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On November 25, 2023, three 20-year-old students of Palestinian descent were shot and injured in
Burlington, Vermont Burlington, officially the City of Burlington, is the List of municipalities in Vermont, most populous city in the U.S. state of Vermont and the county seat, seat of Chittenden County, Vermont, Chittenden County. It is located south of the Can ...
. The students, who were visiting Burlington for
Thanksgiving Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in October and November in the United States, Canada, Saint Lucia, Liberia, and unofficially in countries like Brazil and Germany. It is also observed in the Australian territory ...
break, were wearing
keffiyeh The keffiyeh (), also regionally known as a hattah (), ghutrah (), or shemagh (), is a traditional headdress worn by men from parts of the Middle East. It is fashioned from a square scarf, and is usually made of cotton. The keffiyeh is commonly ...
s to show solidarity with
Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...
amid the
Gaza war The Gaza war is an armed conflict in the Gaza Strip and southern Israel fought since 7 October 2023. A part of the unresolved Israeli–Palestinian conflict, Israeli–Palestinian and Gaza–Israel conflict, Gaza–Israel conflicts dating ...
when they were shot near the
University of Vermont The University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, commonly referred to as the University of Vermont (UVM), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont, United States. Foun ...
. A suspect, 48-year-old Jason Eaton, was arrested the following day, with the Burlington Police Chief stating the shooting was being investigated as a possible
hate crime Hate crime (also known as bias crime) in criminal law involves a standard offence (such as an assault, murder) with an added element of bias against a victim (individual or group of individuals) because of their physical appearance or perceived ...
.


Shooting

Three Palestinian 20-year-old male college students were returning to the home of one of their grandmothers after spending time bowling during a birthday party and were near the
University of Vermont The University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, commonly referred to as the University of Vermont (UVM), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont, United States. Foun ...
and the
UVM Medical Center The University of Vermont Medical Center (UVMMC) is a five-campus academic medical facility under the corporate umbrella of the University of Vermont Health Network that is anchored by a 562-bed hospital in Burlington, Vermont. UVMMC is based ...
. They had been in Burlington since November 22, and were staying at the home of one of the student’s grandmothers. The students were reported to be speaking a mixture of
Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...
and English and two of them were wearing keffiyehs when the suspect walked up to them and began to shoot at them, apparently only striking two of them when he was about 6 ft (1.8 m) away. One of the wounded was able to call 911, while the third fled to a neighbor’s home before realizing he had been shot, while asking for them to call 911.


Victims

The victims were male Palestinian students at
Brown University Brown University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. It is the List of colonial colleges, seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the US, founded in 1764 as the ' ...
,
Trinity College Trinity College may refer to: Australia * Trinity Anglican College, an Anglican coeducational primary and secondary school in , New South Wales * Trinity Catholic College, Auburn, a coeducational school in the inner-western suburbs of Sydney, New ...
, and
Haverford College Haverford College ( ) is a private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Haverford, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded as a men's college in 1833 by members of the Religious Society of Fr ...
. The three men grew up together and had all attended the
Ramallah Friends School The Ramallah Friends School () is a private school in West Bank, Palestine with campuses in the twin cities of Ramallah and al-Bireh. The Friends Girls' School was inaugurated in 1869; the construction of the Friends Boys' School began in 1901 and ...
, a
Quaker Quakers are people who belong to the Religious Society of Friends, a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations. Members refer to each other as Friends after in the Bible, and originally, others referred to them as Quakers ...
run
kindergarten Kindergarten is a preschool educational approach based on playing, singing, practical activities such as drawing, and social interaction as part of the transition from home to school. Such institutions were originally made in the late 18th cen ...
through
12th grade Twelfth Grade (also known as Grade 12, Senior Year, Standard 12, 12th Standard, 12th Class, or Class 12th or Class 12) is the twelfth and final Educational stage, year of Formal education, formal or compulsory education. It is typically the final ...
school, in the
occupied West Bank The West Bank, including East Jerusalem, has been under military occupation by Israel since 7 June 1967, when Israeli forces captured the territory, then ruled by Jordan, during the Six-Day War. The status of the West Bank as a militarily oc ...
. Two of the students were
Palestinian-American Palestinian Americans () are Americans who are of full or partial Palestinian descent. There are around 160,000 Palestinian American refugees according to the 2023 American Community Survey, making up around 0.05% of the U.S. population. Th ...
US citizens, and the third was a permanent legal resident. All three students were wounded, with one shot in the chest, another in the spine, and one through his backside. The mother of the most seriously injured victim told NPR that doctors had told the family it was unlikely her son would be able to use his legs again. In response to the news, the personal physician of King
Abdullah II of Jordan Abdullah II (Abdullah bin Hussein; born 30 January 1962) is King of Jordan, having ascended the throne on 7 February 1999. He is a member of the Hashemites, who have been the reigning royal family of Jordan since 1921, and is traditionally reg ...
reached out to the boy's family to identify his medical needs and send a specialist. In a statement, the young man said he was "one casualty in a much wider conflict." His family later confirmed that he was paralyzed from the chest down due to a bullet lodged in his spine. In a statement following the shooting, the student who was permanently disabled said, "Had I been shot in the West Bank, where I grew up, the medical services that saved my life here would likely have been withheld by the Israeli Army. The soldier who shot me would go home and never be convicted."


Suspect

A 48-year old white male suspect named Jason Eaton was arrested and charged with three counts of
attempted murder Attempted murder is a crime of attempt in various jurisdictions. Canada Section 239 of the ''Criminal Code'' makes attempted murder punishable by a maximum of life imprisonment. If a gun is used, the minimum sentence is four, five or seve ...
in the second degree, with investigations into possible hate crime charges continuing. When federal agents knocked on his door to arrest him, the suspect reportedly opened the door and told officials, "I've been waiting for you," and refused to say anything else. A subsequent search of Eaton's home revealed a pistol along with ammunition that was the same brand and caliber as
shell casings A cartridge, also known as a round, is a type of pre-assembled firearm ammunition packaging a projectile (bullet, shot, or slug), a propellant substance (smokeless powder, black powder substitute, or black powder) and an ignition device ( pri ...
found at the scene of the shooting.


Legal

Eaton was arraigned via video link on November 27, pled not guilty and is being held without bail. He is currently being charged with three felony counts and if convicted will potentially face life in prison.


Reactions

U.S. Senator and former Burlington Mayor
Bernie Sanders Bernard Sanders (born September8, 1941) is an American politician and activist who is the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from the state of Vermont. He is the longest-serving independ ...
stated it was "deeply upsetting that three young Palestinians were shot here in Burlington, VT. Hate has no place here, or anywhere. I look forward to a full investigation". U.S. Attorney General
Merrick Garland Merrick Brian Garland (born November 13, 1952) is an American lawyer and jurist who served as the 86th United States attorney general from 2021 to 2025. He previously served as a circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Dist ...
stated, "There is understandable fear in communities across the country". President
Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...
condemned the attack.
Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...
senator
Peter Welch Peter Francis Welch (born May 2, 1947) is an American lawyer and politician serving since 2023 as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States Senate, United States senator from Vermont. A member of the Democratic Party (Unit ...
also condemned the attack. Vice-president
Kamala Harris Kamala Devi Harris ( ; born October 20, 1964) is an American politician and attorney who served as the 49th vice president of the United States from 2021 to 2025 under President Joe Biden. She is the first female, first African American, and ...
called the attack "senseless." Ambassador Husam Zomlot stated, "The hate crimes against Palestinians must stop." The Vermont state attorney for Chittenden County called it a "hateful act". The
American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) states that it is "the largest Arab American grassroots civil rights organization in the United States." According to its webpage, it is open to people of all backgrounds, faiths and ethnicitie ...
stated, "We have reason to believe that the shooting was motivated by the three ictimsbeing Arab." A group of Burlington-area
rabbi A rabbi (; ) is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi—known as ''semikha''—following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of t ...
s spoke out about the shooting in a joint statement condemning the shooting and hope that the perpetrator was brought to justice, the group had also contacted the Islamic Center of Vermont to offer a message of support. At a vigil for the students at
Brown University Brown University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. It is the List of colonial colleges, seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the US, founded in 1764 as the ' ...
on November 27, protestors demanded that the university divest from Israel, leading university president
Christina Paxson Christina Hull Paxson (born February 6, 1960) is an American economist and public health expert serving as the 19th president of Brown University. Previously, she was the dean of Princeton School of Public and International Affairs and the Hugh ...
to leave the podium while students chanted "Shame! Shame! Shame!" at her. A peaceful
sit-in A sit-in or sit-down is a form of direct action that involves one or more people occupying an area for a protest, often to promote political, social, or economic change. The protestors gather conspicuously in a space or building, refusing to mo ...
at University Hall took place on December 6, organized by the "Brown
Divest In finance and economics, divestment or divestiture is the reduction of some kind of asset for financial, ethical, or political objectives or sale of an existing business by a firm. A divestment is the opposite of an investment. Divestiture is a ...
Coalition." Forty-one students were arrested and charged with trespassing. More than 200 students protested about the arrests on December 11.


See also

*
Aftermath of the September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks transformed Presidency of George W. Bush, the first term of President George W. Bush and led to what he referred to as the war on terror. The accuracy of describing it as a "war" and its political motivations and conseq ...
*
Anti-Palestinianism during the Gaza war Following the Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October 2023 and the outbreak of the Gaza war, there has been a surge of anti-Palestinianism, anti-Arab racism, and Islamophobia. Palestinians have expressed concerns over increased anti-Palestinianism ...
*
Violent incidents in reaction to the Gaza war Since 7 October 2023, numerous violent incidents prompted by the 2023 Hamas attack on Israel, Hamas attack on Israel and the ensuing Gaza war have been reported worldwide. They have accompanied a sharp increase in global antisemitism and Islamo ...
*
Islamophobia in the United States American Muslims often face Islamophobia and racialization due to stereotypes and generalizations ascribed to them. Due to this, Islamophobia is both a product of and a contributor to the United States' racial ideology, which is founded on social ...
*
Murder of Wadea al-Fayoume On October 14, 2023, Wadea al-Fayoume (), a six-year-old Palestinian-American boy, was murdered when he was stabbed 26 times in his home in Plainfield Township, Illinois, by 71-year-old Joseph Czuba. His mother, Hanaan Shahin, was also stabbe ...
* Killing of Paul Kessler * Mark Anthony Stroman * Murder of Balbir Singh Sodhi


References


External links

*
Palestinian American College Student Shot in Vermont, His Mother Speak to 'The View’
(30 November 2023), per ''
The View ''The View'' is an American talk show created by broadcast journalist Barbara Walters. , in its 28th season, the show has aired on American Broadcasting Company, ABC as part of the network's ABC Daytime, daytime programming block since August ...
'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Shooting of Palestinian students in Burlington, Vermont, 2023 2023 in Islam 2023 in Vermont Attacks in the United States in 2023 November 2023 crimes in the United States Anti-Muslim violence in the United States Anti-Palestinian sentiment in the United States Palestinian-American history Incidents of violence against men Reactions to the Gaza war in the United States History of Burlington, Vermont Crimes in Vermont Religion in Vermont University and college shootings in the United States Mass shootings in Vermont 2023 mass shootings in the United States Violent incidents in reaction to the Gaza war