Mr. Speaker, this past Sabbath, our neighbours to the south in Pittsburgh endured a horrific act of anti-Semitism.
With sheer wanton hatred and reckless disregard for human life, a man with multiple weapons stormed the Tree of Life synagogue full of Shabbat worshippers and opened fire, killing 11 and leaving many more injured. During the rampage, the man spewed anti-Semitic slurs and the desire to kill Jews.
This morning, the Prime Minister of Israel stated:
Jews were killed in a synagogue. They were killed because they are Jews. The location was chosen because it is a synagogue. We must never forget that. We are one.
He is right, we are one: One as humanity; one struggling to know why anti-Semitism continues in so many venomous forms.
I ask my colleagues in this place to remember those in Pittsburgh who have lost their lives and those who were injured, as well as the police officers and first responders who were injured in the line of duty.
I ask the House and all Canadians to ponder in their hearts and abide by the words “we are one” in our actions, in their memory.
May God bring Shalom/peace to the families of the victims.