Editorial: Don't feed antisemitism in Pittsburgh

We cannot accept antisemitism.

It shouldn’t happen in America. It shouldn’t happen in Pennsylvania. It cannot happen in Pittsburgh.

In every other place in the country and the state, antisemitism is an ugly word that speaks of an ugly history. It reflects disgusting, individual attacks. It is about policies and an atmosphere. It can reflect open hostility and the promise of violence. All of that is enough to reject it.

In Pittsburgh, the promise was fulfilled.

In Pittsburgh, Robert Bowers — a man who stewed online in chatroom sewers that fed and fomented his hatred — exploded into action in October 2018. He directed his gunfire at the three congregations who met in the Tree of Life synagogue in Squirrel Hill. He murdered 11 people and injured even more in the deadliest antisemitic attack in U.S. history.

Our country is 248 years old. We have large Jewish populations in cities and states from sea to sea. There have been terrible offenses against Jewish individuals. But in Pittsburgh, the bloodshed hit its peak.

A spate of vandalism against Jewish organizations this week is therefore chilling.

Chabad of Squirrel Hill had an inverted red triangle — a symbol used by Hamas militants for targets — spray-painted below the words “Jews for Palestine.” In Oakland, it was more red paint on the Jewish Federation sign, tagging it with the words “funds genocide.” Yard signs with the slogan “We stand with Israel” also were defaced.

This is not the same targeting that Bowers showed. It is a new and different kind of conflict born with the Israel-Hamas war. The Jewish Federation vandalism shows the complication. It included the message “(love) Jews, hate Zionists.”

The problem is that when you make it OK to target a group with destruction and anger, it’s hard to isolate the fallout. That’s certainly a lesson the conflict in Gaza should have illustrated since the first bombings in October.

It should be all the more clear as the violence spreads outward, threatening the Middle East region. On Saturday, 12 Israeli children in the Golan Heights were killed in a Hezbollah attack. On Tuesday, one person was killed and 17 more, including six children, were injured by Israeli retaliation at a Hezbollah target in Beirut.

Protest is one thing. Raising concerns and encouraging organizations to rethink support 10 months into a war that shows little sign of winding down is appropriate.

But antisemitism — even the perception of antisemitism — is a spark that is hard to contain. It cannot be fed any kindling.

Especially not in Pittsburgh.