Two years after Hamas’ Oct. 7 attacks on Israel, Duke’s campus climate continues to shift

In the aftermath of Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel, protests on college campuses dominated national headlines. Though the Duke community’s reactions to the war have been more muted than those at peer institutions, students have organized in support of Israelis and Palestinians through die-ins to memorialize Palestinian deaths and Passover seders with empty chairs representing Israeli hostages.

The climate has prompted University-wide changes, including a Provostial initiative on the Middle East and a change to the way demonstrations are run on Duke’s campus. 

The protests at the start

Two days after the onset of the war, around 150 community members gathered for a vigil on Oct. 9, 2023 to honor the victims of the attacks. Within two weeks, Duke Students for Justice in Palestine held a vigil for Palestinian lives lost, followed by students leading a walkout two days later. 

The events marked a substantial uptick in activism among Duke students, who, in recent history, have not built a reputation around political activism. The heightened political climate across campus carried throughout the academic year, and though most events were peaceful, some turned confrontational.

Audrey Wang

Duke’s most tense day of demonstrations occurred in March 2024 far before the large-scale April demonstrations and encampments that rocked other campuses. 

On March 4, 2024 pro-Israel organizations Duke Students Supporting Israel, End Jew Hatred and Passages planted 1,200 flags on Abele Quad to commemorate those who died during the Oct. 7 attacks. Pro-Palestinian counterprotesters gathered later that morning, with then junior Lina Leyhausen initiating the gathering with a flag that read, “30,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israel. How can we stand by and watch a genocide?”

The crowd on the quad expanded for both sides throughout the day. Most of the pro-Palestinian students moved to face the field of Israeli flags and unfurled a long list with the names of many of the Palestinians killed by Israeli Defense Forces since the initial Oct. 7 attack. They participated in chants including “SSI, you can’t hide — you’re supporting genocide,” making similar statements directed at “President Price” and “Duke University.”

Heber Ford

A similar incident took place on April 3, 2024, when community members organized a “Bring Them Home” rally on Abele Quad, calling for the release of Israeli hostages. Family members of hostages delivered speeches as pro-Palestinian gathered in protest at the other end of the quad. 

Around mid-April, pro-Palestinian encampments ignited on college campuses around the country. Though Duke did not see an encampment, several Duke students and professors participated in such activism at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Many encampments nationwide faced police crackdown with mass arrests and student removals. 

Pro-Palestinian demonstrations across the nation continued to the Class of 2024’s graduation ceremonies, and with Duke’s 2024 commencement address to be delivered by Jerry Seinfeld, a demonstration unavoidably took place at Duke.

A group of seniors interrupted President Vincent Price’s introduction of Seinfeld, walking out of Wallace Wade Stadium. Protesters marched to Languages Building later that morning, listening to speeches before the protest ended. 

Tiffany Chen

Activism one year later

To honor the civilians taken by Hamas and the Palestinian lives lost in the ongoing war, campus groups and community members organized memorials and vigils one year after Oct. 7. 

Duke hosted former Attorney General of Israel Avichai Mandelblit on Nov. 19, 2024, to the interruption of protesters, chanting slogans including “Avi, Avi, you can’t hide, we charge you with genocide” and “free, free Palestine.”

Duke later announced an investigation into the protest and counterprotesters at the event. 

Campus groups hosted vigils calling for ceasefire throughout the 2024-25 academic year, but activism was less pronounced than the year prior. In February, pro-Palestinian student groups held a two-day tent exhibit, bringing attention to the living conditions of Palestinian in the Gaza strip. 

In the 2025-26 academic year, tensions on campus are still tapered but have yet to die down. 

At a Sept. 9 event, Seinfeld drew controversy for his remarks when he called the Ku Klux Klan “a little better” than the “Free Palestine” movement for “admitting what [its members] really think” during his introduction of Omer Shem Tov, a former hostage held captive for 505 days.

Students demanded Duke condemn the remarks, but it released no such statement — a silence that pro-Palestinian student leaders and allies claimed reflects a one-sided approach to free speech.

Most recently, SJP held a die-in Sept. 24, calling Israel a “terrorist state” and accusing University administrators of “supporting genocide.”

The administration’s response

The Duke administration moved from initial condemnation of Hamas’ attacks to a broad effort to promote free inquiry and civil dialogue and understanding of the Middle East. Student activism was also on administrators’ radar, prompting the University to introduce tightened rules on campus protests and demonstrations.

On Oct. 10 — three days after Hamas’s attack — Price released the first statement addressing the brewing conflict.

“I am shocked and saddened at the terror attacks by Hamas in Israel and the continuing conflict that has taken so many innocent lives,” Price wrote. “I feel deeply for all in our community and beyond who are in pain.” 

Nine days later, administrators painted over graffiti on the East Campus Free Expression Bridge that displayed the message, “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.” The slogan has previously been called antisemitic. 

“Because the phrase, ‘from the river to the sea …’ is understood by many in our community and beyond as a call for violence targeting the Jewish community, the specific phrase was painted over,” wrote Mary Pat McMahon, vice provost and vice president for student affairs, in an email to Duke undergraduates. She added the University was “taking care” not to alter other sentiments on the bridge. 

Brian Yoon

Since then, the University has adopted civil discourse to foster dialogue on controversial topics like the Israel-Hamas war.

Duke launched the Provost’s Initiative on the Middle East in February 2024. The initiative, which was only supposed to last one year, has included workshops, guest speakers, art exhibitions and other opportunities to engage in work related to the region. 

The initiative also expanded into service work and research projects. Nine new Bass Connections research project teams launched in fall 2024 tackle humanitarian issues and ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

Following several protests, administrators announced changes to the protests, pickets and demonstrations (PPD) policy in September 2024. A new registration requirement mandated that such events be registered on DukeGroups 15 days in advance. Groups are also required to seek approval from University administration to host such events, and students are required to present their valid Duke ID when requested by University officials. Administrators did not publicly attribute the changes to increased protest activity. 

In reaction, faculty signed a petition demanding clearer guidelines regarding what speech is permissible and criticized the University’s policy as too vague and repressive of free speech.

A faculty committee began meeting this month to revise the policy, which was met with mixed reactions from student groups and criticism from other community members.

Divestment also resurfaced as a cause of discontent, with organizations like Duke Divest Coalition — which has pushed Duke to sever investments with ties to Israel — sending a 56-page proposal to administrators. 

The Advisory Committee on Investment Responsibility, in response, recommended against divesting. A May 2024 analysis of the minimal publicly disclosed information on Duke’s investment portfolio by The Chronicle found that Duke held $1.38 million in companies with ties to Israel or targeted by the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement.