The Reno City Council on Wednesday approved a $3,000 donation to Jewish Nevada, but not before extensive discussions on what the money would be used for, and whether or not it would go toward the Israel-Palestinian war.
The item was first discussed during public comment, in which a public commenter Anaya Neadeau asked the council to deny the funds because it would be “dangerous to Palestinians.” She said that instead of donating money toward an organization like Jewish Nevada, which is “in favor of war crimes,” the money should be used to support unhoused individuals in Reno.
In response, Elliot Malin of Jewish Nevada said the funds would stay in the community and that he was “disgusted” that their organization would be conflated with the war.
“Jewish Nevada is a nonprofit in this community that offers services to Jews in Nevada,” Malin said. “The money being allocated today is not going to Israel. It is absolutely reprehensible to conflate the war with what is happening here. We provide community services, cultural services, programming, and security for Jewish institutions here in our community, not internationally.”
Malin said that Jewish Nevada also supports the council giving the same amount of discretionary funds to Muslim non-profit organizations within the community.
“Anti-semitism has seen a 400% increase since October 6 … Islamophobia has seen a 200% increase. Both of those from all-time highs.”
Malin said it’s antisemitic to attack a Jewish organization based on “something you saw on a website.”
“Since October 6, there have been over 40 bomb threats [toward Jewish Nevada],” Malin said. “This money that you’re allocating today is to make our community feel safe. I am repulsed this is a conversation we have to have again.”
Mara Langer, director of Jewish Nevada, thanked the council for supporting the organization.
“We are often a target of threat and our security advisor has been on the phone night and day working on security measures so that each program I have here has an armed guard,” Langer said. “We cannot gather without feeling a threat within our community, and that’s not right. These funds will help those in the community that feel the most threatened.”
Other public commenters also said the money should be used toward helping unsheltered individuals in the community.
Following these conversations, Councilmember Jenny Brekhus said that while she condemns antisemitism, she pulled the item for discussion, as she did the last time it was on an agenda, because there “has to be an explanation of the substantial benefit of how the funds benefit Reno citizens.”
State law requires council members’ discretionary funds to be used only for activities that provide a “substantial” community benefit.
Brekhus said the organization “could spend money on Israel-related activities,” and asked for the record to state that these funds would not go toward Israel.
She said she was supportive of Jewish Nevada’s special events and security if Israel is “excluded.”
In response, Vice Mayor Naomi Duerr said being opposed to anything is “fair game,” but that from her perspective, there is a false equivalence.
She said there was another item on the consent agenda that wasn’t pulled for discussion, which is a $5,000 donation to the Trauma Intervention Program of Northern Nevada. However, there was no public comment or comment from council members on how that money would be used, or advocating to save the money and use it toward homelessness instead.
“To call out one thing about one group and to say, ‘Well, if we only didn’t fund that, we would solve other world problems,’ I think is an expression of antisemitism,” Duerr said.
She said on future agenda items the same amount of discretionary funding will be slated for Catholic Charities and the non-profit arm of the Mormon Church.
Duerr said she was offended by the implication that if only Jewish Nevada wasn’t supported with discretionary funds, even if other organizations were funded, it would solve the issue of unsheltered individuals within the city.
“I have a big problem with that. I do think it supports a form of antisemitism,” she said.
Reese, addressing Duerr, said he feels a lot of “heartfelt concern” for her as a Jewish member of the board and of the Jewish community in Reno, and he thanked her for her advocacy for the Jewish community.
“I suppose it’s worth asking our folks here from Jewish Nevada what they want us to know about this item,” Reese said.
Malin said that while the majority of the Jewish community are Zionists, they also “recognize that Palestinians exist, and we want them to live safely and securely. That being said, what we do is specific to our community. We bring cultural events and Jewish life to Reno.” 
Brekhus asked Malin how the money would be used as a substantial benefit to the city, and said their organization could be “in conflict” with the mission of providing a benefit to the citizens of Reno.
“Will [this money] be used to the substantial benefit of the citizens of Reno, and not those outside of Reno?”
Malin said he answered this question at the last meeting in December, and that all of the public money Jewish Nevada receives stays in the community.
“We use it here in our community, and I also said that we do raise money for nonprofits in Israel … private dollars for trauma services, ambulances, hospitals and for helping support people who are from Nevada … We do not spend public dollars on anything that is outside of our community.”
Schieve apologized to Malin, saying this must be “incredibly uncomfortable” for him when discussing something so important to the entire community.
“It’s not fair that you’re being victimized up here. I want to say I am so sorry,” Schieve said.
Brekhus said with the narrowed planned use of the funds she was more comfortable with the donation, which she was not in December when it was last discussed.
“Gaza is being leveled like Dresden was leveled,” Brekhus said, recalling her grandfather who flew missions over areas in Germany where his grandparents were from. “That is why I brought it forward and forced the issue.”
The motion was passed unanimously to provide a donation of $3,000 in discretionary funding to Jewish Nevada.
