Local students received a powerful lesson in democracy when they attended the Israel Solidarity Rally on Monday in Washington, D.C.

        The trip was especially meaningful for Yavneh Day School's eighth-graders, whose trip to Israel was canceled last month because of violence in the Middle East.

        “My dad just got back from Europe, and he was telling us there was a lot of anti-Semitic feeling,” said Jessica Fisher. a 13-year-old Yavneh eighth-grader from Amberley Village.

        “I now am especially glad I went. I did learn some things, things that the media doesn't show us, like the amount of support that Israel actually has. I didn't think there would be as many people and different kinds of people as there were.”

        Rachel Schneider, a 12-year-old seventh-grader who had her bat mitzvah in Israel in December, also attended the rally.

        “I wanted to show the world and people in Israel and the government in America that people should support Israel,” the Amberley Village girl said. “It's our homeland and where we all belong and we care for it.”

        Dani Isaacsohn, a 13-year-old seventh-grader from Blue Ash, said, “Even though we didn't talk about it, it was a group sense that you had just been a part of something awesome. It wouldn't be outdone for a long time. There were a lot of kids there and it showed there is going to be future support for Israel.”

        Besides Yavneh, about 25 students from Cincinnati Hebrew Day School and 36 students from the Regional Institute for Torah and Secular Studies (RITSS), both in Golf Manor, traveled to the event. An estimated 150,000-200,000 people attended the rally at the U.S. Capitol.

        “It was inspiring to be with so many people,” said Dena Rosenberg, 17, of Dallas, a senior at RITSS, an all-girls Jewish high school.

        “You know you're not alone in what you believe ... You're not the only one supporting Israel.”

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