As the first anniversary of the Oct. 7 Hamas’ led attacks on Israel arrived, DePaul’s Students for Justice in Palestine chapter walked out of classes to honor the lives lost in Gaza throughout the past year and reiterated calls for DePaul to divest from Israel.
Students gathered in the St. Vincent Circle’s, on DePaul’s Quad, at 2 p.m. A small group of counter-protesters observed from the outer gates of Vinny’s Circle as the rally began, while Students for Support for Israel continued hosting a memorial in the Student Center.
Around a hundred students convened around the circle, with more joining after class officially let out. The event began by a reading of the Quran before walkout organizers started handing out shoes and stuffed animals to the growing crowds.
While reading the stories of some who’ve been killed, walkout participants were encouraged to lay the items around Vinny’s Circle to honor those who have died in Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023.
At about 2:30 p.m., there was a Chicago Police Department presence on Lincoln Park Campus, with three officers observing from inside the circle and many others congregating outside the gates.
DePaul Director of Public Safety Robert Wachowski was also present.
After a series of chants, SJP organizers warned protestors if the rally did not disperse from its original location within five minutes, then arrests would take place.
The group, now reaching over 100, began marching towards the Belden Ave. exit of the quad.
Reminiscent of the spring encampment, the crowds echoed chants of “from the river to the sea,” along with chants targeted specifically towards DePaul’s administration and President Rob Manuel, demanding DePaul’s divestment.
The CPD presence increased as patrol cars backed the protestors as they filed into the streets. Officers on bicycles blocked Kenmore Ave. from traffic as the crowd made their way to the Student Center.
More officers blocked the rally from spilling into the streets, and mediated traffic as the protest continued on the corner of Sheffield and Belden avenues. Privately contracted security presence was also visible throughout the rally.
While the rally resumed outside the Stu, inside, Students in Support of Israel concluded their own memorial for the Oct. 7 attacks, organizing in the lobby sharing information about the hostages still in Gaza. SSI had its display up from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
As SJP’s rally began dispersing, there was confrontation between two counter protesters and a group of pro-Palestinian supporters.
Separated by a line of four CPD officers, the two groups yelled back and forth at each other for upwards of ten minutes. The confrontation did not escalate further.
The SJP Oct. 7 walkout is another event in a long series of demonstrations calling upon DePaul to divest and to show support for Gaza, and the group has a series of other events planned throughout the week.
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