Members of the Jewish community say they’re terrified, horrified, and sad after this past weekend’s attack on Israel by Hamas militants.
More than a thousand people came together Monday evening to support Israel at IU Bloomington’s Dunn Meadow. They listened to speakers, chanted, sang, and rallied support.
Recent IU grad Sidney Fulford drove down from Indianapolis to attend the vigil. She said she just got back from Israel a few months ago visiting friends and family.
“I was terrified to not hear back from my family or my friends for hours. My boyfriend didn't answer for seven hours, I legitimately could not get up off the floor,” she said.
“What we're seeing happening right now is Holocaust imagery. If you really want to wake up to the reality and call yourself a human rights activist, look at what is going on,” Fulford said.
IU Junior Benjamin Bernstein is from Philadelphia and says uniting with others helped give him some peace of mind.
“I don't see it as a conflict. It's really nobody deserves to have what's happening, these people happen to them. And if you support that, then you support our cause. And I appreciate you,” Berstein said.
Just a half block away at IU’s Sample Gates, another rally in support of freeing Palestine drew more than a hundred people.
"Israeli soldiers, shut it down! Ethnic cleansing, shut it down! Genocide, shut it down! Apartheid, shut it down!" they chanted.
Both rallies were surrounded by police and monitored by a drone. Kirkwood and Indiana Avenues were shut down once the crowd spilled into the streets. Shortly after, the crowds dispersed.
The Associated Press is reporting more than 187,000 people have been displaced in Gaza as Israel blocks food, fuel, and other supplies in retaliation.
