BROOKLYN COLLEGE– On Oct. 23, United4Israel, a Brooklyn College club, held a vigil during common hours on the West Quad for the Israeli victims of Oct. 7, 2023, which prompted a heavy police presence and a counter-protest by Brooklyn College Students for Justice in Palestine and Brooklyn College Student Union.
Attendees for the vigil signed in at a registration table hosted by the Tanger Hillel Place and were given wristbands to show they were part of the event. Israel flags lined a segment of the lawn, as well as signs showing faces of those lost on Oct. 7. Kosher food was provided to attendees as they mingled amongst one another.
President of United4Israel, Shelly Zebak, discussed the objective of the memorial.
“The goal of the event was to provide a space for the campus community to remember innocent people who were murdered on October 7th, honor the living hostages who have been returned, and remind one another that even in grief, we are not alone.”
A counter-protest by SJP was scheduled to start at noon outside the West Quad gate on Bedford Avenue. Protestors brought drums, signs, and chanted as the memorial proceeded.
BCSU members felt that while the counter-protest was brief, it had successfully managed to do what it sought to do: gather attention.
