I noticed that many Americans no longer care about Ukraine, so I wanted to take initiative and re-energize our patriotism. A friend asked me to pick up his son from the synagogue because he was busy at work, so I figured it would be a great opportunity to show my support and dedication and figured I would get approval from people who might understand oppression like Ukrainians do.
But when I arrived in my pro-Ukraine attire, everyone seemed upset. They started cursing at me and yelling. One elderly woman started hitting me with her purse and called me a disgrace. One man flashed a gun underneath his garment and threatened to shoot me if I didn’t leave. I was afraid for my life of course, but I wanted to stand my ground - otherwise how can I call myself an ally? I started to shout threats back at the crowd and the man with the gun pulled it out.
At this point I knew it was a losing battle, so I initiated a strategic retreat. I tried to grab my friend’s son but he started crying. Suddenly two men restrained me while the crowd shielded the boy and refused to let him go with me. Eventually they tossed me out of the synagogue (literally!) and I walked towards my car, but my tires were slashed and windows were smashed. My black sun decal was vandalized and someone keyed “NAZI” on the side.
My friend refuses to talk to me anymore. I didn’t know there was such a large pro-Putin Jewish community here. You’d think they’d understand what Ukrainians are going through given their history with genocide. But I guess propaganda and money wins. Anyway, I reported the synagogue to the FBI. I also found many of the members on Facebook and reported each of them to the FBI as well. I know it’s not much, but even small things add up, and right now Ukraine needs all the support they can get.
10/10