Sixty percent of young Americans support Hamas over Israel. If that isn’t concerning, it’s unclear what is.
On the third anniversary of the October 7 attacks, comedian, actor, and content creator Zach Sage Fox teamed up with Montana Tucker to show young Americans the reality of the massacre, a necessary exercise in a culture too willing to excuse terrorism when its perpetrators claim oppression.
Fox began by asking what they knew. Many were quick to condemn Israel, but few knew anything about the initial attack, a brutal indictment of both our culture and the American education system. He then brought out a virtual reality headset and had them watch the harrowing footage of October 7. For many, the footage was an eye-opening experience that challenged what they thought they knew about the war between Israel and Hamas. Fox then gave them the opportunity to speak with two Israeli survivors of the October 7 massacre.
They put Gen Z in VR headsets and showed them October 7th. "Did you know these were innocent civilians massacred at a music festival?" "No, I did not. I had no idea." Then they met two survivors. 💔 @zachsagefox https://t.co/BkkIjp8Ddx
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) October 7, 2026
"Today is the third anniversary of October 7th, and since 60 percent of young Americans support the terrorists who did it, we're going to use virtual reality to make the reality of that day undeniable," Fox said.
For many of the young Americans, the experience was a lesson. For others, it became an opportunity to double down. One person took the opportunity to blame Judaism for the problems the Jewish people face in the Middle East. Another simply repeated “Free Palestine,” refusing to defend her position or offer any substantive argument. Others continued to call Israel’s actions a genocide, even after being presented with figures claiming that 70 percent of Gaza’s buildings had been destroyed but only three percent of its population had been killed, half of those being terrorists. Yet when asked whether they would apply the same label to Hamas, they insisted that Hamas had “just murdered people."
Thankfully, most responded with the critical thought the subject demands. They questioned what they believed, asked why the media they consumed had left this part of the story untold, actually listened to the survivors, and reconsidered their views.
We often forget that terrible opinions are not always rooted in ill will. Often, they come from ignorance, and ignorance paired with moral certainty is a dangerous combination, especially in politics.
That is what made this exercise worthwhile. Fox and Tucker gave these young Americans something a slogan never could: an encounter with the people and events missing from their understanding of the war. For many, seeing the footage and hearing from survivors was enough to make them reconsider. Sometimes, changing minds simply starts with showing people what they never knew they were missing.