About 1,500 students who attend the University of South Florida are Jews, according to estimates from Hillel International, the largest global Jewish campus organization.
The USF Chabad hosts religious and social events for the Jewish community on campus. It’s a safe place for students, regardless of their Jewish affiliation, to seek counseling, spiritual guidance, and connections with other members.
They normally attend celebrations during Sukkot, Passover, and Shabbat dinners led by Rabbi Pinny Backman and his wife Chava, directors of the organization.
Three weeks ago, however, USF Chabad gathered with students for a different reason — to mourn the lives lost during the Hamas attacks on Israel on October 7.
“Almost every Jewish student that I've spoken to at USF has either family or friends in Israel,” said Rabbi Backman. “Everyone's been affected on a very personal level.”
Some USF students and alumni are Israel Defense Forces reservists who are now fighting to protect Israel.
Jesse Davidson is one of them.
Davidson joined the Israeli army shortly after graduating from USF in 2017. He had served in Sayeret Haruv, the elite reconnaissance battalion within the Kfir Brigade as a sniper in counter-terrorist operations throughout Israel.
“Even though I need the sleep, I can't sleep here. So, I go to the synagogue and I pray.”Jesse Davidson
Formerly a member of the Chabad Jewish Student Association at USF, he is one of the many Americans with Israeli citizenship who volunteered to join the army against Hamas.
He says that he felt the need to defend his ancestors’ homeland after the attacks.
“As the minutes went by, and I saw the situation spiraling out of control, it became very clear to me that the response was going to be big,” said Davidson. “Within three hours of the world knowing what was going on, they (IDF) had already mustered over 300,000 troops.”
As the situation unfolded, Davidson saw a group chat that he had with former army comrades “blow up”.
“When I saw my commander tell everybody (his army comrades) to come to base as soon as possible, I called them and asked ‘Do you have room for me?’” he said. “Two minutes later, I had a ticket and got on a flight the next morning.”
Davidson is with Battalion 9221— responsible for protecting Israeli citizens and executing counter-terrorist operations throughout the territories of Judea and Samaria.
Although it has been challenging to cope with the terrors of war, he is confident that the IDF will defend their country.
“Even though I need the sleep, I can't sleep here. So, I go to the synagogue and I pray,” he said.
“Despite everything we went through just two or three weeks ago... there's not a single person in this country who didn't lose someone and at the same time, there's not a single person in this country who did not answer the call."
Meanwhile, at USF, Rabbi Backman is making sure Jewish students are getting the support they need.
“We’re reaching out to every single Jewish student we know. Calling them up, messaging them, seeing how they're doing, and meeting up,” said Backman. “We have some students who have had incidents happen to them personally and we are here to let them know they are not alone.”
With the rise in antisemitic incidents across the U.S., Backman pointed out that many Jewish students at USF are feeling intimidated about showing religious symbols on campus, worried about how others might react.
“Many of them will hide their Star Of David necklace or some sort of Jewish symbol because they're nervous that people might say something,” he said. “Me myself, I’ve already had people walk by me and just curse at me, so it’s a very tough environment for everyone."
Backman keeps in touch with Davidson and Max Sherman, another USF student deployed in Israel.
Sherman is a player for USF’s Ice Bulls hockey team, which tweeted a picture of his jersey hanging behind the bench at a recent game.
This is bigger than hockey.@USFHockeyD3 #26 Max Sherman, a member of the Israeli reservists, was called home to Israel to fight. His #26 jersey will hang behind the bench as a tribute to his bravery and courage. We are all with you. Be safe, Max! pic.twitter.com/awvpDPX8TF
— College Hockey South (@CollegeHkySouth) October 18, 2023
Rabbi Backman asked some USF Chabad Jewish students to send Davidson and Sherman a message of support and prayer recently.
Davidson is still very connected to the Jewish community at USF. He is glad to see so many people rooting for him, and is confident that his people will thrive.
"To everybody at USF who sees the rise in antisemitism across the world, I want you guys to know that we are fighting for your freedom, for you to feel safe and open because nobody should be afraid to believe what they believe or to be who they are."
