WSU's Students Organize for Syria chapter holds candlelight vigil for Aleppo

On Monday, Wayne State University's Students Organize for Syria chapter hosted a candlelight vigil to show solidarity with Aleppo in Detroit's Campus Martius.

Despite the frigid temperatures and a wind that wouldn't allow candles to stay lit, what started as a gathering of 15  grew to about 30, with passerby joining.

Speakers included SOS representatives, TJ Rogers from the Freedom House in Detroit, and University of Michigan graduate Besher Kashlan, who read his poem "A letter to Humanity."
Amal Rass, a WSU sophomore and national SOS board member, said the gathering was six years overdue.

“The Syrian people need our support, but they also need our voice. We are privileged with the freedom and democracy that thousands of Syrians are literally dying for, and we can use that to help them,” she said. “We can call and email our elected officials and ask them to support legislation that would save Syrian lives. We can also urge our legislators to bring in more refugees and help resettle more Syrians.”

"It's been over five years that the world has watched hundreds of thousands of parents, siblings and children tortured, killed and stripped of their freedom. Freedom so many of us have and take for granted," said WSU student Mayssa Masri. "It's been over five years that the world has watched millions of Syrians flee their war-torn homes in seek of refuge, but the world turned its back on them and closed their doors to them when they needed support.”

View a slideshow of photos from the event here.