Students recall stampede at University of Florida vigil: 'I assumed I was getting shot at'
As thousands of people across the United States gathered for vigils and protests over the rapidly intensifying Israel-Hamas war on Tuesday, several students recounted the stampede that injured 30 people during a Jewish-led candlelight vigil at a college campus in Florida
Students told The Gainesville Sun early Tuesday that they were already on edge prior to attending a Jewish-led candlelight vigil at the University of Florida. The event on Monday night erupted in chaos as dozens were trampled and injured in a student stampede that sent more than 30 people to a local hospital.
“I was under the assumption that it was a terrorist attack of some kind. I assumed I was getting shot at,” said former University of Florida student Matt Gold.
Like Gold, students had a split second to decide whether they also were going to run. Everyone bolted, some falling over each other. Gold said he ran until he felt safe, adding that he saw scores of students hurt in the chaos, including a young woman with a bloodied face.
“Lots of people were crying and shaking. It was apparent people were very shaken up,” said the 30-year-old, who lost his Yamaka/kippah along the way.
Skylar Hendler, a 20-year-old graduate student, said she had the same experience and immediately thought of her family as she ran.
“I immediately tried calling my mom while I was running,” she said. “If there was a terrorist attack, and I was scared that I would get shot, then I wanted to have my mom on the phone before it happened and say goodbyes,” she said.
The university's communications department previously shared conflicting information, claiming only five students were injured and treated on-site. The department has yet to issue an updated official statement about those injured, leading multiple news outlets to misreport the gravity of the situation.
It's still unclear exactly what set off the commotion. Campus police said a woman in the crowd fainted and people misinterpreted a call for "911" while others said they heard popping noises or loud bangs.
Arab, Jewish communities in Detroit mourn, rally amid violence in Middle East
On Tuesday, more than 1,200 Palestinian supporters jammed an auditorium in Dearborn, Michigan, evening, including religious leaders and local politicians. Many waved Palestinian flags and the flags of other Arab nations, such as Lebanon, Morocco, Iraq, and Yemen, in addition to the American flag.
"From the river to sea, Palestine will be free," the crowd chanted at one point. They also chanted in Arabic about defending Al-Aqsa Mosque with their blood and their souls.
A night earlier, about 2,500 Jewish people packed a historic synagogue in Southfield, Michigan, to show their support for Israel. It was attended by several elected officials, including Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Sen. Gary Peters, and Reps. Shri Thanedar and Haley Stevens, and several state legislators and local politicians.
"Let's say very plainly a few fundamental truths," Whitmer said on stage at Congregation Shaarey Zedek, the oldest and largest Conservative denomination synagogue in Michigan. "We here in Michigan condemn this vile act of terrorism. We stand with Israel. And Israel has a right to defend itself."
In contrast, the Dearborn rally did not include political heavyweights like Whitmer, who had campaigned last year in Dearborn at Arab American events but avoided the large gathering Tuesday night.
"They say Hamas is a terrorist organization," Osama Siblani, a longtime Arab American leader and publisher of the Dearborn-based Arab American News, said to the crowd. "... The terrorist is (Israeli Prime Minister) Benjamin Netanyahu."
Jewish alliance in Rhode Island hosts vigil
In Rhode Island, the Jewish Alliance of Greater Providence hosted a vigil Monday evening in response to the crisis across the globe. "It feels like a total nightmare," said Stephanie Hague, chief policy officer for the alliance. Hague said her in-laws in Jerusalem have been taking cover in a bomb shelter, and that her father and stepmother were in Israel to attend a wedding that has since been canceled and are now trying to get a flight back.
Rabbi Sarah Mack, senior rabbi of Temple Beth-El, said the community was celebrating Simchat Torah when the attacks began. The holiday marks when the Torah reading cycle restarts again and is a time of gratitude and rejoicing with Torah scrolls.
“It is a sad and devastating time. This is not even one degree of separation for most people in the Jewish community,” Mack said. The temple is offering support as members of the community try to account for loved ones’ whereabouts, she said.
"This is not far from anyone. It has broken the hearts of many people in the community," Mack said. "The Jewish community is gutted by this."
Packed auditoriums at Ohio vigil
In Ohio, politicians, Jewish leaders, and private citizens packed two auditoriums at a prayer vigil Monday night, as Jewish leaders led attendees in prayer and song.
Organizers at the Jewish Community Center of Greater Columbus called people to light candles for those affected by the war, including the relative of an Ohio family who had died in the attack. Politicians including state representatives, Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther, and Sen. Sherrod Brown attended Monday’s vigil.
Event organizers called on people to ask their political representatives to push for aid to Israel.
"Today Ohioans and Americans all over our great country are united with one message: We stand with Israel," Brown said.
But some in the community have voiced support for Palestinians they say have long suffered injustices at the hands of Israel, and are now concerned about what will happen to civilians as a result of Israel's declaration of war against Hamas. The Ohio State University chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine, a pro-Palestine organization with chapters at universities around the United States, held a rally Sunday at the Ohio Statehouse attended by nearly 100 students and other community members.
"Today, October 7th, 2023, an unprecedented series of events have taken place, led by our heroic resistance in Gaza who have shown the world yet again that the spirit of the Palestinian people cannot and will not be trampled, and that our resistance to Zionism and Western imperialism remains strong," the group wrote in a Facebook post before the Statehouse event.
Palestinians rally at New York park
In Rochester, New York, Palestinian supporters rallied at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Park. Jonathan Corey, a Palestinian American organizer with the Rochester Committee to End Apartheid said about 50 to 60 people attended the coalition’s rally.
"We are deeply saddened and frustrated about the lack of sympathy and empathy toward Palestinians," said Iman Abid, a Palestinian American organizer with Free the People Roc. Corey said Palestinians have long been dehumanized and mischaracterized by forces across the globe, and events over the last few days have heightened a grim sense of disappointment.
"We feel like we’re screaming into a wall," Abid said.
Organizers also expressed frustration with how people in Gaza and the West Bank have been treated under occupation, citing human rights violations.
"Gaza lives under the most dismal circumstances," Corey said.
Timeline of the conflict: Why the 2023 Israeli-Palestinian fighting is among the most brutal in years
Israeli supporters rally in Florida
In Ormond Beach, Florida, a group of Israeli supporters gathered at the Granada Bridge, holding posters emblazoned with the Israeli flag.
"I'm coming out to show support for the Jews locally, for Israel and for America," said Raquel Levy, an attorney who organized the demonstration as a way to show support for her cousins in Israel. She said she had spoken to one, Odelia Cohen, who took shelter under a stairwell with her dog and cat as Hamas rockets landed in the area.
"They are going after civilians, dragged from their homes, just minding their own business, trying to live their life the way all of us live life. Yet, they were dragged from their homes kidnapped, killed."
Levy relayed a text message from her cousin that the pain is widespread throughout Israel.
Cohen said in her message: "I feel so stressed cause of all the uncertainly. I don't know what the future holds. Israel is a small country and everyone now knows someone who has been murdered or injured."
Palestinian supporters gather in Florida
About 85 miles north from Levy, Palestinian supporters rallied in Jacksonville, Florida, Monday evening. Sara Mahmoud, a Palestinian American organizer for the Jacksonville Palestine Solidarity Network, noted high energy and turnout of more than 100 people for the grassroots organization’s demonstration.
"We stand with Palestine, and we stand with the Palestinian people," Mahmoud said.
The longstanding conflict is often characterized as one of religion, but Mahmoud argued it was a conflict of occupation. The organization is demanding the end of three things: U.S. aid to Israel, siege and blockade in Gaza, and Israeli settlements in the West Bank.
"Palestinians have a right to dignity and self-determination," Mahmoud said.
Rallies follow massive presence over weekend
The demonstrations Monday followed widespread rallies across the U.S. over the weekend, from Times Square to Los Angeles.
A skirmish broke out Sunday between opposing demonstrators near the United Nations compound in New York City after a large group of Palestinian supporters rallied in Times Square, and others protested outside Israeli consulates in Atlanta and Chicago.
Dozens of rallies have already taken place since this weekend, and many more are scheduled for the coming days.
Contributing: Gainesville Sun; Bailey Gallion, Columbus Dispatch; Frank Fernandez, Daytona Beach News-Journal; Katie Mulvaney, Providence Journal; Niraj Warikoo, Detroit Free Press; The Associated Press
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Israel-Hamas war: Thousands gather for vigils and protest after attack
