Since Hamas attacked on Israel on Oct. 7 of last year, the events of that day and Israel’s ensuing war in Gaza have reverberated in New York, as they are again on the first anniversary of the conflict.
The day of remembrance and protest in the city follows a year of demonstrations in support of Israel and of the Palestinian people — turnouts that were largely peaceful but sometimes turned volatile as heightened emotions led to clashes with the police.
It is no surprise that feelings about the conflict have been raw. New York is home to the largest Jewish community outside Israel — nearly 1 million in the city — and also has about 6,825 residents who identify as Palestinian, according to the U.S. census. The anniversary falls at a solemn time for Jews known as the Days of Awe, between Rosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year, and Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement.
In the year since the Oct. 7 attacks, demonstrators in New York have expressed their outrage over U.S. funding and support for Israel’s actions in Gaza, which have killed more than 40,000 Palestinians. Others have focused on the return of Israeli hostages taken to Gaza by Hamas, in addition to the 1,200 Israelis killed on Oct. 7. About 100 of the original 250 hostages are still believed to be held; the rest were returned or rescued, or died in captivity.
As the war has raged and the death toll increased, the city has seen rising instances of antisemitic and anti-Muslim violence and harassment.
Much attention focused on student encampments and counterprotests in the spring at Columbia University and other campuses, some of which led to mass arrests and the cancellation of graduation ceremonies. But protests continued after the encampments were dismantled, and as the new school year began, colleges in New York and around the country created new rules to pre-empt problems. New York University, for example, updated its student guidelines specifying that language targeting Zionists or Zionism could violate its anti-discrimination policy.
Mayor Eric Adams has said that security will be enhanced around synagogues ahead of the anniversary and that the police will be prepared to handle demonstrations.
“While we acknowledge that the city will respect and protect people’s right to peacefully protest, there will be a zero tolerance for those who violate the law, impede traffic and damage property while doing so,” he told reporters last week.
The New York-based pro-Palestinian group Within Our Lifetime, co-founded by a 30-year-old Palestinian American law graduate, Nerdeen Kiswani, has announced plans to march across Manhattan, with gathering spots from Wall Street to Columbus Circle.
Three Jewish-affiliated groups, the UJA-Federation of New York, the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York and the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, are holding a somber commemoration at 6 p.m. at SummerStage in Central Park, with musical performances, prayers and a candle lighting. Attendees are expected to include elected officials; the parents of Omer Neutra, a Long Island native and Israel Defense Forces soldier who remains a hostage; and survivors of the Oct. 7 attack on an Israeli music festival.
Events are also being held by left-leaning Jewish groups with messages calling for an end to the suffering of both sides. Jews for Racial & Economic Justice is planning a late-afternoon memorial gathering called “Every Life Has a Universe” near Union Square for Israelis and Palestinians. “We will hold one another through immense grief for every life stolen,” the group’s website says. Israelis for Peace NYC is holding a vigil at 7 p.m. at Union Square; attendees were instructed not to bring flags or signs.
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