I am writing to thank the leaders of other faith communities and members of the general public who wrote us to express their shock and dismay about the murder of 11 Jewish people who were about to begin Sabbath prayers at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh.
That these killings took place at all is a shock. Despite prejudice and anti-Semitism — diminished although never entirely gone — North America has been a safe harbour for Jews. That the killings took place on the Sabbath in a house of worship in Pittsburgh, a city in which Jews are not only well integrated, but get along well enough to share a building only adds to our disorientation, and disbelief.
It is heartening to know that many people here in Newfoundland — friends, neighbours, people of different faiths, or none at all — feel the same sense of shock and disorientation and took time to stand with us at Monday evening’s vigil. There is an irony here: it was less than two years ago that I was writing to Dr. Pirzada and other leaders of the Al Noor mosque to express our sadness at the senseless killings that took place at the Islamic Cultural Centre in Quebec.
Stepping back, such shootings are no surprise.
The incidence of anti-Semitism has been rising in the United States, Canada, and Europe.
The Anti-Defamation League has been tracking such incidents since it was founded in 1913. It recorded a 57 per cent increase in the United States between 2017 and 2018.
Nor are mass killings in workplaces, schools, and places of worship rare. Given the numbers of legal and illegal firearms around in the United States, it is surprising that such incidents have not occurred more frequently.
Nevertheless, what happened in Pittsburgh is a shock. I grew up in the United States. I was lucky that pogroms — recurrent incidences of minor violence — drove my grandparents to the United States before World War I — and lucky never to have experienced anti-Semitism.
The safe spaces I lived still exist but are no longer as safe as they once were.
Writing about why and how the world is changing would require more space than The Telegram can give me.
Instead, I note only one of many things that are different: I am a political scientist familiar not only with the European countries I taught about, but also the United States.
Presidents are typically unifiers who prefer to bring people together rather than drive them apart. Not so Donald Trump: setting records for veniality, perpetually pursuing partisan advantage to ensure re-election to a job he barely does, he has chosen to divide rather than unite.
Not, per se, an anti-Semite — his son-law, daughter-in law and some of his grandchildren are Jewish — he has given permission for others to act on their prejudices, and that permission facilitated the senseless murder of 11 people, one of whom survived the Holocaust.
I live in Canada, a country that takes pride in diversity, in a province that has been welcoming and tolerant. People of different faiths and denominations not only work together — the Jewish Community Havura is a co-founder and an active participant in the Religious Social Action Coalition, dedicated to ending poverty — but also lend support in times of trouble.
Hundreds surrounded the Al Noor Mosque to demonstrate support in the aftermath of the Quebec City shootings and many have stood with us or written to offer support and comfort.
Let me offer thanks on behalf of our community.
Steven Wolinetz,
president, Jewish Community Havura
and Professor emeritus in political science MUN
St. John’s
Related story:
St. John’s Jewish group holds vigil in response to Pittsburgh synagogue massacre
