They kill Jews. And Muslims. And Christians...

Reflective
London, ON
February 2012
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Another day, another vicious hate crime against Jews. This one in a Poway, California synagogue, six months to the day since a Jew-hating gunman opened fire in a Pittsburgh synagogue. See a pattern here?

Although it seems like the stuff of nightmares, you're not imagining it. The drumbeat of anti-semitism has been getting louder of late, with Anti Defamation League data confirming a 57% increase in Jew-targeted acts in the U.S. in 2017, the largest single-year increase ever. Those swastikas showing up on Jewish homes overnight? Not just punks with paint.

But let's not kid ourselves: If you're Muslim, or Christian, or any other identifiable religious group, you're at risk, too. Muslims slaughtered in Christchurch and Quebec City. Christians blown to bits in Sri Lanka. All because they had the temerity to express their faith.

No doubt today's political climate contributes to the spike we see now. But, again, hatred has been with us forever. Thanks to dog-whistled support from the highest offices in the land, it's simply emerging from the shadows. The irony that the same politicians fuelling today's hate-driven fire have the unmitigated gall to tweet out the now-de-rigeur thoughts-and-prayers stupidity should enrage us all.

I almost don't know what to say anymore, or what to do. I read the San Diego gunman's so-called manifesto, a screed so filled with hatred that the mind struggles to understand how someone can become so warped. It makes me fear for humanity's future.

Key word in my previous paragraph: Almost. We can't afford to be silent. Because cowering in fear only gives power to those who hate, allows them - and the leaders who validate them - the room and resources they need to expand their malevolent, society-killing influence.

We must also stand together, because an attack on one religion is an attack on all of us, and a cancer that can and will ultimately reach our homes, our communities, no matter who we are or where we live.

Because if they haven't come for you yet, your silence ensures they eventually will.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #jewish #tradition #synagogue #antisemitism #judaism #christianity #islam #religion #together #enough