Weapons of words

The 27^th of January is the date that coincides with the liberation of the Auschwitz death camp by the Soviet Red Army and it is the day that the United Nations has designated in memorium.

Hatikvah “The Hope” sung at Bergen Belsen

As the world became aware of the immense atrocities of the Holocaust, it must be noted that the shattering of glass on Kristallnacht that accompanied the destruction of holy synagogues and the looting of stores and homes started with words. The gas chambers of Auschwitz and other death camps and the crematoria were built on incitement.

Whole communities, brilliant scientists, educators, artists, musicians and potential future finders of cures to disease and contributors to the world were wiped out because of an idea, fueled by words and perpetrated by an educated mass that were whipped into a frenzy of hatred.

Today, 71 years later, I fear that the world has not learned anything from the past. A wise man once said that those who do not learn from the past are doomed to repeat it. Sadly, we are seeing alarming levels of anti-Semitism rise all over the world, often resulting in violence and death.  For the past four months Israel is enduring a wave of terror, perpetrated by terrorists between the ages of 17-25 and some as young as 13.

Motivated by the daily diet of incitement and anti-Semitic vitriol and spurred on by their political and religious leaders, these young terrorists, armed with their knives and their venom, seek to kill as many Jews as possible.

In the last two weeks we have buried two young women and prayed for the speedy recovery of another pregnant mother to be, stabbed because she is Jewish. These women are a small snapshot of the now over 30 murdered and countless injured.

Our women are being attacked – in their homes in front of their children, shopping in supermarkets and walking in the streets. Today, Daphna Meir (38) z”l a mother of six and Shlomit Krigman (23) z”l, a young student, lie buried side by side on a peaceful Jerusalem hilltop.

We are burying our mothers, our daughters, our most promising students. We are burying our sons and our fathers. But we are not burying our hope.  The father of the 16 year old boy who killed Daphna Meir said that he was “proud of his boy” who admitted that it was after watching Palestinian television that he was motivated to kill.

In a twist of bitter irony, Secretary-General of the UN, Ban Ki Moons stated “it is human nature to react to occupation”. This would be offensive on any night but on the eve of International Holocaust Memorial day it is purely repugnant. This is not a society that is deprived. Palestinians receive more aid than any other people in the world. The question we need to ask is where is the aid going to? The financing of hate education and incitement is more depraved than deprived and global NGO’s, especially those in Europe who donate money under the guise of human rights projects needs to be questioned and examined more closely.

No matter what your personal views on settlements or the disputed territories are, there is no justification ever to kill. Are the lives of our women less valuable because their address where they live is deemed undesirable? Is it not a policy of Apartheid instigated by the Palestinian Authority to say that Jews cannot live on any inch of a potential Palestinian state?

If you want to speak out on behalf of Palestinian human rights, it is incumbent on NGO’s, world leaders, human rights organization, the media and individuals to condemn the incitement of hatred that pervades this society and is tantamount to child abuse.

Today, as we reflect on the Holocaust and honour the memory of those we have lost and who have survived, as we watch the footage and listen to solemn, heartbreaking testimony and vow NEVER AGAIN, we need to ensure that this does not become an empty platitude. The theme of this year’s Holocaust Day is “bystanders”. We have a duty to those we lost and future generations to ensure that we do not become bystanders to hate. We have a duty to ensure that we do not repeat history.

Never again means never, ever again. Am Yisrael Chai.