Dear colleagues, students, alumni, and friends, The past two days have shown us the worst and best of what our society can be. Saturday morning’s anti-Semitic attack is a stark reminder of the hatred and violence in our society. We grieve with the Jewish community, the Tree of Life congregations, and the families and friends who lost loved ones. But we also saw the immediate outpouring of love – coming together to offer support, coordinate vigils, and reaffirm all that is good about the world around us. As social workers, we are committed to essential values of human worth and dignity, social justice, interpersonal connections, and peace. We believe in, and work tirelessly for, a world where all of us can embrace lives of meaning, following our beliefs and principles, surrounded in a network of caring relationships. As we witness what hate, divisions, fear, and incivility can bring, we come back to these core values to propel ourselves forward to ask what we can do to make the world a better place. We move forward with purpose; we reach out to each other with kindness; we advocate and work to overcome systems of oppression and division; and we always remember that we must perpetually help create the world we want to inhabit! Please take care of yourselves and each other in the face of this tragedy, and look around you for all the signs of life, love, and possibilities.
In peace and solidarity,
Betsy Farmer