Only Love Can Do That
Last night, I spoke at the Colorado Muslim Society for an Interfaith Vigil in Solidarity with New Zealand’s Mosques. I wanted to share some of my remarks from the vigil with you as we stand together against hate:
In Colorado, we stand with our Muslim friends and neighbors.
In Colorado, we recognize that an attack on one of us is an attack on all of us.
In Colorado, we are united in addressing rising hate crimes and bigotry.
In America, we honor our national motto, E Pluribus Unum—from many, we are one.
In America, we work together to form a more perfect union.
In America, we believe that the moral arc of the universe is long, but it bends toward justice.
And in America, we welcome those fleeing religious persecution, as my family was welcomed after surviving the Holocaust.
We all must channel that essential American spirit, a nation founded on the principle of religious freedom and tolerance. That spirit is what Dr. Martin Luther King had in mind when we said, “Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that.”
Our love, compassion, and empathy for one another—which we must strengthen in the face of such attacks—is how we do the work of moving toward a more perfect union.