About 50 community members gathered at a memorial for lives lost in Palestine, Lebanon, Yemen, and Syria hosted by Penn’s Muslim Students' Association and the Penn Arab Student Society on Oct. 7.
The event consisted of a janazah prayer — a traditional Muslim funeral prayer — followed by an open remembrance space and took place in the ARCH building. The memorial was open to all and required a PennCard to enter.
Wharton junior Mouctar Diarra told The Daily Pennsylvanian that he attended the event because he "felt [he] needed to solemnly reflect with [his] community."
“The pain isn’t as visceral when it’s been on your mind every day for 365 days. Nonetheless, I felt very connected with those around me," Diarra said.
The Muslim Students' Association at the University, which was founded in 1963, aims to support the spiritual and intellectual growth of the University's Muslim community by fostering a space grounded in Islamic principles. Over the years, it has expanded to provide institutional support for Muslims at the University.
Another attendee, who requested anonymity due to fear for personal safety, told the DP that they attended because "my family and friends were directly affected" by the ongoing conflict in Gaza.
"I think it is always great to bring the community together and be in solidarity during hard times," they said, encouraging "continuous and public support from the school for our community."
The flags of Palestine and Lebanon were set up in the room, and chairs were set up in large circles to allow people to talk to each other. Whiteboards around the room featured posters of "martyrs," as well as messages such as "may they be granted justice" and "may they rest in peace."
“There are no words to describe the pain and grief that has been felt by us over the last year, over the last 76 years,” College senior and PASS President Majd Ayyad said in a speech at the memorial.
A speaker who identified themselves as the program coordinator for Middle Eastern and North African & Arab Student Communities welcomed attendees to the memorial, which was promoted as an open community space, and advertised resources beyond the event.
Diarra encouraged community members to "reach out and find a way to get involved even if it’s small, even if it’s behind the scenes, even if it’s just being a shoulder to cry on."
"This is affecting our campus, you can’t run away from that,” he said.
Senior reporter Neema Baddam contributed reporting to this article.
Editor’s note: This article has been updated to reflect that the memorial was organized by the Penn Arab Student Society in addition to the Muslim Students’ Association.
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