CORRECTION: An earlier version of this article incorrectly attributed a quote from Rianna Saslow and incorrectly stated who read the descriptions of victims. Saslow read these. The article has been updated with the correct attribution. The Daily Tar Heel apologizes for this error.
As raindrops fell on the crowd, Rabbi Melissa B. Simon referenced Hebrew text.
“When a great tragedy affects the Jewish people, it says, 'If God has two giant tears, it fills the whole sea,'" she said.
Jewish and non-Jewish people honored victims of the Tree of Life synagogue shooting Thursday evening in the Pit during the Stand Up Against Hate — Solidarity Gathering hosted by the UNC chapter of North Carolina Hillel. The Oct. 27 shooting in Pittsburgh, Penn., was believed to be the deadliest attack on the Jewish community in the history of the United States, according to the Anti-Defamation League.
Attendants were invited to light candles next to the stage before the program began.
Twelve empty chairs faced the crowd, 11 of which had signs with the names and ages of the shooting victims. Nick Rosenthal, a Jewish student and member of the Alpha Epsilon Phi fraternity, placed a stone on each chair. A stone instead of flowers represents enduring memories for the deceased in the Jewish faith.
Rianna Saslow, a UNC student, read descriptions of each victim as some audience members cried. She highlighted the personalities of the victims, encouraging audience members to personally relate to those who knew the deceased.
“We all know the Irving Younger’s, who always come early, just so he can greet each and every person with a warm smile that says, ‘You are welcome here.’ We all know the Rose Mallinger’s who somehow consistently seem to have more energy than us, despite being literally 79 years older than us,” she said. “This tragedy may strip us of our sense of safety. But do not let it strip us of our sense of unity, our sense of belonging.”
The twelfth chair was left nameless in memorial for everyone who has died due to a hate crime. In her portion of the program, Chancellor Carol Folt offered condolences to those affected by the shooting and drew parallels between this hate crime and the 2015 killing of Muslim UNC students Deah Barakat, Yusor Abu-Salha and her sister Razan. Deah’s brother Farris later spoke to the crowd with a message of resiliency and unity in the face of discrimination.
