Exclusive: Jewish student leaders from all over the United States gathered in the U.S. capital on Monday Israel on campus At the National Leadership Summit of the Alliance, they heard the speeches of parents of American Israel hostages killed by Hamas.
Jon and Rachel Polin, parents of 23-year-old Hersh Goldberg-Polin, offer a direct attraction to over 700 students: find your purpose, have courage, and help ensure the release of 50 hostages, believed to be still in Gaza.
“Take your shoulders backwards, raise your head, be proud, participate, try to really learn and listen,” Jon Polling said. “Disarm the other person by participating and speaking.”
Their speeches were shared specifically with Fox News digital numbers, a few days after the latest ceasefire negotiations between Israel and Israel Hamas collapsed. Polins appeared as keynote speakers along with the release of hostages Keith and Aviva Siegel.
Israeli ambassador kills embassy staff to kill the “very important” situation
Jon Polin spoke in an Israeli group during an Israeli group discussion on July 28, 2025 at the Israeli Campus Alliance Summit in Washington, DC. (Provided by Israel on campus alliance)
Hersh Goldberg-Polin was kidnapped by Hamas terrorists at the Nova Music Festival on October 7, 2023. His death was confirmed after nearly 10 months of uncertainty. “He will always be 23,” Rachel said.
Rachel speaks clearly about the pain of her family. “It’s not an option,” she said. “As a parent, it’s very reflective, very natural, very primitive and natural…I need Hersh. I need him. Just like I need water.”
She challenged the student to find her “why” and recalled the words of a former hostage who survived for three days in the Gaza tunnel with HERSH. He told Polins that Hersh quoted Viktor Frankl: “When you have any reason, you figure out how.” Rachel said the surviving hostages repeated the “Why are we?” every day spell to keep the spirits high.
From campus protests to deadly violence: Israeli embassy staff murdered in Washington, DC
Rachel Polin shared emotional messages about her son Hersh and the rest of the hostages in Gaza at the Campus Alliance Summit in Washington, D.C. on July 28, 2025. (Provided by Israel on campus alliance)
Jon describes a young man in sharing Hersh’s identity, embodying what he now calls “a revolution.”
“He’s good at listening,” Jon said. “He’ll go find someone he disagrees with and say, ‘Hey, let’s have coffee. Let’s.’ We rarely win when we go beyond the other side.” Rachel calls it “radical listening.”
Jon talks with another Israeli dialogue that makes Hersh’s photo the background of the phone. “The first thing I have to do every morning is look at my phone. I see pictures of Hersh. I asked: What should I do to get better?” he told Jon. “That’s a revolution.”
“Do one thing every day,” Rachel urged Student Leader. “Some people wear yellow ribbons. Some say Psalm. Some people write to the White House. It doesn’t matter what it is, it’s important that you are doing something.”
Attendees stood up and applauded at the Washington, DC Campus Alliance Summit on July 28, 2025. (Provided by Israel on campus alliance)
solve The peak of anti-Semitism On college campuses, Jon urges students not to succumb to despair or victims.
He said, “Let’s stop saying, ‘It’s woe to us.’ “Take your shoulders backwards.” Lift your head up…turn the narrative into one of pride, strength and resilience. ”
Instead, he challenged his students to face hatred with confidence. “We are challenged. We have difficulties. But … we have all the elements to overcome. We need to do it. We need to do it together. We have no choice.”
Rachel also urges student leaders to work hard to make progress, not perfect. “We all have to figure out what we are going to do,” she said. “What am I going to do today, so when I go to bed tonight, am I leaving the world a molecule?”
Click here to get the Fox News app
Her remarks ended in hope.
“I wish all of us resilience, recovery, healing and comfort, all of us are so eager,” Rachel said. “There is light ahead. Let’s all towards that light.”
