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A group of pro-Palestinian protesters descended on Hillel at the University of Oregon on Wednesday — the third anniversary of the Hamas terrorist attacks — to demand the Jewish student group be banished from campus.
Chants from the group of roughly 25 protesters included praise for those who conducted the “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood” incursion that killed more than 1,200 Israeli civilians on Oct. 7, 2023, according to videos of the protest obtained by The College Fix.
“Hillel off campus,” the group chanted. “Glory to the martyrs of the Al-Aqsa Flood.”
“No more IDF on campus,” was another chant led by the Anti-Imperialist Front group. It’s unknown how many students took part in the demonstration.
There was no movement visible from inside the Hillel house as the chants continued from the protesters, most of whom donned masks and hoodies to conceal their identities.
Two Israeli flags hung from windows of the two-story house, and candles flickered in each of its window sills to memorialize the victims of the terrorist attack. The house is located at the western edge of the University of Oregon campus in Eugene.
On Wednesday afternoon, protesters also burned an American flag along the sidewalk near the house’s front porch.
Materials handed out by the activists stated the reason they’re targeting Hillel is because it is “a Zionist organization which serves as a propaganda hub and recruitment branch on campuses across the United States for the genocidal ‘IDF.'”
“They purposely conflate Zionism with Judaism when they call themselves a ‘Jewish Cultural Organization’ but in reality they funnel in youth to carry out settler exapansionist [sic] violence or die for the gain of ruling class,” states one flyer, a copy of which was obtained by The College Fix.
“It does not matter if it is a mosque, a church, a synagogue, a cultural or religious organization of any description – materially supporting Zionism, occupation, and genocide is not something the masses of people are willing to tolerate any longer,” it adds.
“Having an organization in our city that invites active combatants from an army engaged in a genocide to propagandize to the students and the masses, as Hillel has done several times since October 7th of 2023, is not something people are willing to accept.”
Advertisements for the demonstration had already caused anger among many observers earlier in the week.
“[C]alling for Hillel’s removal from the @uoregon is an abhorrent intimidation tactic that threatens public safety. ADL calls on University officials to investigate,” ADL Pacific Northwest stated on X on Oct. 5.
The president of the Anti-Defamation League, Jonathan Greenblatt, also called out the protest, arguing it is not free speech but rather “targeted harassment.” He called on campus officials to “take action.”
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