Students have held hundreds of protests and counterprotests on college campuses since the October 7 Hamas attacks on Israelis and Israel’s airstrikes on Gaza in response.

At Tulane, a fight broke out after someone tried to burn an Israeli flag. At Columbia University, posters of kidnapped Israelis were torn down. At Harvard and Columbia, a so-called “doxxing truck” showed up on campus naming students whose organizations co-authored a statement saying Israel is “entirely responsible” for the deadly October 7 attacks by Hamas and “all unfolding violence.” And at Cornell, classes were canceled Friday after death threats were posted toward Jewish students under the username “hamas soldier” on a Greek life website. A few days after the postings, 21-year-old Cornell student Patrick Dai was arrested and federally charged with making online threats. He has not entered a plea.

Shortly after the October 7 attacks, the National Students for Justice in Palestine released a “toolkit” to help chapters across America organize a day of resistance on college campuses. Their materials called the rampage, a “historic win for Palestinian resistance.”  Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis ordered state universities to expunge the student group, accusing its members of illegally backing the Palestinian militants.

Pro-Palestinian and Pro-Israel protests have come head-to-head on some campuses, raising concerns over student safety. 

Student-led rallies have exploded from coast to coast. In the west, the University of California at Berkeley issued a statement decrying the “growing prevalence of online threats, doxxing and harassment”. And in the east, emotions were so high at a University of Florida prayer vigil that when a participant reportedly fainted, the crowd screamed and panicked, injuring five in a stampede.

More: CNN | USNEWS | Al-Jazeera | NBC

Pray: that these ongoing protests and demonstrations do not erupt into violence. (Matthew 5:9)

Pray: for restraint and mutual respect among the student populations and for an end to the online hate speech. (Ephesians 4:29)

Pray: for wisdom for the campus staff as they tackle the conflicting political views. (James 3:17)