The Daily Emerald is providing live coverage of events held by student organizations today in remembrance of the Oct. 7 attacks by Palestinian political and militant group Hamas against Israel.
As of right now, the student organization Ducks 4 Israel set up posters on the Memorial Quad and there is a scheduled march and rally at the Eugene Federal Courthouse by Students for Justice in Palestine at 5:30 p.m., as well as a vigil by Ducks 4 Israel at the EMU Amphitheater at 6:00 p.m.
—
Updated 12:00 p.m.
On the one-year anniversary of the Oct. 7 attacks by Palestinian political and militant group Hamas against Israel, various student groups and organizations have honored the date with different events.
UO student organization Ducks 4 Israel staked posters of the 101 remaining Israeli hostages on the Memorial Quad around 11 a.m.
Rachel Lennard, the vice president of internal affairs for Ducks 4 Israel, described what the purpose of the event was.
“We are putting their faces up today to remind people that it’s been a year and we really want them to come home,” Lennard said.
Lennard said that she wants to remind people what is at stake during this time of worldwide tension.
“For me, this is a really good representation of the pain that is felt on both sides. This is a really polarizing issue and this gives me the perspective that what’s happening [in] my life might not really be that bad,” Lennard said.
Ducks 4 Israel has planned to hold a vigil at the EMU Amphitheater today at 6 p.m. to continue their events of remembrance.
“This is a really complex issue and people that support Israel, you’re not alone. We’re here to help people not feel so isolated,” Lennard said.
Farrah Jacoby, a Jewish student who saw the posters on her way to class, described how it felt to be Jewish on campus.
“I obviously wasn’t around for the Holocaust, but this has been compared to it. It’s really scary being a Jew on campus given how many people don’t like Jews and Israelis, so it’s been really hard,” Jacoby said.
She said that she appreciated the commemoration.
“It’s hard to see that there [are] this many people being held captive but I like that they have it out here so that everyone who walks by can see it,” Jacoby said.
The next event scheduled is a march and rally from the student organization Students for Justice in Palestine at 5:30 p.m. at the Eugene Federal Courthouse.