Tree of Life Synagogue

Earlier yesterday morning, October 27th, 2018, a gunman open fired at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.  The Tree of Life synagogue resides in the Squirrel hill neighbourhood within Pittsburgh, an area known for having one of the largest Jewish populations in Pennsylvania.  The synagogue was full of worshippers who were there to mark the Sabbath, a Jewish practice in which practicing Jews take an abstinence from work from Friday to Saturday evening.  Reportedly, alleged gunman Robert Bowers walked into the Saturday morning service with an assault rifle and two pistols. Bowers open fired on the service, and when police arrived and approached the scene Bowers blockaded himself in one of the rooms within the synagogue.  Witnesses claim that Bowers shouted “all Jews must die,” as he carried out his attack. At this point in time, there are 11 reported casualties from the massacre.

Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf has stated his condolences to all those involved in or effected by the shooting: “Any attack on one community of faith in Pennsylvania is an attack against every community of faith in Pennsylvania. And I want the Jewish community across the commonwealth and across the country to know that we stand in support of you as we together mourn this senseless act of violence.”  Attorney General Jeff Sessions has called this attack “reprehensible and utterly repugnant to the values of this nation.” Sessions has also brought up the possibility that charges may result in the death penalty for Robert Bowers. President Donald Trump has also made a statement, calling the attack “a wicked act of mass murder,” and that recent hate in the world overall is “a shame.” President Trump also said that “something has to be done” in regards to the hate in our country, but when asked how this may affect the controversial issue of gun laws, Trump immediately turned to victim blaming.

Instead of even addressing the issue of gun control in America, Trump decided to say that “if they had protection inside, the results would have been far better,” in regards to the Tree of Life synagogue.  Trump has essentially stated that the synagogue should have been prepared for an active shooter. And according to President Trump, it is virtually the fault of the synagogue for the amount of casualties resulting from this hate crime.  Instead of focusing on the blatant anti-semitism that still resides in the United States, addressing violent hate crimes as a whole, and or discussing how this violent act may affect gun control in the future, President Trump has stated that one of the best options might be to have armed guards in every place of worship.  That every place of religious practice should be armed and prepared for an attack. Trump did not take up this issue head on, he is ignoring the core, fundamental issues in our country that our growing worse everyday.

In 2016 64% of America’s homicides were gun-related.  In August 2018, America stood ranked as the 30th country in the world in regards to gun-related homicides.  According to the BBC, the UK and Wales had a 4.5% gun-related death rate in 2015/2016, and Canada finished 2015 with a 30.5% gun-related homicide rate.  America had over double the amount of gun-related deaths than Canada, and about 14 times the amount of the UK and Wales. There have been over 90 mass shootings in the United States since 1982 according to the BBC.  It is clear that there is a gun issue in America. And while the dialogue has been opened about this, it has not been furthered by our head of state. With headlines in the news like “Pittsburgh Shooting: Multiple casualties at Squirrel Hill synagogue” issues like gun control and hate crimes need to be openly addressed.  This act is being called the worst anti-Semitic act in recent United States’ history. Governor of Pennsylvania Tom Wolf could not have put it better by saying “we simply cannot accept this violence as a normal part of American life.”