More than 200 Northwestern community members gathered at Deering Meadow on Monday evening for a candlelight vigil commemorating the one-year anniversary of the Oct. 7 attack on Israel by the militant group Hamas.
“We’re gathered here tonight to remember and mourn the lives lost and shattered in Israel one year ago today, the deadliest day for the Jewish people since the Holocaust,” said Medill junior Madeleine Stern, Wildcats for Israel president.
The vigil was organized by a handful of students, including Stern, with the support of NU Hillel staff, who supervised the event.
Organizers led attendees in songs and prayers throughout the evening. The vigil opened and concluded with the singing of songs of peace. Between songs, speakers recited poems and read stories and testimonies of released hostages and family members of those who were killed in the Oct. 7 attack.
About 1,200 Israelis were killed in the Hamas-led attack a year ago, according to Israeli officials. Since then, Israel’s military campaign in Gaza has killed more than 41,000 Palestinians, according to Palestinian officials.
“We talked about what we thought would be most impactful, and what we thought would be most impactful was sharing stories, sharing poems, sharing stories of people that were impacted,” said Stern, a former Daily staffer.
SESP senior Or Yahalom spoke about her grandfather, a member of the Israel Defense Forces who died in 1973 fighting in the Yom Kippur War when her father was 6 years old.
“I share my story because of how this long, complicated conflict has affected my family firsthand, because I want to remind people of humanity,” she said. “These people are not numbers. So many families were forever broken, so many parents have been lost, so many children have been lost.”
Yahalom said her grandfather inspires her to have the courage to stand up for her beliefs.
“Asking questions is not a crime,” she said. “Even if you’re afraid to make someone feel uncomfortable, make them explain what things mean, make them explain why they are chanting for something, why they do or do not support something.”
Participants were invited to hold candles, Israeli flags, yellow ribbons and red flowers during the vigil. Organizers also led attendees in a reading of the Mourner’s Kaddish, an ancient Hebrew prayer for the deceased.
Second-year graduate student Alex Pekerman said attending the vigil helped her feel less alone.
“No matter how dark it is, there’s some light, and the light is the community,” Pekerman said. “We’re here for each other.”
Many attendees described the vigil as a site for both mourning and hope.
Stern said it was “beautiful” to see the Jewish community on campus come together.
“Today has been a really sad day — honestly, every day since Oct. 7 last year has been a really sad day,” Stern said. “But it was really great to be surrounded by so many people who feel the same way as I do.”
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