On the one-year anniversary of the Hamas-led attack on Israel, Wake Forest University hosted an interfaith prayer for peace amid tensions surrounding the cancellation of a lecture by a Palestinian activist.
University Chaplain Chris Donald gathered with Jewish, Muslim and Hindu chaplains at Manchester Plaza Monday afternoon, encouraging passers-by to say a prayer for peace.
“I think we need to acknowledge the pain and the sorrow that go along with the events of Oct. 7, with the war that has followed, but also the pain and the sorrow that folks are feeling right now about not feeling like they're a fully a part of the community," Donald said. "We want to acknowledge that and let folks give voice to that sorrow and even to anger about that as well. The thing that is tying us together right now, is that the world is not the way we want it to be, and we know that it can be better."
Last year on Oct. 7, Hamas led an attack on Israel which killed around 1,200 people. The event sparked a deadly war that continues to escalate and has killed at least 41,000 Palestinians so far.
Students at Wake Forest, and across the United States, protested the war in May, calling for a ceasefire. WFU administration called law enforcement officials to force them to disband after a few days.
Since then, there have been tensions on campus between students, faculty and administration. That includes the consideration of a no-confidence vote in University President Susan Wente, and most recently, criticism following the cancellation of a lecture by Dr. Rabab Abdulhadi, a professor and founding director of the Arab and Muslim Ethnicities and Diasporas Studies Program at San Francisco State University, scheduled for Oct. 7.
In a statement shared on social media, Wake Forest University's Muslim Student Association called the decision to cancel the lecture "heartbreaking and infuriating."
"This cancellation is not an isolated incident — it reflects a persistent pattern where Muslim and Arab voices are marginalized and the issues affecting our communities are ignored," the message states. "On a campus that claims to embrace Pro Humanitate, the university's actions stand in stark contradiction to its own values of humanity, inclusion, and free speech."
University officials have stated that the decision was made out of concern for security surrounding the event, and encouraged the community to attend two other events for interfaith prayer and reflection.
Amy Diaz covers education for WFDD in partnership with Report For America. You can follow her on Twitter at @amydiaze.