More than two dozen activists, most between the ages of 18 and 35, withstood below-freezing temperatures in Ocean Park Thursday evening to mourn the loss of Palestinian lives in Gaza.

The vigil, organized by Eva Faber for MV for Palestine, was intended to honor the thousands of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank who have died in the Israel-Hamas conflict, Ms. Faber said.

Lit only by candlelight, participants gathered in Oak Bluffs to speak out against the humanitarian crisis and share their own motivations for joining the cause.

— Brooke Kushwaha

“A few people asked why this vigil couldn’t also be focused on the victims of the Oct. 7 attack,” Ms. Faber said in her opening remarks. “I think I speak for all of us when I say that we mourn the loss of all innocent life. Taking a moment to focus on Palestinians is not about invalidating the pain and suffering of others.”

MV for Palestine, also known as Ceasefire MV, is an informal group of activists who have demonstrated at Five Corners every Sunday for the past four weeks. The group is partly modeled after Jewish Voices for Peace, which has called on Israel to declare an immediate and permanent ceasefire.

At the end of every Five Corners protest, Ms. Faber said, participants hold a moment of silence.

“I wondered for tonight if it was possible to do one second of silence for every person who has died in Gaza,” she said to the shivering crowd. “I did the math and realized that would take just over five hours and 13 minutes.”

Several of the attendees who spoke at the vigil shared their relationship with their own Jewish heritage. One attendee, Rachael Fox, said she has lost support from some of her family members because of her political views.

Ms. Fox had attended Jewish schooling her entire life, she said, and even spent eight months in Israel on an abroad program. There, she made friends with Israeli residents of both Jewish and Arab descent.

“I was shocked to see how many Israelis did not agree with how Palestinians were treated by the Israeli government,” she said.

Island resident Lexi Roth shared her own family history, having several family members who were killed in the Holocaust. Her grandparents had survived and eventually moved to New York.

“I believe if they were around today they would feel deeply every life taken in Palestine,” she said.

Ms. Roth went on to stress the importance of togetherness and of valuing human life over political and ethnic boundaries.

“This has always been about human rights,” she said. “It’s why we say, ‘Never again for anyone.’”

The vigil ended in silence. Attendees joined hands around the rock adorned with candles, flowers and a small Palestinian flag. Ms. Fox then passed out candles to hold and light.

Activist David Mintz had previously spoken on the tendency towards despair in the face of repeated tragedy. Gatherings like these, he said, have given him hope.

“We’re here,” he said. “We showed up.”