Palestine rally marks one year of war in Gaza

By Sarah Sternhagen, Editor-in-Chief

A rally and vigil was held Tuesday, Oct. 8 in Freedom Square in support of Palestine as the inciting incident of the current war in Gaza reaches its one year anniversary. The event lasted two hours and had approximately 100 attendees at one point. 

“We don’t plan on stopping these events. We did them last semester. We did them last year. We’re gonna do them again,” Co-President of the Muslim Student Association (MSA) Hyder Javed said.

Last year on Oct. 7 the Hamas group attacked Israel, killing over 1,200 people and taking another 250 hostage. In the year since, over 40,000 Palestinians have died from the ongoing conflict, according to Palestinian health authorities.

The rally started at 5 p.m. and over 10 people spoke to the crowd from the temporary podium set up in Freedom Square. Speeches touched on the speaker’s personal background with the conflict, both Palestinian and Jewish, and largely called for Towson University to divest from companies that fund Israel’s actions in Gaza.

The SGA passed a resolution in May “urging” the TU Foundation to divest from Israel.

“The fact that it hasn’t happened yet is upsetting. So, I’m hoping that Towson can see that this is still something that we care about,” freshman Hayden Jurch said.

The podium was covered in a Palestinian flag and attendees held up posters denouncing the war in Gaza. Some students wore keffiyehs, a traditional headdress from the Middle East that has come to symbolize Palestine when worn at protests. Chanting and call-and-response happened between speeches.

“I came out today because I’m a big supporter for the Palestinian movement,” senior Ethan Raleigh said. “It’s always powerful to see students like this do something important.”

During the event, a table took donations for the Human Development Fund, which is a humanitarian organization that provides aid, assistance and relief to children living in vulnerable conditions. 

Nine organizations jointly asked and received permission from the university to hold the event, according to assistant VP of Student Affairs in Campus Life Matt Lenno.

The organizations MSA, the Young Democratic Socialists of America and Jewish Voices for Peace were large contributors to the event, according to Javed.

Hillel, Towson’s on-campus Jewish student group, held a gathering on Oct. 7 in the Hillel Lounge in Newell Dining to mark the anniversary of the Hamas attack on Israel. The event was not open to the media. 

In an email to The Towerlight, Hillel said the gathering was to create a “place for students to grieve and process what has happened to the Jewish people over the past year.”

Last year Jewish and non-Jewish students gathered in the immediate aftermath of the Hamas attack in Freedom Square, The Towerlight reported. Since then, TU’s campus has seen multiple protests linked to the ongoing conflict in Gaza. 

In the month leading up to the Oct. 7 anniversary, the University System of Maryland announced only university sponsored events would be held on Oct. 7. The University of Maryland announced the same, and canceled an already approved Palestine-supporting event for that day. The UMD was sued by their Students for Justice in Palestine chapter. The SJP won its suit and had their event reinstated for Oct. 7. 

TU had not made a public statement on its policy for Oct. 7, but did not make any changes to their protest policy, according to an email to The Towerlight.

The organizations that held the Palestine rally on Tuesday decided to hold their event on Oct. 8 out of caution and planning purposes, according to Javed.

An earlier version of this article incorrectly called the Young Democratic Socialists of America the Young Democrat Socialites of America. The article has been updated with the organizations correct name. The Towerlight regrets this error.

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