Content warning: This story has mentions of rape, death.
On Wednesday, SLO Hillel hosted Nova music festival survivor Shye Klein Weinstein in Science Building 52 to share his story and honor the lives of Israeli citizens killed in the Israel-Hamas war, according to Executive Director of SLO Hillel Lauren Bandari.
Weinstein was present at the Nova music festival massacre just north of Re’im, Israel on Oct. 7, where hundreds of citizens were killed and wounded in a surprise invasion by the militant wing of Hamas. After seeing rockets overhead and hearing distant machine gun fire around sunrise at the festival, Weinstein described fleeing the festival grounds as he was shot at by Hamas terrorists and narrowly escaped with his life.
“When the festival started and we were all just having fun, no one had any idea what was coming,” Weinstein said during his presentation. “No one could have imagined that Hamas terrorists were coming to mercilessly kill us and torture us and rape us, but then they did.”
Bandari said roughly 110 people attended Weinstein’s talk, consisting of SLO Hillel members, community members and other students. SLO Hillel contacted Weinstein through resources provided by Hillel International, a Jewish campus organization that serves 850 campuses worldwide.
For SLO Hillel Event Chair and mechanical engineering sophomore Noah Alloun, he said being able to hear Weinstein’s story while surrounded by the support of the SLO Hillel community was invaluable.
“This event was great because we could hear information from a source we could engage with and trust as credible, which is rare now because there is so much misinformation being spread on social media,” Alloun said. “It’s events like these that remind Jewish students on campus that we’re not alone and we can support each other through this.”
Despite seeing a recent increase in antisemitism, both online and in person, Bandari said she believes all Jews should not let antisemitic acts rule the way they live.
“We have to keep our lives going for the memory of those who died but also for the spirit of everyone who has lived,” Bandari said.
Correction: This story was updated on Dec.4 to correct misquotations from Weinstein’s presentation.
Editor’s Note: Mustang News is referring to the ongoing conflict as the Israel-Hamas war based on the Associated Press Stylebook recommendations for the conflict.
