A
s a sophomore at
Kalamazoo College,
I have felt outcasted
as a Jew and enraged by the
uneducated opinions on the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict
and did not know what to
do about it. During the first
week of our winter trimester,
Kalamazoo College’s Office
of Religious and Spiritual
Life hosted a community
reflection centered on
antisemitism, sponsored by
Hillel at K College. The entire
student body was invited
to hear from Hillel members
about their experiences with
antisemitism and how to make
changes. Topics included
Zionism, the Holocaust and
finding your Jewish identity.
“During the reflection I felt
empowered to finally share my
worries and my fears with a
community that knows so little
about what we, as Jews, expe-
rience on a daily basis,
” said
senior and president of Hillel
at K, McKenna Schilling. “I felt
incredibly proud of my peers
for being able to stand up in
a way that many people aren’t
able to, and for representing
the Jewish community.
”
I spoke about my March of
the Living trip when I spent
one week touring Holocaust
concentration camps in Poland
and one week celebrating the
fortitude of the Jewish people
in Israel. When people ask
me about my experience, I
still do not have the words
to describe it. Nothing can
match the magnitude of the
uncomfortable, gut-wrenching
pain of standing in those
camps. I left the march feeling
surprisingly happy. None of
the survivors we met let the
sadness and fear dictate their
lives. They choose to tell their
stories so that something like
the Holocaust never happens
again.
After hearing stories from
survivors about the darkest
moments in their lives and
the success and happiness that
they have now, I felt inspired,
a strong sense of responsibility
and desire to continue sharing
and educating the community
at large so that we, as the
Jewish people, can continue to
prosper and flourish.
Proud is an understatement
to describe the feeling I had
after my peers and I shared our
stories during our community
reflection. @
Ali Randel is a sophomore at
Kalamazoo College from West
Bloomfield.
for college students
by college students
Community
Ref
ection
Hillel at Kalamazoo College sponsors
program on antisemitism.
Ali Randel } jewish@edu writer
Ali Randel is
pictured in Israel
on the March of the
Living program.
38 | FEBRUARY 17 • 2022
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