A group of Oak Parkers are asking community members to join them for a walk in solidarity with the Israeli hostages taken by Hamas and the victims of the June 2 firebombing attack on hostage-release campaigners in Boulder, CO.
The walk will begin at 11:30 a.m. Sunday, June 15 from the front steps of Oak Park Temple B’nai Abraham Zion, 1235 N. Harlem Ave. The organizers have staged a walk every week since the beginning of the war between Hamas and Israel. There are 55 Israeli hostages believed to be held by Hamas in Gaza, according to the American Jewish Committee.
Since Hamas invaded Israel and took the first of those hostages on Oct. 7, 2023, over 54,000 Palestinians and over 1,200 Israelis have been killed in the fighting that’s followed, according to the United Nations.
This walk is dedicated to “the safety and dignity of our Jewish community,” “the urgent need for the hostages’ release” and “our shared commitment to peace.” It comes on the heels of an attack in Boulder in which people campaigning for the hostages’ release were attacked with a Molotov cocktail.
Fifteen people were injured in that attack.
“Recent violent attacks on the American Jewish community, specifically targeting peaceful walkers in the Run for Their Lives movement — including a horrifying incident in Boulder where 12 people were injured—have shaken Jewish communities across the country,” organizers said in a news release. “But we will not be silenced. Since October 7, our Oak Park and River Forest community has walked weekly to raise awareness for the hostages still held in Gaza. These global Run for Their Lives walks are apolitical, focused solely on bringing the hostages home and supporting their families.”