Last week I wrote a long post, that apparently didn't get posted. The shooting at the Pittsburgh Synagogue really got to me. A lot of people are talking about the current political climate and how that seems to be a trigger for this shooting. That may be true. However I think a lot of people don't understand how deeply antisemitism is embedded in our country.
I grew up on stories of my Grandfather escaping Russian soldiers, who were killing Jews, and coming to the US. The US was much better, but he still got beat up for being a Jew. My mom talked about going to a private school, were she was the token Jew. She got to go to the school but was excluded from all social events.
The synagogue that I went to when I was younger was subject to regular vandalism. Someone also tried to burn it down and the only thing that saved it was a good citizen who saw the flames. I have had to debate going to services when there was a "credible" bomb threat. I went as did many others. Seeing police or paid security outside during significant services is not unusual at any synagogue I know. It's part of being Jewish, that there are people out there that want to destroy you.
Just like the Pittsburgh shooting, it was during Shabbat that a man went to the Jewish Federation of Seattle and opened fire. I was getting dressed to leave when I heard the news. There was that question, was this a lone act or would there be more violence. At services, there was that horrible feeling of looking around and trying to see if anyone I was friends with was missing. None of my friends was, but one of the pillar's of our community was. She did not survive the shooting. I witnessed the pain that caused to my community.
These acts of violence are horrible. They are horrible when they happen to any community- Muslim, black, gay and on and on. If you aren't part of one of these communities, then I understand your focus is drawn to these bigger acts. Your attention is drawn to blatant acts of discrimination. These things don't happen in a vacuum. It grows from smaller things. The assumptions and unthinking bias we taken on from our family and society. I've talked about blatant antisemitism in my life, but haven't mentioned the ache from the small, frequent moments in my life. The comments like "he was trying to Jew the price up" or "why aren't you rich?" and seeing Jews in the movies and TV portrayed as bumbling, inept men or spoiled, difficult women leaves an imprint just as institutional racism. If you've read this far, I ask that you pay attention to the small things. Combat hate by questioning the subtle messages that are woven into our life about others.
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