More than 150 University of Michigan students and Ann Arbor community members participated in a “die-in” demonstration Thursday afternoon to commemorate the death of Aaron Bushnell and honor the more than 30,000 Palestinians killed in the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. For the die-in portion of the event, demonstrators laid on the Diag while holding Palestinian flags and pictures of people killed by Israeli airstrikes in Gaza as a collection of audio clips from Gaza played in the background. For the second part of the event, organizers hosted a vigil where LSA sophomore Levi Pierpont, who was friends with Bushnell, spoke about their relationship and Bushnell’s legacy.
Bushnell, a United States Air Force serviceman, died Feb. 25 after setting himself on fire outside of the Israeli Embassy in Washington, D.C. in protest of U.S. involvement in the Israel-Hamas war. Immediately before Bushnell self-immolated, he stated, “I will no longer be complicit in genocide” and chanted “Free Palestine!”
The die-in was organized by the TAHRIR Coalition, a multicultural coalition of more than 60 U-M student organizations including Students Allied for Freedom and Equality and the Graduate Employees’ Organization. Representatives from the organizations Faculty and Staff for Justice in Palestine and Jewish Voice for Peace spoke during the event.
In an interview with The Michigan Daily, LSA sophomore Annabel Bean, co-founder of the U-M chapter of Jewish Voice for Peace, said Bushnell’s death made it clear how far people feel they need to go to be heard.
“I think it impacted everybody so deeply because it really just showed that people are desperate,” Bean said. “The movement has blocked streets and highways and talked to our senators and Biden and vote (but) nothing is changing. … It’s devastating because it shows the extremes that people have to go to for our country, our system to listen to us.”
After hearing from the event’s speakers, U-M students and community members laid down on the Diag under fake blood-covered cloth and surrounded by wrapped-up towels representing the corpses of children killed in Gaza. Organizers also set up posters containing photos of child victims from Gaza. During the demonstration, sounds of Palestinian people in pain, which were obtained from interviews and videos taken during attacks in Palestine, played over the speakers.
After the die-in, the event transitioned to a vigil for Bushnell. Attendees placed flowers on the steps of the Hatcher Graduate Library and observed a five-minute moment of silence in his honor.
LSA junior Alex Sepulveda, JVP co-activism chair, said in his speech that he believes Bushnell’s self-immolation was a deeply meaningful act of protest.
“What he chose to do on the day that he committed his action, he gave something to the world they could never take back,” Sepulveda said. “He bestowed a breath of fresh air, a breath of consciousness to the world that will linger in the winds of prosperity and courage forever.”
In an interview with The Daily, Pierpont said they were inspired to become more involved in pro-Palestine activism at the University after Bushnell’s death.
“I realized that I needed to jump into activism and do whatever I can to honor the memory of my friend, but also to get other students involved that feel similar — that feel like there’s nothing we can do about the situation,” Pierpont said. “I want people to step up and not wait for something so extreme to happen in their life. Don’t wait for the number of dead people to climb. Don’t wait for your friend to kill themselves in protest. Step up and do something now.”
Pierpont said he became friends with Bushnell while through the Air Force’s basic training together during the COVID-19 pandemic, and they had kept in touch since.
“I went to basic training with Aaron,” Pierpont said. “I got to know him really well and we kept up through texting, calling, things like that through the years. The last time I saw him was Jan. 5. … I had no idea he was going to do this.”
During his speech at the vigil, Pierpont said his grieving process has become difficult with the massive media coverage Bushnell’s self-immolation has received.
“It is so deeply unsettling to Google the name of my friend and see it in headlines,” Pierpont said. “It is still so difficult for me to hear other people talk about him. … You shouldn’t know my friend’s name. Maybe someday, he could have written a book about organizing, or you could have met him through his involvement in mutual aid. He could have become a labor organizer. … He could have done anything. I just want to have him back.”
Daily Staff Reporters Christina Zhang and Eilene Koo can be reached at zchristi@umich.edu and ekoo@umich.edu.