The attacks that happened on Paris over one week ago have resulted in international sadness, mourning and controversy. In addition to the retaliative airstrikes the French nation performed at Syria, there has been great debate as to how to combat ISIS and other extremist terrorist groups, and where to place, and how to handle the myriad of refugees who are attempting to escape civil strife and terrorism, particularly those hailing from Syria.
Evidently, these are complex issues of great importance and high priority as they decide the fate of our world, the future, and do require immediate action. However, the contentious debate and constant media coverage of these issues have completely overshadowed the lives that were lost during the tragic events that took place on the evening of November 13, 2015.
130 people were killed on that fateful evening and over 368 people were injured. Approximately 100 of those who were hurt were said to have sustained serious injuries. All of these people were mothers, fathers, sisters, aunts, uncles and friends whose lives ended too soon in the name of terrorism. Yet, the lives and accomplishments of the victims, and their families, are not being recognized nor remembered, and the alteration of the victim's family is not being acknowledged either.
We are quickly turning to hate and the future. It is one of the parts of the vital stages of grief to turn to anger and retaliation. We can hate extremist groups and the brutal and unexplainable terror and destruction that they perform. However, in the case of the Paris attacks, we quickly surpassed the other stages of grief and immediately turned toward animosity and revenge.
In the intense hubbub as to our next course of action and the uncertain future of the state of our world, we must remember the 130 victims, their lives, those who are still fighting for their lives and the victim's families as well. Let's not forget to mourn and to pray for the son of the woman who was killed while innocently watching a concert at the Bataclan Concert Hall, and for the friends and for the family of the woman who was enjoying a drink at the bar in the 11th arrondissement.
We are allowed to hate and be angry at such cowardly and evil groups and individuals, but we cannot hold onto such resentment for long and cannot forget the victims and the impact that they had during their short time on Earth. We must mourn and grieve as a global community since grieving together with as little hatred as possible is better than facing such intense feelings alone.
As the loving husband of one of the victims said in a message to ISIS, "Friday night you took away the life of an exceptional human being, the love of my life, the mother of my son, but you will not have my hatred."
Remembering the victims and understanding their lives will make us better and stronger human beings, and will ultimately help us combat such horrible organizations in the strongest and most unified way possible.
