A year ago, an Oak Park group vowed to keep walking until a Middle East ceasefire was in place.
This month, the first phase of a ceasefire agreement between Israel and the Hamas militant group is underway.
As Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners are being released during the first phase of the ceasefire, the Wednesday Journal followed up with a founder of the local effort that involved walking weekly on every Sunday.
The walks were part of a local initiative that Oak Park resident Jeffery Bergman started in January 2024 through a grassroots organization called Run for Their Lives. According to their website, the group focuses on hosting “global run/walk events calling for the immediate release of the hostages held by Hamas.”
By walking in public, the group follows an international effort to bring awareness and show support to the Jewish people affected by the Hamas attack on Oct. 7, 2023, Bergman said.
The local group committed to walking every Sunday until the remaining Israeli hostages were released. Since their effort began, they have not missed a Sunday yet, Bergman said.
Bergman said the weekly walks outside are a way to keep the group’s message in the public eye in a peaceful manner. Throughout the walks, the numbers of attendees have varied from 10 to 30 people, Bergman said.
The walks have received positive reception from others in the wider community. Bergman added that some people who have attended the walks may not be Jewish but attend to support their neighbors.
“It’s a way for people to express their identity as Jews in the United States and in Oak Park,” Bergman said. “We have had a number of members walk with us that are not Jewish, but they were here to show their support the connection between their friends and neighbors.”
Several positive interactions have occurred because of their efforts. Drivers who have seen the group walking have pulled over to get out of their car or rolled down their window to express their appreciation for the group’s message and initiative, Bergman said.
Although a ceasefire agreement has been reached, Bergman says that the group will continue to walk until every hostage is “able to come home.”
The weekly walks begin at the entrance of the Oak Park Temple on North Harlem Avenue. The group then walks for one kilometer while singing Hebrew songs along the way for approximately 18 minutes. The number 18 is a symbolic number that symbolizes life in Jewish practices, Bergman said.
Part of the motivation to continue their efforts is to give a voice to the Israeli hostages who do not have a platform to advocate for themselves. The simple nature of walking weekly is something that the group can commit to, but there may be opportunities for the imitative to expand into something more, Bergman said.
“It’s not a big ask of us – if anything the impulse is that it can be frustrating that we do this and sometimes that feels like that’s all we are doing,” Bergman said. “We want to do more, and it’s very hard to find other things that you can meaningfully contribute here, but this is the one thing that we’ve been able to do and I think we’ve all found it very valuable.”