A week after Boulder attack, attendance at Run for Their Lives spikes from dozens to hundreds
Events to raise awareness for the hostages continue, with increased security
Run for Their Lives hosts a march to raise awareness of the hostages held in Gaza on Sunday in Boulder, Colorado. Photo by Chet Strange/Getty Images
By Hannah Feuer June 9, 2025
Last week, the man who allegedly firebombed people marching for the hostages in Gaza reportedly told police he wanted all Zionists dead. This week, the march drew record numbers.
Participants in the Run for Their Lives march in Boulder, Colorado, said they will not be scared off by last week’s attack.
“We will not stop walking until they are all home. We will not be deterred,” Rachel Amaru, an organizer of Boulder Run for Their Lives, told the Boulder Reporting Lab.
The weekly event in Boulder to raise awareness for the hostages typically draws a few dozen people. On Sunday, Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.) was among the several hundred participants on Pearl Street. One week prior a man who screamed “Free Palestine” threw Molotov cocktails at attendees of the group’s walk, injuring 15.
Also on Sunday, thousands attended the 30th annual Boulder Jewish Festival, the event’s largest ever turnout. Organizers debated rescheduling the festival but ultimately decided to hold the event with a heavy law enforcement presence, including the use of drones and plainclothes officers.
Other branches of the international group that aims to raise awareness for hostages held in Gaza reported similar spikes.
Heather Polan Berken, who leads a chapter of Run for Their Lives in Milwaukee, said as soon as she learned of the Boulder attack, she already knew she was “absolutely still walking.” The Milwaukee events typically draw 10 to 15 people. On Sunday, 100 people showed up, with a new security presence provided by the Milwaukee Jewish Federation.
“Now that someone wants to keep us from doing this or make us fearful, all of a sudden we have 10-fold the number of people that normally show up,” she said. “People feel kind of defiant.”
Around the world, many Run for Their Lives chapters reported double or triple their average attendance, according to spokesperson Shira Weiss. Six new chapters were created this past weekend, from California to Ohio.
Many are taking additional precautions, including hiring private security. The more-than-230 chapters of Run for Their Lives handle security individually, Weiss said. While a few groups cancelled Sunday’s walk, she said the vast majority have not missed a week.
“People said that it was even more important to show up this weekend than ever before,” Weiss said. “Even if people were slightly scared, I think they still pushed through that fear.”
