The Israel-Hamas war is taking a toll here at home.

The University of Rochester is one of many college campuses across the country where there are rallies, protests and concerns over antisemitism and safety.

Once again, a rally called “Shut it Down for Palestine” was held Friday on the campus of the University of Rochester.

The group had speakers and announced chants that included, “Five, six, seven, eight, Israel’s a terrorist state" and, "From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be free." 

"This event has been co-organized between several organizations: the Students for Justice in Palestine in the university; outside of the university, we have the Rochester Voices for Palestine, we have the Rochester Democratic Socialists of America, we have the Party for Socialism and Liberation, we have Free the People ROC and then we also have the Rochester Committee to End Apartheid," said a spokesperson for the group, who is a co-organizer who would not give their name.

“I do not feel comfortable providing my name,” they said. “There have been several efforts on behalf of Zionist organizations and Zionists efforts to dox and release the identities for the purposes of endangering either the students or the organizers that are putting together these events, so we feel it’s best to the best of our abilities to conceal our identities.”

However, there are safety and security concerns expressed by some of the Jewish/Israeli student population, prompting the Jewish Federation of Greater Rochester to issue a Security Alert to the university and community at large.

“Our students feel scared and they feel like they’re not being protected in the way that they should be, and we felt like it was important for the community to know that first and foremost we care about the safety and security of our Jewish students on campus, and we wanted them to know and we want the community to know that we are concerned about them," said Meredith Dragon, of the Jewish Federation of Greater Rochester. 

Both groups are calling on the U of R administration for change.

"The administration needs to do a couple of things. The very first is to recognize that the use of the word ‘genocide’ in this exact context is not an inflammatory term, it is an accurate interpretation. When we dilute language, we dilute people’s will to resist and to stand up for what is right. The second thing is a recognition of the humanitarian crisis that currently exists and the disproportionate response and loss of civilian life in Palestine compared to that of Israel," said the unidentified co-organizer.

“It’s a big request and I think it’s an important one. There are three universities right now that have suspended Students for Justice for Palestine from campus: Brandeis, Columbia and George Washington. Because of the vitriol, because of the antisemitism that has come out of those rallies, those organizations have been suspended from campus and I would like the University of Rochester to do the same thing,” said Dragon. “I think it’s time.”