Content Warning: This article contains references to sexual assault.
In the pouring rain, over 200 members of the Emory University community gathered in Asbury Circle to honor the Israeli civilians and soldiers murdered in Hamas’ recent attacks.
Hillel Israel Chair Sophie Kalmin (26C) and Eagles for Israel co-Presidents Lyndsey Lipson (24C) and Morgan Ames (24C) organized the Oct. 11 vigil to provide support and solidarity for students mourning the loss of Israeli lives. Community members huddled under umbrellas together and waved Israeli flags as Jewish students and faculty spoke.
The Palestinian militant group Hamas, which the United States, United Kingdom and European Union have designated as a terrorist organization, led a surprise assault on Israel last weekend on Simchat Torah, a major Jewish holiday. The group fired thousands of rockets into Israel while armed Hamas fighters entered the country by land, sea and air. Currently, over 1,200 people in Israel have been killed, including at least 22 U.S. citizens. Over 2,900 Israeli civilians and soldiers have been wounded. Hamas is holding an estimated 150 individuals hostage in Gaza, and has threatened to kill a hostage each time Israel strikes against Gaza without warning.
After the attack, Israel declared war on Hamas, and the country’s retaliatory attacks have resulted in over 1,100 Palestinian deaths. Over 5,000 Palestinian civilians and militants have been wounded. The Muslim Students Association (MSA) will host their own event in honor of those killed in Palestine and Israel this evening at 7 p.m. The ceremony will be held in the Emory Student Center’s Multipurpose Room 1, according to an Instagram story posted by MSA.
Multiple Jewish students and faculty members shared their experiences of checking in on loved ones in Israel during the attacks without knowing whether they were alive. The speakers also led the group in Jewish prayers for peace and healing and read the names of several family units that were murdered.
Among the speakers was Aliza Freilich (25B), who condemned Hamas’ violent acts against Israelis, including reports from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Hamas militants beheaded Israeli citizens, captured young children and raped Israeli women.
“Some things are morally complex, but what has transpired over the past few days in Israel is not,” Freilich said. “There is no room for ifs, ands or buts when we are discussing the murder and caging of young children.”
Additionally, Freilich called on Emory students and faculty to speak up for Israeli lives.
“I implore each one of you to break the silence,” Freilich said. “Silence speaks volumes, but your voice is louder. Speak the truth. Share it. There is no justification for the brutal desecration of Jewish lives, of human lives. Channel your moral clarity into concrete actions. Advocate for peace and truth over evil, over terrorism.”
Lauren Safra (27C) said she thought the event was “very well done.”
“Obviously it’s tragic,” Safra said. “There’s nothing that can make it better, but I thought that it was put together well.”
Ames said that the purpose of the event was to make sure that Jewish students had a place where they could be together and feel loved and heard. She added that vigil attendees were also mourning the people Hamas took hostage and that they are “pray[ing] for the return of those who are captive.”11
The event closed with a group of students congregating in a large circle around the perimeter of Asbury Circle, singing the Hatikvah, Israel’s national anthem, and other Jewish songs for unity and peace.
Emory’s Jewish Chaplain in the Office of Spiritual and Religious Life Rabbi Jordan Braunig led the Mourner’s Kaddish prayer to honor the memory of those who had been killed. He followed the prayer by reminding students to lean on each other during this time.
“Talking with students today, I know that I am not alone in feeling so many intense feelings as we walk around on what otherwise might just be a Wednesday,” Braunig told the crowd. “That is why we’re here. Our feelings are too much to bear alone. We need each other in our sorrow and in our grief. It can feel so lonely and isolating to hurt. So with you, along with our allies, we gather together in times of utter devastation, we offer our presence because that is what we have to give.”
If you or someone you know experienced sexual assault, you can access Emory’s Title IX resources at 404-727-0541 orhttps://equityandcompliance.emory.edu/title-ix/index.html and the Office of Respect at https://respect.emory.edu/ or their hotline 24/7 at (470) 270-5360. You can reach the RAINN National Sexual Assault hotline 24/7 at (800) 656-4673 or https://hotline.rainn.org/online. You can reach the Atlanta Grady Rape Crisis Center crisis hotline 24/7 at (404) 616-4861 or gradyrapecrisiscenter@gmh.edu and the Decatur Day League Sexual Assault Care and Prevention crisis hotline 24/7 at (404) 377-1428.
