Updated: Oct 12, 2023, at 11:30 a.m.
More than 120 students attended a vigil in Kogan Plaza Tuesday night to commemorate and mourn Palestinians killed during Israel’s bombing of Gaza as the Israeli government responds to Palestinian militant group Hamas’ attacks on the country.
Attendees huddled around Kogan Plaza’s clock during the vigil, organized by Students for Justice in Palestine. The group solemnly read the names of Palestinians killed in recent bombings, gave speeches, chanted and played music to honor the lives of killed Palestinians.
Some speakers at the rally hailed the attackers, arguing the Saturday invasion was part of a broader Palestinian struggle for freedom against oppression perpetrated by the Israeli government.
The demonstration followed rallies on the National Mall and White House Sunday for Palestine and Israel, which some students and SJP organizers attended.
Israel declared war on Hamas — which the United States and the European Union have long designated as a terrorist organization — on Sunday after militants launched a surprise attack on Israel the day before. The attack, which included rockets and mass kidnappings, fell the day after the close of Sukkot, a weeklong celebration commemorating the fall harvest.
Israel has responded with airstrikes and a “complete siege” of Gaza, completely restricting travel between Israel and Gaza, which has been under a longstanding blockade from Israel. As of Wednesday, more than 1,200 Israelis and 1,100 Palestinians have died, with thousands more injured.
An SJP organizer stood on the Kogan clock tower before the crowd to introduce the event, wearing a keffiyeh — a traditional Arab headdress — to conceal his identity, concerned that pro-Israel actors might identify him. The speaker said the gathering was intended to honor Palestinian martyrs who made the “ultimate sacrifice” for liberation from Israeli governance and the country’s oppression.
“Over 900 of our people have ascended to martyrdom, and that number grows every single day,” the organizer said.
He said the recent attacks mark a new era in Palestine’s struggle for liberation, with “resistance fighters” dispelling the “illusion of invincibility.”
“Even the backing of all the world’s most powerful imperialist states cannot suppress our people, whose resistance defies every colonial rule weaponized against us,” one organizer said. “Decolonization is not a metaphor. I repeat, it is not a metaphor.”
Attendees adorned the clock with a Palestinian flag, flowers, candles and posters with slogans like “rest in glory” and “glory to our martyrs.”
A student speaker who covered her face and did not reveal her name held back tears as she read out names of some of the Palestinians dead who have been identified, including children as young as 3 years old. About half of Gaza’s population are children under 18.
“We uplift each and every one of them,” the speaker said.
After reading out names, vigil attendees observed a moment of silence for Palestinians killed.
Students delivered speeches describing the magnitude of the number of Palestinian people who had been killed and the importance of remembering their deaths, characterizing Hamas’ attack on Israel as a response to “75 years of torture, imprisonment, occupation, violent incursions into our holy sites and ethnic cleansing and genocide” by the Israeli government.
“Our struggle, put simply, is one for justice,” one speaker said. “And in the absence of justice, there will only be more loss.”
The leaders of Germany, France, Italy, the United States and the United Kingdom released a joint statement Monday condemning Hamas and expressing “steadfast and united support” for Israel.
Attendees chanted “Free, free Palestine, long live Palestine” and “We will honor all our martyrs, all our children, sons and daughters,” later chanting in Arabic. Organizers invited attendees to read poems in Arabic and English to honor the dead.
More than half a dozen University officials from the Division for Student Affairs and the Multicultural Student Services Center — including Dean of Students and Vice Provost for Student Affairs Colette Coleman, Assistant Dean of Student Life Brian Joyce and Associate Vice Provost for Diversity, Equity and Community Engagement Jordan West — observed the vigil from feet away. At least seven Metropolitan Police Department vehicles and one GW Police Department vehicle idled on H and 21st streets during the vigil.
After programming for the vigil ended, a pair of conservative provocateurs — Christian Julio Lasval of the Heritage Foundation think tank and Mary Margaret Olohan of the right-wing news site the Daily Signal — approached the crowd. The pair took video and shined phone flashlights on the attendees, claiming to want to interview the organizers of the protest, as Lasval said he didn’t “need to hide” his face like attendees did. Attendees began chanting at the observers in Arabic, blocking their cameras with signs.
Lasval and Olohan did not immediately return requests for comment.
Attendees again chanted “Free, free Palestine, long live Palestine.” Lasval and Olohan began moving away from the crowd, and GWPD officers moved toward them and separated them from the crowd.
Two counterprotesters — joined by about five others over the course of the evening — stood across the street in front of District House, holding a sign and an Israeli flag.
Attendees released four red and green balloons, the colors of the Palestinian flag, with the names of Palestinian people who had been killed in the bombings taped on them, playing a song as the balloons floated away.
“We will release the balloons as a symbol of hope and as a symbol of our ongoing resistance and our martyrs attaining the highest level of paradise,” one organizer said.
Attendees chanted again before concluding the programming, speaking softly with one another before dispersing.
Jennifer Igbonoba contributed reporting.
This post was updated to correct the following:
The Hatchet incorrectly reported that a speaker said “powerful fearless states.” They said “powerful imperialist states.” We regret this error.
