Today I went to a Bat Mitzvah of a friend from Camp Harlam, the overnight Reform Jewish Camp I go to. The synagogue was in New Jersey and was different from my synagogue, but the Shabbat Service was very similar. After the service, I was having the time of my life hanging out with camp friends and dancing to the latest trends at the party. When it was all over, I had been there for 7 hours. My mom picked me up and when I got to my mom’s car, I asked her how her day was. She responded with “I’m really bummed out”. I asked why and then she told me about what happened at the Tree Of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh.
It completely shocked and saddened me. I really thought something like this would not happen. This felt way too close to home. It was extra sad knowing that it happened in their synagogue. When I go to Rodeph Shalom (the Synagogue I belong to) I feel safe and secure there. Everyone there is always nice and welcoming and friendly. People there feel like your friend or your family.
The news of this just really made me heartbroken. I knew right away that this was an act of hate against Jewish people and I just can’t understand that kind of hatred.
According to some of what I read so far, the Synagogue’s doors were unlocked, and no security is there except for the High Holy Days. I know we have security at our synagogue, and there is often police cars at the entrance to keep us safe. I can’t believe we have gotten to a point where we even have to do that in our society. The President said that this could have been stopped if there were people armed with guns in the synagogue. I disagree about the idea of having armed people in a holy place, but would feel safer if there was police outside at all times, but it’s sad that we have to do that to feel safe.
The shooter brought an AR-15 along with other guns into the holy congregation, and there were many clues that this man hated Jewish people and immigrants. His social media accounts were full of foul words used towards Jewish People, and he ranted about how these people invaded the US and are helping illegal immigrants. Maybe we need to screen social media more for clues like this about horrible people, but then we will start running into freedom of speech issues. It feels like an impossible problem.
I guess the best thing I can think of would be to get rid of AR-15’s and other semi-automatic and automatic guns. There is no reason for a citizen to have one or need one. It is simply a terrible murder weapon.
When you have the chance, try and show support for synagogues and Jewish people in your life. I don’t agree with the idea of using thoughts and condolences to stop gun violence, but the Jewish people are hurting right now. This is the worst attack on Jewish people in U.S. history. This is when we need to make a change. Government officials are not doing enough to make change. The only way to change that is to vote in new government officials. A change is needed, so step up and go vote on November 6. There is NO excuse not to. Please feel free to comment with your thoughts below. Thank you for reading.
Also...this is my fundraising page for the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence. Please donate if you can!
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