Candlelight Vigil Held For Victims of Gaza Violence

About 70 members of the Harvard community gathered last night in a snowy Hillel courtyard for a candlelight vigil mourning the loss of life in the Gaza Strip and Israel since serious conflict began in the region almost two weeks ago.

The vigil was co-sponsored by the Harvard Islamic Society, Harvard Students for Israel, Harvard Hillel, Jews and Muslims (JAM), the Progressive Jewish Alliance, and the Society of Arab Students.

Shifra B. Mincer ’09 and Sadia Ahsanuddin ’09, both leaders in JAM, read personal reflections.

“It means a lot to see so groups with so many different opinions and ideas come together,” Ahsanuddin said. “Human life is sacred, and we must remind ourselves that the other side is just as human and as vulnerable as we are.”

Mincer read a similar call for peace and mutual understanding.

“The more we ignore others’ stories, the more the violence,” she said. “We have to listen.”

She also encouraged attendees to get their news from a source they do not normally read.

“A haze hangs over everything I do,” she added.

A diverse crowd remained subdued but focused for the half-hour-long gathering, despite a brief interruption from two students who stood silently in the back of the crowd holding signs in protest. One read, “Israelis against the War” and the other, “765 Palestinians Dead/10 Israelis.” A brief tussle ensued when another student attempted to knock down the signs.

“They’re just frustrated,” said one vigil participant, who asked not to be named.

After two prayers, translated into both Arabic and Hebrew, Ilan J. Caplan ’10 led the crowd in a Hebrew song.

“Please sing,” he said. “It will warm you up even if you think you can’t sing.”

The vigil ended with a moment of silence. Participants lingered to talk and reflect.

“I think it’s wonderful that we can come together, hoping for peace,” Yonit D. Lavin ’09 said. “It doesn’t mean people don’t have very different opinions, but our ultimate goals for peace are the same.”

“I was deeply bothered by the attacks and the brutal violence,” Alexandra A. Rahman ’12 said. “There is very little a Harvard student can do to help the situation over there politically, but attending the vigil is one of the things we can do.”

Miranda K. Margowsky ’12 said that the vigil was a sign of hope.

“It’s nice to show our support and to bring together both sides of the conflict,” she said. “If we can do it here, maybe it can happen there too.”

—Staff writer Shan Wang can be reached at wang38@fas.harvard.edu.