Tensions flared in a Jacksonville City Council meeting as members objected to public remarks by a speaker who referenced several names of children.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A heated Jacksonville City Council meeting drew strong reactions Tuesday after a public commenter discussing the Israeli-Palestinian conflict referenced the names of children during her remarks, prompting objections from council members and debate over the limits of public comment.
City leaders condemned the remarks as inappropriate, while a spokesperson for a local activist group said the situation has been mischaracterized.
The speaker, affiliated with the Jacksonville Palestine Solidarity Network, urged council members to support a ceasefire resolution — a measure the group has advocated for since the council passed a pro-Israel resolution in 2023.
“You can think about local kids but not kids in Palestine,” the speaker said. “We come in here week after week for over two years to demand you to sign our ceasefire resolution.”
During her comments, the speaker referenced graphic images from the war and mentioned several first names, drawing an immediate interruption from Councilman Rahman Johnson.
“Mr. President, I’m sorry to interrupt this young lady, but I have to say, this body — we cannot say the names of children here, especially the names of the children of this body,” Johnson said. “They did not sign up for this. In this context, it’s incorrect.”
Council President Kevin Carrico, whose daughter’s name was among those mentioned, said the comments crossed a line, even as he acknowledged the importance of public input.
“You can question my leadership or my votes all you want,” Carrico said. “But when you bring someone’s family member, especially a child, it was really inappropriate.”
Carrico added that the remarks, which referenced violence involving children, were “obscenely inappropriate” and “borderline threatening.”
Johnson echoed those concerns, emphasizing the need to balance First Amendment protections with respect for elected officials’ families.
“We are the ones that signed up for this, not our spouses, not our family members, and certainly not our children,” Johnson said. “I thought that was a bit across the line.”
However, Ryan Delaney, chair of communications for the Jacksonville Palestine Solidarity Network, said the names cited were not connected to council members’ families.
“The names that Caroline chose were not based on any kind of information that we have into the private lives of city council members,” Delaney said. “Those are very personal names to her, because they were the names that she had chosen for children that she had planned to have and lost to medical complications.”
The speaker was removed from the podium before finishing her comments.
Johnson said he plans to send her a letter inviting her back to address the council, provided she does so in a manner he described as appropriate.