On the one hand, there's no comparison. No group or individual's pain is the same. But, given the media's part in the chaos of violence in Ferguson and Israel, observers' readiness to categorize those fighting for their dignity, their children's very lives, and given the sense of the world not 'getting it,' Black and Brown Americans can understand what Jews have experienced throughout time and in these harrowing days, as bullets and missiles fly, media spins, and people judge without any understanding of the facts on the ground.
One more linkage between Ferguson and Israel: Restraint. The raw power of those under assault could easily explode but is instead being channeled by the clear moral thinking of leaders in an impossible situation.
Since none of us are sleeping, perhaps we can be anxious in solidarity, navigating our ways through unending night.
We will see better days, my sisters and brothers. We will overcome these horrors. We must.
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