To the Editor:
Thank you to all of you who have posted comments on my Dec. 15 interview [“The GMW Interview — Peter Wrampe: ‘If you don’t want bad things to happen, you’ve got to stand up and speak out.’“]. I was moved by all of them — short or long! I also received some personal notes and calls expressing similar sentiments as you did.
I was especially moved by Sharon Kesselman, who expressed fears for her children. It is simply not right — no, it is absolutely wrong — for Sharon, for any parent, to have to worry about hatred of any kind directed towards their children, let alone in our schools! Where are the parents of those who show hatred to their classmates?
I also appreciated Pam Klem’s thoughtful comment about my addressing difficult and sensitive subjects publicly.
I like each of you to know that I stand with you, our Jewish friends and neighbors.
I am also troubled by a comment made by one of our legislators equating Israeli Jews with the perpetrators of the Shoah [Holocaust]. That was and is beyond the pale! The legislator should have resigned as soon as this became public knowledge. Do the right thing!
In the GMW interview, I mentioned an act of courage in Berlin in 1943/1944. Actually, the “24/7” act of defiance — “Give Us Our Husbands Back” — by hundreds of non-Jewish wives was from Feb. 27 to Mar 6, 1943. It “showed how ordinary people can become heroes by defying authority and taking risks, day by day”. (see Everyday Defiance Builds up to Heroic Actions [Goethe Institute). Imagine the courage of these women!
In closing, I want to express my gratitude to everyone who shared their thoughts on the interview. I stand with our Jewish friends against the atrocities of Oct. 7, against blaming the victims, against antisemitism.
Peter Wrampe
It’s entirely unsurprising that you’d use the occasion of a thank-you letter to take potshots at political rivals, just as you did in the original interview, and as you do in so many other letters where you alternate between decrying the other side’s unfair tactics and adopting them yourself (often within the same paragraph).
Rep. Denning is a good man who said some regrettable things, inspired by 3 separate humanitarian trips he took to provide healthcare for Palestinian children, and he has already announced he’s not running for re-election. It’s a shame that not one of the disloyal galliformes at the Democratic Town Committee stood up to defend him – or at least ask for grace and understanding on his behalf – but continuing to attack him now is pointless, and only serves to exacerbate the sort of division this letter and interview purport to heal.
Of course we are against hatred displayed against any group or individual, but I believe that focusing only on one group of people does a huge disservice to others, whom we are morally obligated not to overlook. I was greatly moved by the Jewish woman who spoke of the pain she and others carry for the people of Gaza; what a brave and heartfelt comment to make. I also felt deeply for the young woman who, from the age of 10, was identified as a terrorist. Supporting the fight against all hatred does NOT mean one is Anti-Semitic! That is about being human and living the lives any and all our Gods want us to live.