For the past two and a half years since Oct. 7, Michal Magen and Yael Raz Lachyani have held on to one dream: to return to their home, Kibbutz Nahal Oz, in Israel and begin the process of rebuilding their lives. Now, they’re sharing that dream with others to honor the stories of those whose lives were cut short as a result of Oct. 7. This past Wednesday, students and community members came together in the Goldberg Formal Lounge to listen to the testimonies of Magen and Raz Lachyani, members of the Kibbutz Nahal Oz community who endured and survived […]

Around 300 students packed Graham Chapel this past Tuesday to listen to stories of horror, heartbreak, and resilience from former Israeli hostage Eliya Cohen and his fiance and Nova Music Festival-survivor, Ziv Abud. Their accounts detailed the strength it took to endure unimaginable loss and trauma while also highlighting the importance of honoring the courage of others. 

Last week, three students and two faculty members recounted their experiences of the April 27 pro-Palestine protest and attempted encampment in the first event explicitly related to remembering the events of April 27 since they took place over a year and a half ago. The teach-in responded to a declining population of WashU students who were present during the demonstration — during which 23 students and four faculty members were arrested — and also raised money for Palestinian families. 

WashU ranked 72nd out of 257 colleges in the 2026 Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) College Free Speech Rankings survey, with an overall “D- speech climate grade.”

Roughly 150 WashU students and community members gathered in Brookings Quadrangle at sunset to remember lives lost during Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel in 2023. This is the third vigil organized by student leaders from various WashU Jewish organizations, including the Jewish Student Association, Hillel, and Chabad, since the attack. 

As Israel ramped up its attacks on Gaza, killed more and more civilians, and committed several war crimes, many of us Jews adopted the strategies that Piper describes. We insisted that people who came out in support of Palestine were ignorantly hopping on the most recent and trendy left-wing train. We insisted that pro-Palestine rhetoric was the latest form of subtle (or not-so-subtle) antisemitism. We insisted that Hamas held 100% of the blame for the catastrophic death toll in Gaza. We insisted that those dying were indoctrinated from birth and already terrorists in the making. We even insisted that the death toll and the famine were calculated works of antisemitic fiction.

Student Life reached out to a few students personally impacted by the conflict for their thoughts and reactions to the deal.

Students passing Mudd Field last Thursday, Oct. 9, may have noticed sets of chairs and tables set up on the eastern portion of the field. The furniture, which consisted of tables set with plates and silverware and pictures of Israeli hostages taped to 48 chairs, was part of a commemoration event organized by seniors Tim Mellman and Charlie Weingarten in collaboration with Jewish student organizations. 

I can only imagine the fear young Jewish college students felt when they were abruptly shaken from their studies to such violent chanting by unknown strangers who had descended upon their campus.

In the last year, university administrators nationwide have come under fire for their handling of campus protests. On Wednesday, Sep. 4, WashU Chancellor Andrew Martin shared his perspective. When asked a similar question that landed some of his colleagues in hot water — like university presidents at the University of Pennsylvania and Harvard University — Martin had a different answer.