"Never Again" has become "Here We Are Again."
Perhaps I have been ignorant to believe that antisemitism would never land at my door. Maybe I lost sight of the reality that, hiding in plain sight right beneath the surface, lay a sleeping beast simply waiting for the right moment, nee a suitable catalyst to rear its brutal, vicious, and unquestionably evil head.
My Father was an Assistant Principal of the largest High School on Staten Island, which made him a notable public figure and proud Jewish American. He was also a prominent figure at our Synagogue, which was routinely defaced with swastikas.
In what was assessed as an antisemitic hate crime, some of my Father's students stole our station wagon. When the police found it, all that was left was a hulking mass of twisted steel. Even more, our replacement car was also set ablaze right in front of our house.
This, of course, pales in comparison to the slaughter of my Mother's entire family (save her Mother and Aunt) at the hands of the Nazis. Dozens gassed, tortured, and murdered for what reason? Because they were Jewish.
I never thought in my wildest dreams "never again" would become "here we are again." not just in the fiery depths of the Middle East but right here in this country. In NYC. In Brooklyn. Right now.
My wife and I have now done the unthinkable — talking to the twins about antisemitism again but now through a tangible new lens, reminding them to hide the Chai Necklaces they received at their B'nai Mitzvah and not speak about Chanukkah to their classmates this season.
For thousands of years, the fundamentalist belief that Jews "do not deserve to exist." speaks to the absolute worst of our species. And now I see friends, colleagues, and neighbors show their true colors after years of seeming camaraderie. Pro Hamas? "Kill all Jews" protest signs? They want Jews eradicated as if we were a pestilence.
I don't know what to do. I don't know what to think. I am fueled with so much anger. For the first time, I am afraid and no longer live in the ignorant bliss of "It will never happen here" and "It couldn't possibly happen again."
Millennia of hate over what? Religion?
The more often worst (and sometimes best) thing to ever happen to our species. The age-old "I'm right, and you're wrong, so you should die?" dogma of the barbaric, irrational, extremist simian mind.
I don't have to understand it. I have to live knowing it will never go away. We are stronger than ever, united as one front, and will never abandon our community, heritage, and pride. I've never had haters before and rarely, if ever, write posts like this. So, to all my Jewish friends and colleagues, as well as my community of rational, tolerant, objective, realistic, critical-thinking non-Jews, thank you.
https://www.adl.org/resources/news/hamas-their-own-words