayor Peggy McQuaid), Belmont (Mayor Julia Mates), East Palo Alto (Mayor Webster Lincoln), Campbell (City Councilmember Sergio Lopez), Los Altos (City Councilmember Pete Dailey), and Palo Alto (Human Relations Commission Chair Dr. Michelle Kraus).

CAM municipal partners in Northern California who could not attend the meeting were: Foster City (Mayor Art Kiesel), Mountain View (City Councilmember Ellen Kamei), and Berkeley (City Councilmember Igor Tregub).

The Northern California forum was the third in a series of regional follow-ups to the 2025 North American Mayors Summit Against Antisemitism in New Orleans, Louisiana, in December — with the first being held in Georgia in January and Utah last month.

During Wednesday’s exchanges, which lasted three hours, the mayors shared experiences and explored best practices and actionable strategies to combat antisemitism, with a particular focus on policies that keep municipalities centered on matters within their jurisdiction rather than global conflicts, as well as buffer zone legislation for protests, educational initiatives, law enforcement training programs, and upcoming Jewish American Heritage Month (JAHM) activities.

“At a time when antisemitism is rising across Northern California, this roundtable provided a vital opportunity for mayors to move beyond rhetoric and engage in the kind of honest, solutions-focused discussions that drive real change,” Katz said. “These leaders know that words alone are not enough. The communities they serve are counting on action. We are grateful for their commitment and encouraged by the momentum this gathering has built.”

Presentations were also made at the roundtable by Executive Director of the Bay Area Center to Counter Antisemitism (BACCA) Adina Danzig Epelman and Senior Manager of Community Security for the Jewish Federation Bay Area Rudy Granados, as well as Mayor Mates, who serves as Director of Policy and Government Affairs for the Jewish Community Relations Council Bay Area.

For more information on CAM’s Mayors Program, including the Municipal Antisemitism Action Plan, please visit: combatantisemitism.org/municipal-action-center