Our student and recent graduate, Ayşenur Ezgi Eygi, was killed on Friday, September 6th, reportedly by the Israel Defense Forces near the Palestinian village of Beita. Ayşenur was participating in a demonstration against illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank, organized weekly by the International Solidarity Movement. She was found shot and bleeding under an olive tree and succumbed to her injuries soon after.
All of Ayşenur's teachers, mentors, friends, and community are devastated by news of her tragic death. Ayşenur was a bright light in our community of learning—a gentle, generous, and powerful spirit. We remember her profound, unwavering commitment to justice and her staunch belief in the power of peaceful protest. She was a student leader in the Popular University for Gaza Liberated Zone on the UW campus, raising her voice in solidarity with the people of Gaza. Her activism was anchored in values informed by her education in UW classrooms, namely the unqualified and universal human right to equality and dignity.
We offer our deepest sympathies to Ayşenur’s family and loved ones. We are exploring ways we can honor her legacy and memory, so that we and our students will always remember her name and her courage.