Pittsfield — On Saturday, October 7, the long-standing Israeli-Palestinian Conflict escalated when, during the Jewish holiday of Simchat Torah on Shabbat, Hamas fired over 5,000 rockets from the Gaza Strip into Israel.
Hamas, formally known as the Islamic Resistance Movement, has called their assault “Operation al-Aqsa Flood.” Meanwhile, Israel launched a counteroffensive, “Operation Iron Swords.” Since the 2023 Israel-Hamas War started on October 7, thousands of people on all sides of the conflict have been killed or injured.
On Wednesday, October 11, hundreds of residents from throughout Berkshire County came out for a community vigil for Israel at Park Square. The event was co-organized by several local Jewish organizations: Jewish Federation of the Berkshires, along with Pittsfield organizations Temple Anshe Amunim, Congregation Knesset Israel, and Chabad of the Berkshires. Other organizations involved in the event included Great Barrington-based organizations Hevreh of Southern Berkshire, Berkshire Minyan, and Congregation Ahavath Sholom, as well as North Adams-based organization Congregation Beth Israel.
“We are all in shock, we are all heartbroken, we are in mourning, we are angry, we are scared, and we are all worried,” Executive Director of the Jewish Federation of the Berkshires Dara Kaufman told The Berkshire Edge. “We know about the danger and the feat of what is to come as this war continues. We are trying to be a community in solidarity with Israel and all of its people.”
Kaufman said that her husband is Israeli and she has family who live in Israel. “My in-laws, my brother-in-law, sister-in-law, and all of our nieces and nephews are all there,” Kaufman said. “We have many younger cousins who are fighting in the war. My brother and sister-in-law and their young children have been in bomb shelters for the last few days. There is a lot of anxiety and a lot of concern.”
Kaufman said that support, whether it is supporting people in Israel or supporting friends and family who live in the Berkshires and have family and friends in Israel, is important. “Coming together to stand in solidarity with Israel and to say that we will not accept this is important,” Kaufman said. “We all need to reach out to our families and friends.”
“We all have a lot of care and concern for our Israeli family and friends,” Rabbi Neil Hirsch from Hevreh of Southern Berkshire said. “We are all thinking about the safety and security of the people there and we want to know that they’re going to be okay. At a time like this, we need to be coming together. We need to express care and concern because this has affected families in our community.”
Rabbi Barbara Cohen from Congregation Ahavath Sholom in Great Barrington said that she is disheartened about the war. “I’ve been feeling a pall of sadness, solidarity, despair, and disbelief at the brutality and savagery of this attack,” Cohen said. “I think this is the time when people should put all of their differences aside to come together and support Israel. [Hamas] is using incredible savagery to destroy Israel and its people.”
Vigil attendee Elisa Schindler Frankel, a past president of the Jewish Federation of the Berkshires, said she lost her 30-year-old cousin in Israel due to the attacks by Hamas. “He was buried yesterday, and it’s very painful and personal,” Frankel said. “I’m still very numb. I think, as a community, we need to reach out to our Israeli friends and relatives, embrace them, and let them know that we’re here for them, that we stand with them, and support them. I think there is tremendous guilt when you realize that, when you live in the United States, it’s happening over there and you are here, and you realize the personal toll and sacrifices the people have made.”
Jilly Lederman, a board member of Knesset Israel and a Hebrew School teacher, said that she is grateful that people came together at the vigil. “Regardless of your political beliefs, it’s important to come together to support Israel,” Lederman. “I’m a teacher, and I’ve spent my entire existence thinking about the Holocaust and genocide. I’ve thought about ways for my students to consider the question of ‘Why does history repeat itself?’ I think what we need to do is bring to light that hate is something that seems to always be present in our society and it’s something that we can’t be complacent about.”
During the vigil, the crowd sang along to several traditional Jewish songs including “Ein Milim”, “Yerushalayim Shel Zahav” (“Jerusalem of Gold”), “Mi Sheberach” (“A Prayer for Healing”), and “Hatikvah” (“The Hope”).
Several speakers talked to the crowd gathered at the vigil, including Rabbi David Weiner of Knesset Israel. “I am not okay as I watch from afar while horrific atrocities are against my people,” Weiner said to the gathered crowd. “It has shaken me. I feel bereft, rage, embarrassed, sad, and afraid. My spirit is reassured by our presence here this afternoon, and our public demonstration against the outrage and evil against Israel.”
