Why all the hate?

As I sat at my desk at FMF today, it was hard to believe that Mr. Stephen Tyrone Johns was killed in the very same city. Mr. Johns was a security guard at the DC Holocaust Museum, and was murdered yesterday afternoon on the job. The leading suspect was James von Brunn, an admitted anti-Semitic. He has his own website about white supremacy and has written literature about the subject.

After the murder of Dr. George Tiller, I was not expecting to hear about another tragic, extremist act so soon. I can only ask myself--why do hate crimes happen? When do opinions cross the line to violence, and when does violence go far enough to take the life of another person? Mr. Johns was just doing his job: keeping the people in the museum safe.

I just find it shocking that both of these murderous demonstrations took place in such sacred atmospheres: Dr. Tiller was murdered in his church while handing out programs, and Mr. Johns was murdered in a very somber and reverent national landmark (the Holocaust Museum).

I am just awestruck that an innocent person had to die simply because his job was to defend that building. I remember taking a trip with my family to DC when I was very young, and I remember my parents crying at Holocaust Museum--so if I could say anything to Mr. Johns' family, it would be that he had one of the most important jobs a person can have: allowing/defending a timeless experience for anyone who entered such a special and sad place.

It's such a shame that he had to come face-to-face with the hate that the Museum is trying to prevent from ever happening again.