ANDREW SILOW-CARROLL
“What does this say about American Jewry?” he asked.
I didn’t know what to tell him, only that a lot of synagogues in town have beefed up their security in recent years. Some people call it overkill; others insist you’re better safe than sorry.
A few hours later came news of the horror at Tree of Life Congregation in Pittsburgh, where 11 people were shot dead during morning services, and a 46-year-old white male with an apparent anti-immigrant beef and hatred of Jews had been taken into custody.
In a week in which a crazed Trump fan was arrested for sending pipe bombs to liberals and CNN, and a year in which there were more than 150 mass shootings, I am not sure what any of this says about “American Jewry”.
The Anti-Defamation League called the synagogue shooting the deadliest anti-Semitic attack in United States history, from which it is possible to derive a measure of comfort. Until now, American Jewish institutions were spared the kind of mass tragedies that have invaded the sanctity of churches, universities, high schools, elementary schools, country music concerts, fast food joints, and municipal buildings. The Pittsburgh shooting isn’t evidence that America has a Jewish problem, or even a far-right problem, although it has both. But there is no doubt that we have a mass shooting crisis, amplified by the ease of obtaining assault weapons.
When it comes to reducing political divisiveness and healing national divisions, it also has a leadership problem, starting at the top.
I think it is premature to draw a straight line between President Donald Trump’s fear-mongering and anti-immigrant rhetoric, and the Pittsburgh shooting, or his repeated demonisation of his critics and the mail bombs sent to several of them last week. But the fact that the alleged perpetrators echoed some of the president’s most passionate attack lines should be enough to give his supporters pause, and perhaps get him to modify his language and behaviour.
Saturday’s response to the shooting was a good start, when he said in a prepared statement that the massacre was “pure evil” and “an anti-Semitic act”. He added that “anti-Semitism and the widespread persecution of Jews represents one of the ugliest and darkest features of human history”.
Vice-President Mike Pence also gave a strong statement. They were remarks that Jews need to hear, to know that they are not alone in fighting hatred, and have an ally in the White House.
It’s easy to get burned when encouraging Trump, considering how often he’ll send a tweet or rile a rally crowd with a quote that contradicts the normal and measured thing he said even a few hours earlier. Many Jews will demand consistency in words and deeds in the fight against anti-Semitism.
And they’ll also demand consistency when it comes to the fight against all kinds of hatred, whether directed against women, or transgender people, gay people, or Hispanics. On the Tree of Life website, the synagogue’s rabbi, Jeffrey Myers, has used his blog to advocate for the rights of immigrants, justice for the victims of clergy abuse, and heartbreakingly, sensible gun control and mental healthcare.
In the past year, there has been a cottage industry of books and essays mocking the liberal American Jewish impulse for tikkun olam, or social action, suggesting that the religion of American Jews is not Judaism, but liberalism. Defiant in the face of such criticism, time and again synagogue social-action committees like Tree of Life’s are about building coalitions with minorities and the marginalised. They sense, rightly, that attacks on one religion or group give license to and normalise attacks on others.
What will many Jews – not to mention many Americans – want in the wake of Pittsburgh? An administration that stops othering people, for starters.
Will that stop the next attack, whether it is on a synagogue or a mosque or the home of a liberal politician? There are no promises. But respecting the dignity of all Americans, all religions, and all people isn’t a law-enforcement technique. It’s an ethos, and one that honours what is best about America. We deserve civility for its own sake, starting with the highest office in the land.
Many Jews will feel safer if the White House somehow becomes a kinder, gentler place. But until then, security is going to dominate the Jewish communal conversation.
- Andrew Silow-Carroll is Editor in Chief of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
