As Harvard University junior Zakarias Erdos listened to his Israeli classmates tell stories of those they had lost in the war and on Oct. 7, he felt moved by the emotional weight of their words. The vigil was a commemoration for Oct. 7 held at the Widener steps in the center of Harvard’s campus. Erdos is the social chair of Harvard’s Hillel and actively participates in Jewish life on campus.
After a year of university campus conflicts, the one-year anniversary of Oct. 7 brought uncertainty about how it would unfold. While JDS alumna and current junior at the University of Maryland (UMD) Mira Beinart (‘22), was concerned violence would occur on campus this Monday, she was relieved to find a calm atmosphere, with tensions between groups remaining low and the Jewish community holding respectful commemorations.
Over the summer, UMD’s chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) reserved McKeldin Mall, the largest academic mall in the United States, for an event on Oct. 7. In response to backlash from the Jewish community, UMD initially canceled all events planned for that day, restricting events to university-sponsored only. However, SJP filed a lawsuit against the university, arguing that it was restricting their right to free expression. SJP won the lawsuit, and UMD was forced to allow them to hold their Oct. 7 event.
“I support the decision because I support everyone’s right to express themselves. I don’t agree with SJP’s decision to have any events on October 7, it’s disrespectful to Jewish and Israeli students and just Israel as a whole,” Beinart said. “But I don’t think they did anything inherently wrong. They were mourning the lives of the innocent people who’ve lost their lives in Gaza, and I support that.”
In McKeldin Mall, SJP held a vigil to mourn the loss of life in Gaza. The Jewish community also organized a ceremony co-hosted by UMD’s Chabad and Hillel, which featured student speakers like JDS alumna Ella Elimelech (‘23). Beinart attended the Jewish community’s ceremony and felt a strong sense of solidarity with her peers.
Similarly, at Harvard University, a pro-Israel vigil featured a diverse group of speakers, including students, campus rabbis, a professor and an Israeli whose brother was kidnapped and killed by terrorists in 2014. Following the vigil, the Harvard Hillel organized a space for attendees to share their thoughts and emotions.
“Both students and community members showed up [to the vigil] so it was a very big group,” Erdos said. “The solemn and respectful atmosphere made it a meaningful experience.”
However, on Oct. 7 the John Harvard statue, a prominent landmark at the center of Harvard’s campus, was vandalized with red splatter paint by an unknown individual. Additionally, the windows of University Hall, the building directly behind the statue, were broken.
The vandaliser filmed themselves using an object to break the windows and splattering paint on the statue to a pro-Palestinian Instagram account. The Instagram account posted that the acts of vandalism were perpetrated “in an act of solidarity with the Palestinian resistance.”
“The pro-Israeli side had a much more solemn approach while the pro-Palestinian side was much more about a year of fighting and resistance,” Erdos said. “…But overall there weren’t that many direct tensions.”
At the University of Michigan, a group of Jewish students reserved the Diag, the main field, to commemorate those affected by Oct. 7. Throughout the day, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., students organized tables featuring hostage posters and photos of victims. A ceremony held in the evening included prayers, songs and speeches, attracting hundreds of attendees.
“It felt good to be part of something so powerful and to see so many people come together,” JDS alum and freshman at the University of Michigan Max Schwartz (‘23) said.
Just a few hundred feet away from the ceremony, a pro-Palestinian protest took place, beginning with a walkout at 3:30 p.m. The protest called for the University of Michigan to divest from all organizations that support Israel as well as an ongoing “intifada” against Israel. Pro-Palestinian students attempted to walk through the Diag to where the ceremony was being held but were held back by police, at least one person was detained.
“You could definitely feel the animosity between the two sides,” Schwartz said. “It was interesting to see the Palestinian group protesting during our ceremony. The whole day felt very powerful.”
While campuses across the country have become sights of ongoing tensions between pro-Israeli and pro-Palestinian groups, universities were able to create meaningful pro-Israel ceremonies commemorating the loss of life on Oct. 7. From speaker series to stations displaying photos of victims and hostages, these events provided spaces for reflection and solidarity across the Jewish community.
“The sense of community that we all had really highlighted how important this Jewish community is,” Beinart said. “…Even though we might not all know each other, we’re always there for each other. The love of the Jewish people and the size and strength of the community was really highlighted yesterday at the vigil.”
