Last night, two staffers from the Israeli Embassy were shot and killed outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington DC, right across from an FBI field office. Their names were Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim. This was a targeted act. The suspect reportedly shouted “Free, free Palestine” while being arrested. No matter how you look at it, this was a hate crime. And it’s horrifying.
But here’s the uncomfortable truth. Hate breeds hate. Violence breeds more violence. What we are watching unfold in Gaza is not some neutral conflict. It is collective punishment. It is genocide. It is brutal. And the world sees it. People are angry, people are radicalizing, and people are reacting. None of that justifies killing innocent people here or anywhere. But pretending there’s no link between Israel’s actions and the blowback Jews around the world are now facing is dishonest.
Social media lets conspiracy theories and dehumanizing rhetoric fester without limits. And while people in power keep turning a blind eye to the atrocities in Gaza, civilians are paying the price everywhere. Jewish people in America should not be targets for what the Israeli government is doing. But maybe it’s time to look inward and speak outward. Ask your government why it is choosing war crimes over humanity. Why it is dragging an entire global faith into the mud. Why it is making you a target.
Because again, hate begets hate. Violence begets violence. And if we do not demand accountability and end the slaughter, the fallout will only get worse. For everyone.
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