A hate crime is a despicable thing. That is why accusing someone of being responsible for a hate crime (like saying U.S. President Donald Trump may not have been the shooter, but he created an atmosphere that was conducive to the shooting) is a very serious thing. In fact, it is incitement.
The bodies strewn across the floor of the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh's Squirrel Hill neighborhood were still warm when my colleagues here in Israel began to suggest that this heinous murder, committed by the vile neo-Nazi Robert Bowers, was carried out under the auspices of Trump. Revolting.
There were even those who broadcast out loud, on their microphones, their theories that the massacre perpetrated by Bowers was inspired by the "spirit of the times" in the United States since Nov. 9, 2016 – in other words, the day after the man the media believes was the wrong candidate won the presidential elections. The public doesn't feel that way, but what does the public know, right?
The media is certainly not responsible for what happened in Pittsburgh on Saturday. But neither is Trump. Bowers is responsible. He is the murderer. He is the criminal. Those looking for the root cause can find it in the sick ideology that has already taken millions of Jewish, black, Romani, Christian and Muslim lives. Faced with racism, we are all brothers.
As for Bowers, he actually viewed Trump as being too soft, and worse, he hated him for maintaining close ties with the Jews. But the media chose to focus on Trump's war on illegal immigration and his fight against violence and anti-Semitism, from the left end of the political spectrum too. That's what he was trying to do last year, when he made that controversial remark after the neo-Nazi attack in Charlottesville. He did not come out in defense of neo-Nazis. He just wanted to point out that incitement and instigation of violence were not exclusive to the Right – there are also instigators on the Left.
But here we have found the smoking gun that ties Trump to every crime imaginable in the U.S. and in general. Because of course, before November 2016, we lived in a world with open borders, no visas and no war.
On Sunday, the media chose to focus on Trump's assertion that, had there been an armed security guard at the synagogue, things may have turned out differently. When he said those things, he was not blaming the victims. That should be obvious, but apparently it isn't to everyone.
The same thing was said following the murders of the Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Olympics. If only there had been armed security. But I guess what is permissible to some is not permissible to Trump. Was the question of armed security guards not raised in Europe following a wave of anti-Semitic attacks, like the one on the Ozar Hatorah Jewish school in Toulouse, France? Are there not armed guards stationed outside Jewish schools and synagogues in France? But let's keep in mind: It may be permissible for some, but not for Trump.
America has always been seen as a safe haven for Jews, a welcoming and tolerant place. The despicable murderer tarnished this tradition. But let's not play dumb. Saturday's attack may have been the deadliest, but it most certainly wasn't the first. There have been countless anti-Semitic incidents in the U.S., including before Trump even contemplated entering politics.
Why did the media choose to completely ignore the 7,034 anti-Semitic incidents that occurred while President Barack Obama was in office? Abe Foxman, president of the Anti-Defamation League during Obama's presidency, used the word "scourge" to describe anti-Semitism in the U.S. in 2009. Going by today's logic, was Obama responsible for the attacks on Jews and the anti-Semitic vandalism? If you believe that Trump's "hateful discourse" led to Saturday's massacre, then you must also believe that the absolute silence in response to the many anti-Semitic incidents that preceded his presidency also played a significant role.
Hate crimes are nothing new in the U.S.. Neither is anti-Semitism or neo-Nazism. The United States is a very permissive society, sometimes to its detriment.
Trump is the most pro-Israel American president in history. He has a Jewish daughter and Jewish grandchildren. And yet, he still needs to prove himself over and over again. Trump feels the pain of the Pittsburgh community. After the massacre, Trump said, "It's a terrible, terrible thing what's going on with hate in our country, frankly, and all over the world, and something has to be done."
There are times when it should make no difference whether we are on the Right or the Left. The Pittsburgh massacre is this type of tragic and difficult moment.
We should unite, not incite, in the face of a hate crime. But it appears that is too much to ask in these crazy times, in which social media has taken the place of traditional media outlets and allegiance to a particular political camp takes precedence over common decency.
