John -
The anger, horror, sadness, and helplessness we all share right now must bring us together as progressives. These past two weeks have been some of the worst in my life. I am from Syria, where it was not long ago that similar scenes played out, so unfortunately, I have a lot of experience with carnage.
Many of my friends are Jewish, we have laughed together and now we are crying together. What we all share is a common humanity that puts us in anguish over the suffering that is taking place. The fact that we are all in so much pain must bring us hope.
Why do I say that? Because the alternative would be much worse...
To see the carnage that is taking place halfway across the world and not be disturbed, but rather to just go about our lives. If that day were to ever come, where our hearts have become so hard that we lose all sense of empathy... Well, I simply pray that day never comes. And in my heart, I don't believe it ever will. We are a nation that has our flaws (many of them) but we are a nation of love. I believe that to my core and that is what keeps me fighting.
The goal must be a ceasefire and the return of the hostages. I believe that is why the President flew to the Middle East and I am praying that he will be successful in this herculean mission.
As friends, we can be open with each other. These past couple of weeks have been hard, very hard. Yesterday I attended one of the most difficult funerals I have ever been to, that of a 6 year old boy, Wadea Al-Fayoume. Wadea was murdered in a barbaric killing by what I can only describe as a monster. My oldest child is 5 years old, only one year younger than Wadea and I am pretty sure that's what made yesterday so agonizing. Wadea's last words to his mother who is in the hospital fighting for her life after being stabbed 12 times; "It's ok mom, I will be fine". I can't get that image out of my head and I sincerely apologize for bringing it into yours... but this is the world we live in and this is the hate we are seeing, in this case not overseas, but here in America.
I remember during 9/11 I was in high school, and my parents would not let us leave the house for close to 6 months after the attack. I didn't understand back then why was I being grounded for something I didn't do? I get it now, and it is much harder to deal with as an adult.
These past two weeks have been so difficult for so many and our emotions run from utter sadness, helplessness, to anger and then repeat... As a community we are struggling to make sense of what is happening and yet none of us can find the right words. That's especially ironic for me since my job, in a sense, is to use the right words. Lately, I just don't have it. As sad and as emotional as we are should remind ourselves that there is hope for a brighter tomorrow.
The reason I am holding out hope is the words of Wadea's father. He showed composure and poise that I would not have been able to have if I were in his position. He found comfort that his son knew he was okay and headed to a better place. As you can imagine emotions ran high at what was the largest funeral I have attended in my life but the family made it known that Wadea's death would not be in vain. That something greater must come from this. I don't know what that is now, but I have faith in God that we will see it one day.
John, the fact that we all care and that this is causing us all so much pain is a sign that there is hope and goodness in the world. We need to hold out hope that peace can prevail. The children of Palestine, Israel, and America do not deserve to live in fear, they deserve a future.
Hatred is the enemy, and hatred is what the Republicans are doubling down on. The comments recently made by Ted Cruz, Tom Cotton, and Ron Desantis have made my blood boil like rarely before. I am not going to repeat them, it's counterproductive and will only get us angry all over again. They use hatred to elevate themselves. That is their tactic, unfortunately - it works.
I won't allow them to occupy any more space in my mind, they are not worthy. We will continue to lead with hope, optimism, and the promise of a better tomorrow. Across the globe Jews and Muslims are uniting and saying "not in our name". That unity is what terrified the MAGA GOP and in that, I get some comfort. I will continue to fight to remove these bad actors from a position of power, and I hope that you will continue to join me.
With solidarity and love,
Hassan
