It’s Heartbreaking

Sarah Milgrim and Yaron Lichinsky (JTA)

Sarah Milgrim and Yaron Lichinsky - two beautiful, innocent people on the verge of becoming engaged were gunned down in the prime of their lives by Elias Rodriguez, a Chicagoan who believed he was justified in doing so. Justified, he claimed, because they were Jews. Jews whose people, he alleged, are committing genocide against Palestinians. Over 50,000 deaths, he cited. In his mind, the world wasn’t concerned enough. So he needed to make a statement.

Well, he succeeded. I’m sure he feels better now. And I’m also fairly certain he’ll receive the death penalty, which he richly deserves.

The problem with his justification is that it’s based on lies, innuendo, and distortions. Propaganda coming out of Gaza and the UN, amplified by the mainstream media. Israel has consistently done more to spare innocent Palestinian lives than any nation in the history of warfare. Prior to airstrikes, they issue warnings urging civilians to move to designated safe zones. Many do.

Those who remain often include Hamas terrorists dressed as civilians, hiding in densely populated areas - hospitals, schools, apartment buildings - knowing full well that any response from Israel may result in civilian casualties. It’s deliberate. They want the world to see the carnage. They want the headlines.

The Hamas-run Health Ministry and UN officials report body counts with no context. No mention that Israel warned civilians to evacuate, no count of Hamas terrorists among the dead often dressed as civilians, no acknowledgment that Hamas fighters deliberately embed themselves in civilian areas. These are combatants with genocidal ambitions against Jews.

As I’ve said repeatedly: the blame for civilian deaths lies squarely with Hamas. An organization that could stop the bloodshed tomorrow if they valued life more than land. But they don’t.

Is it any wonder that protestors chant for “Free Palestine,” while images of destruction dominate the news, night after night, for nearly two years. Layered on top of long-standing apartheid propaganda that predates October 7^th? Even the UN Secretary-General echoed that line, saying the October 7^th  attacks ‘did not happen in a vacuum.’

Is it any wonder that so many Americans sympathize with Palestinians when they're bombarded with vilifying images and biased rhetoric from the mainstream media every evening?

This is why I place a large share of the blame for rising antisemitism on the media. Last year, the U.S. saw a record number of antisemitic incidents. The media treats the UN as an unimpeachable source, accepting its every anti-Israel claim as gospel.

The latest outrage? Tom Fletcher of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs claimed that 14,000 Gazan babies would die within 48 hours without aid! A grotesque falsehood repeated by the BBC, one of the world’s most respected news outlets. Though it was eventually retracted, the damage was already done.

And it’s not just the media. World leaders: Macron of France, Starmer of the UK, and Carney of Canada parrot the same misinformation and use the same rhetoric Elias Rodriguez used to justify murder. Sure, they condemned the act. But given how closely their words align with his motivation, they might as well have pulled the trigger.

Initially, I felt sorrow over the tragic loss of two promising young lives to a left-wing fanatic. Still do. But now I feel angry! I am angry at the intellectual laziness and moral cowardice of global leaders who refuse to place the blame where it belongs. Instead, they hold Jews accountable.

That said, the right doesn’t get a free pass either. Influential right-wing figures like Tucker Carlson, Candace Owens, and Joe Rogan - each with massive followings - have fueled Holocaust denial, minimized antisemitism, or undermined U.S. support for Israel.

There’s plenty of blame to go around. But let there be no mistake: the lion’s share belongs to the liberal mainstream media. They have created a climate that enabled antisemitism to surge to historic levels - culminating in the murder of two young Jewish souls, just as they were preparing to start a life together.

Have these events changed how I feel about America?

Not in the slightest. I will repeat what I have said many times. This is not 1939 Germany. There are no Nuremberg laws here. No one - on the right or the left - is proposing to put Jews on trains to death camps.

The response to this tragedy has been a rare moment of unity. Outrage and sympathy have poured in from across the political spectrum. Politicians, media figures - even those typically critical of Israel - have expressed genuine sorrow and solidarity with the Jewish community.

There was no talk of ‘context’. No ‘buts’. No excuses - except from CAIR, which condemned the murders but couldn’t resist adding that there are better ways to push their agenda.

Law enforcement and the Justice Department are pursuing this case with the seriousness and urgency it demands. And in that, I find hope.

We - the Jewish people - are privileged to live in a country that truly cares about us. A country that will not abandon us in our time of need.

There’s room to debate how best to confront antisemitism. Should Harvard be under federal scrutiny for failing to address its antisemitism problem? I believe so - especially given that Harvard’s own president has acknowledged the severity of the issue at his school.

Disagreements about tactics are valid. But as an American Jew, I have never felt more supported by the American people or more grateful to its institutions. Even amidst division and debate over Israel’s leadership, one thing is clear: this country stands with us.

And for that, I am thankful.