On Oct. 7, Wisconsin Jews and Palestinians reflect on loss and solidarity

Monday marked one year since terrorist group Hamas killed more than 1,000 people in Israel. That attack led to the War in Gaza that continues today — claiming the lives of tens of thousands. For Wisconsin’s Jewish and Palestinian communities, it was a day of reflection and mourning.

As the sun set over Milwaukee Monday evening, around 90 people gathered in a nearly-empty mall parking lot. They flew Palestinian and Lebanese flags from their cars and wore keffiyehs, the checkered cloths that have become a symbol of the Palestinian resistance movement.

They were there for a “Funeral Procession Car Caravan” protest organized by activist coalition Milwaukee 4 Palestine.

“At the end of the day, I care about my family, and that’s why I’m here,” said Yaman Othman, a Palestinian-American from Milwaukee.

He said his father was nearly killed by Israeli soldiers as a young man, and that his family has been affected “generation after generation” by Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Othman said he has many relatives in Palestine, including his aunt, who works with news outlet Al-Jazeera in the West Bank. Last month, Israeli soldiers ordered the newsroom to close at gunpoint.

“As a Palestinian, it’s very hard, and this year has probably changed me more than any other point in my life probably ever will,” he said. Othman said he “hopped into action” and joined Milwaukee 4 Palestine as an organizer after Israel invaded the Gaza Strip last fall.

Sawsan Rizeq also became an organizer with the group after Oct 7, 2023 — though she said she’d participated in it before.

She said her relatives in the West Bank already lived under “apartheid,” but that it had “intensified” since last fall.

“I do have a sister-in-law who had family in Gaza, they were wiped out, three generations of family members wiped out in Gaza,” Rizeq said.

“As long as they are suffering, the least we can do — as long as I have legs, I’m going to keep on marching, as long as I have a voice, I’m going to keep on screaming,” she said, tearing up.

Cars lined up bumper-to-bumper, headed for the procession’s destination: Derco Aerospace, a Lockheed Martin company that provides spare parts and repairs for commercial and military aircraft. Derco is the sole provider of spare parts for the F100 engine, which powers the F-16 fighter jet used by several militaries, including the Israeli Air Force.

“Right here in our backyard in Milwaukee, we have a company that is directly responsible for the death and destruction that is happening to Palestinians,” said Heba Mohammad, an organizer with Milwaukee 4 Palestine.

“As a Palestinian, the thing I think about the most today is how deeply dehumanized we’ve been in order for this to go on,” Mohammad said.

According to videos posted on the group’s Instagram account, the protestors laid over 200 symbolic funerary shrouds at Derco Aerospace’s Milwaukee offices.

Milwaukee Jewish Federation hosts commemoration event

Later Monday evening, several hundred people attended a commemoration event hosted by the Milwaukee Jewish Federation at the Harry & Rose Samson Family Jewish Community Center in Whitefish Bay.

Paintings and photographs of hostages held by Hamas hung on the center’s walls.

“As we gather tonight, we come together to share in our heartbreak, and to find strength in one another,” said Jamie Miller, a co-chair of the event, during opening remarks.

Heather Berken is an emergency room nurse at the Clement J. Zablocki VA Medical Center in Milwaukee. She volunteered in Israel after the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks — which she called a “nightmare” she hasn’t woken up from.

“We spent our days and nights amongst the platoons of soldiers, many of them barely more than kids, anxiously awaiting their orders to enter Gaza,” Berken said during the commemoration. “We shared their meals, sat with them outside their dorms at night, trying in our own way to distract them from the uncertainty and the fear that hung in the air.”

Berken said her trip ended up being a “different mission” from what she expected as a nurse, and that her just being “present in a time of chaos and fear” made a difference to the Israelis around her.

Rabbi Hannah Wallick read an English translation of “By Day,” a Hebrew poem by Rachel Sharansky Danziger.

“Everything, everything hurts and feels wounded, injured, damaged. And how can one sleep, and how can one be tranquil, when we have lost for all eternity more than 1,000 hearts?” she read.

The attendees, many of whom had to stand around the perimeter of the packed hall, sang Israel’s national anthem “Hatikvah” and the Star-Spangled Banner.

They recited the Mourner’s Kaddish prayer in Hebrew, as well as prayers for Israeli soldiers and hostages. According to the U.S. State Department, 101 out of 254 hostages taken on Oct. 7, 2023 remain in Gaza, including seven Americans.

The event also featured a prerecorded video address by Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers.

“Like folks across the world one year ago today, we were horrified to bear witness to Hamas’ terrorist attacks against the Israeli people,” the governor said.

“We are home to, and proud of, our strong and resilient Jewish and Muslim communities. And there’s no doubt this past year has been exceedingly difficult, as so many are worried and afraid for their safety, as well as the safety of loved ones and friends both near and far,” Evers said. “The trauma of the last year has become a daily reality for so many.”