Yom HaShoah in Peabody

The month of May is the month of remembering, commemorating and celebrating. Almost every day in May we have something to commemorate. On May 9, for example, we celebrate, among other things, “National Sleepover Day,” on May 10 “Child Care Provider Day,” on May 11 “National Babysitter's Day,” and on May 12 we celebrate “International Hummus Day.” But the days in May are not only days of celebration, but also of observation and reflection.

On the 14th we observe Armed Forces Day, which falls on the third Saturday in May, when on this day we recognize, acknowledge and thank our soldiers for their service to the country. On this day we reflect, or should reflect, on the question of how is it possible to thank enough people who are willing to die so that we may continue to live?

Then, on the last Monday in May we observe Memorial Day, a day on which we remember those who died in active military service, those who died so that we should live. We cannot thank them for what they had done for us, but perhaps we can honor their legacy by reminding our children and by reminding the world that our values and principles are worth fighting for. Memorial Day is a day of remembering and reminding. We remind ourselves that our values and principles celebrate life, not death, and we, as a nation, value peace more than we appreciate war. And we remind to the world that we are able and willing to defend our values and protect our principles at present and in the future the way we did in the past.

And so, last night, on May 6, 2024, some 200 people gathered at the Higgins Middle School in Peabody, to observe another day to remind the world that the evils of the past are not just a matter of history. The evil of antisemitism is still around, actively poisoning the minds of many people whose love for hatred far exceeds their love for love. On this Holocaust Memorial Day (Yom HaShoah in Hebrew) in Peabody a frightening observation was made. There are people in our world who still think and believe that other people should not exist, and, if they insist on existing, they should cease to exist by all means necessary.

These people “justify” their horrible sentiments by claiming that the victims of genocide are now “committing genocide.” Blaming the victim is the classic defense mechanism of the classic bully. It’s the bully's worldview of himself as the victim of his victim. Expecting a bully to stop bullying is like expecting a shark to become vegetarian. It is the same with antisemites. Expecting an antisemite to change his ways is like expecting salt to sweeten your coffee.

What we should expect, perhaps, if not all is lost yet, is that all, not just some of the scholars who teach in our schools and institutions of higher learning might begin to practice more truthfully their academic integrity and tell more accurately the truth about “genocide.”

"Genocide" occurs only when the victims have no choice. They must die because whoever kills them decides to kill them. The Armenians had no choice because the Turks decreed that the Armenians should cease to exist. The Jews under Hitler had no choice either, nor did the people in Cambodia, Biafra, Rwanda, Myanmar, Darfur, Bosnia, etc., and there are, unfortunately, so many more "et ceteras."

This is not the situation in current events, because the “victims” of current events do have a choice. They can make peace and immediately begin to enjoy life, freedom, prosperity and liberty. Lamentably this is not yet possible so long as the “victims” are themselves antisemites. This, antisemitism, is what makes this vicious cycle of violence so vicious, so long and so sad.

“Hell,” said Jean-Paul Sartre in his play No Exit, “is other people.” Antisemitism is hell, and the antisemites are the people who make it. We should convincingly remember, and remind, that so long as Antisemitism still exists we may never fully enjoy “Eat More Fruits and Vegetables Day” on May 21.