As much good as there is in this world, there is also an abundance of hate. That’s a sad reality that Rabbi Brian Zachary Mayer was reminded of when he stepped outside his house in Portland, Oregon earlier this week.
When Mayer walked outside to innocuously walk his dogs Monday morning, he was quite literally greeted at his doorsteps with hurtful words. Though not verbally spoken, the message Rabbi Mayer received was nothing short of a hate crime.
(Source: TODAY) Anti-semitic and racist words written in chalk awaited Mayer as he walked out of his home.
Upon seeing such hateful anti-semitic and racist words, many parents would scramble to remove them in order to shield their children from learning about all the hate that exists in our society. However, Mayer and his wife, Jane, decided to keep the words intact. They wanted to teach their daughter and son–ages 7 and 9, respectively–that even though there’s so much hate in this world…”love always wins”.
Rabbi Brian Mayer, a major influence on his community and founder of his very own blog site, shared the experience online with disconcerted followers. He and his wife’s goal was clear from the get-go: “handle hatred and erase it together”.
In an interview with TODAY, Mayer said, “We do not and cannot pretend that we live in a world without hatred, intolerance, and violence. We do. We must face this world and react to it, not in kind, but with kindness.”
For families like Mayer’s, children are relatively sheltered. In fact, Rabbi Mayer’s 7-year-old daughter learned the “n-word” from the hate message written on the street outside their home. Clearly his children haven’t been exposed to much of the hate that exists in other communities.
“They live lives of privilege as it is,” Mayer said of his children. “How can they understand the plight of minorities if we shield them from this, the ‘sidewalk chalk’ of hate crimes?”
Mayer not only went on to explain the struggle and plight of other communities, but encouraged his kids to eliminate hate and spread the love. The family worked diligently to erase the hurtful words from the street. They hosed and cleansed the pavement in front of their home and promptly took to the concrete canvas to craft their own powerful, meaningful words.
(Source: TODAY)
Mayer hoped that his influence on his local community would help other citizens to spread the message that even though hate is a powerful reality, love always wins!
Check out more from Rabbi Mayer and his powerful message that “love always wins”! Visit page two for more!
“This is not the first time we have talked to [his children] about hate or about love as the proper response,” said Mayer. “We have had talks about bigotry and hatred and about love and acceptance. We have had many talks about how we can make a choice to put up walls or be more loving.”
(Source: TODAY)
In the past few days, many families in the Mayers’ local community have brought over flowers to express their sympathy for having been the victim of the initial hate crime. However, they don’t feel victimized. Instead, they feel empowered to make a difference in the world by embracing their new mentality.
Mayer hopes that other parents around the world will no longer shield their kids from the sad reality of hate and intolerance that exists. He wants parents to address these issues with their kids in an attempt to encourage kids to make a difference.
“The lesson that love always wins is not a lesson that can be just heard and accepted,” he said. “This lesson of taking the high road — of reacting to hate with love — is one that must be taught slowly over time, and it must be taught by example.”
[H/T] TODAY
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