Binghamton University students of all faiths and nationalities gathered together on Monday to hold a vigil for the hundreds of people who lost their lives this weekend in terrorist attacks around the world.
On Friday evening the world was shocked to hear of the carnage in Paris, where 129 people were killed in a series of coordinated attacks. On Thursday night, 43 people died from a suicide bombing in Beirut, and earlier on Friday, 18 people were killed in Baghdad. Hundreds more have been injured as a result of violence. The Islamic State has taken responsibility for the attacks, including the explosion which took down a Russian plane on October 31, killing all 224 people on board.
Over 100 students gathered around the Pegasus statue outside of Glenn G. Bartle Library on Monday to show solidarity with the lost lives. BU’s Muslim Student Association (MSA) organized the vigil along with the French Club, Hillel at Binghamton, Chabad at Binghamton, Binghamton Sikh Association, the Hindu Student Council and the Campus Bible Fellowship.
“It doesn’t matter what faith you’re from or what culture you identify with,” said Habeeb Sheikh, the vice president of the MSA and a junior majoring in political science. “It’s really to just recognize the fact that lives have been lost and that no life is greater than another, and we should pay our respects to every single life.”
Representatives from the different groups hosting the vigil spoke to the crowd, and candles were distributed to everyone who came to show their support. Akiva Weiss, the rabbi for Hillel at Binghamton, said that a place like BU has a very diverse representation in the student body.
“You have a lot of people who feel these attacks very personally, either because of where they’re from or they identify with the people who had to suffer because of this,” Weiss said. “We’re a diverse group of people, we can make it work here, so why can’t we do that in the rest of the world? I think that is a very strong message to send.”
Eydid Ali, the president of the MSA and a junior majoring in integrative neuroscience, said that showing support is really important at a time like this.
“It’s an amazing feeling when everyone can come together and show that they actually care about the world, and they’re not just busy with their own lives with school, with work, but they actually care about everyone, they care about the whole international community,” Ali said. “They might not have to say anything but just their presence can say a lot. Their presence speaks mountains.”
Emma McNulty, a fourth-year Ph.D. candidate studying geology, decorated the Pegasus statue with chalk drawings of peace signs and flags of the countries that were affected. She said the vigil was a way to bring people together and hopefully start conversations on how to help those afflicted.
“I would just like people to stop and think about how it’s affecting them,” McNulty said. “We’re all involved in this and I want everybody to feel like they can in some way be a part of fixing this and bringing peace.”
For many students who attended the vigil, such as Gamze Vural, a senior majoring in business administration, it was a chance to show solidarity with people around the world.
“All around the world people are suffering from the terrorist attacks so we should be together and stand up for the innocent people,” Vural said. “It’s important because Christian, Jewish and Muslim people are together and giving the message that at Binghamton University all students are together, no matter what their religion or their nationality.”