Mourning and anger after tragedy. This is currently the state of mind of the Jewish community in France. We have been attacked in a cowardly manner in the heart of Jewish life — in a kosher supermarket, a few hours before Shabbat. How much more can we take? Didn’t we say the same thing after Ilan Halimi and the Jewish school shooting in Toulouse? Enough is enough!
France is home to the largest Jewish population in Europe. In 2014, we saw 7,000 French citizens immigrate to Israel, the highest number ever. I believe that trend will continue in 2015. But even so, the Jewish population in France will remain large and we will stay strong.
These attacks are clearly tragic and no words can express how saddened we are to add four of our brothers to the growing list of victims of anti-Semitism. Many people have asked how it is to be a Jew in France. I would say that nothing has changed. We have experienced bad days in the past, but the difference now is that the jihadists have also attacked a non-Jewish entity, the headquarters of the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo. The impact is 1,000 times larger and we will hopefully get new measures to prevent future attacks.
On Jan. 11, I had mixed feelings. When I saw 3 million people marching as one in the streets of France, saying “we are not afraid,” I felt proud to be French. But one question remained: Why did these 3 million people not march when it was only Jews targeted? Aren’t the Jews French citizens as well? This is the feeling that most of my friends had on Jan. 10. This is a bitter feeling that makes you feel like an outcast. But we must stop complaining and go forward! The Jewish community in France is extremely appreciative of the support messages coming from all over the world. The impact is very powerful and we pray that nobody else experiences the same loss we did.
Yes we are hurt, but we are here and as long as we are in France we must continue to live. I’m one of the three residents of Moishe House Paris, where we welcome many young Jewish adults to our home. A few of our most active community members made aliyah recently. We support them in this move but we also are here to support the thousands who will remain in Paris and work to continue building the Jewish community here.
We three residents talked about whether we should cancel January programs in the wake of the attacks. The answer was no. Why should we stop providing a place where young Jews can gather and feel that they belong to a wider community? We recently received a message from a community member asking us if we can plan a gathering for those who just need a place to be together. I realized that during these times, our work is more important than ever. We provide a place where people can gather with their peers, especially during difficult times. Another community member sent me a message a few days ago telling me that she wants to be the next Moishe House resident. These are very symbolic wins.
Yes, we will continue to do what we do, with even more spirit. A lot of us want to stay in France for the moment, and we cannot survive just waiting for what’s coming next. Of course, we do not forget and we will never forgive. But we are all sure that our brothers who died on Jan. 9 would want us to keep celebrating life and never let ourselves give up because of terrorism. Our government leaders have been very clear: Jews will no longer be an easy target. I hope and pray they will live up to this promise.
Aurélie Attia, 29, is the founder and a current resident of Moishe House Paris. She works in marketing for a software company.
This essay originally appeared at ejewishphilanthropy.com