The staggering figure — the worst bombing in 15 years since 9/11 — has cast a pall on the Independence Day weekend.
An Islamic State suicide bomber struck D.C.'s bustling commercial area of Georgetown in the early hours on Sunday, when many residents were spending the night out, before the start of Fourth of July celebrations."
Have you heard of this story? How would you react to this story? Anger? Sadness? Disbelief? Why? Because lives were lost or because American lives were lost?
You may not know this, because the media has hardly covered this particular terror attack, but 175 people died this weekend in a terror attack. Except it wasn't in D.C., but in Baghdad. I took the lead paragraphs from this ABC News story, and changed the location and holiday.
Why is this not front page news? Let's try another story. Maybe you'll recognize this one.
"A series of deadly explosions tore through crowds at the LAX international airport in Los Angeles on Tuesday evening, leaving at least 41 people dead and scores more injured in an attack officials blamed on the Islamic State terror group.
Shortly before the blasts, assailants armed with AK-47 rifles became involved in a firefight with security and police near the airport’s x-ray security checkpoint.
At least two of the gunmen then detonated what are believed to have been suicide bombs. Three attackers died on the scene, said President Barack Obama."
Surely you read this story right? No? Well, maybe it's because this attack actually happened in Istanbul, not L.A. Let's try another.
"By the time the 10-hour siege was over Saturday inside a restaurant in London, 22 people — plus six terrorists — were dead in a bloody attack in which 20 people unable to quote from the Quran were pulled aside and hacked or knifed to death.
The carnage ended when British commandos stormed the Holey Artisan Bakery, an eatery popular with foreigners in London's diplomatic zone, and rescued 13 hostages.
Police Lt. Col. James White said six assailants were gunned down in the raid. Two police officers were killed in the early stages of the takeover."
"By the time the 10-hour siege was over Saturday inside a restaurant in London, 22 people — plus six terrorists — were dead in a bloody attack in which 20 people unable to quote from the Quran were pulled aside and hacked or knifed to death.
The carnage ended when British commandos stormed the Holey Artisan Bakery, an eatery popular with foreigners in London's diplomatic zone, and rescued 13 hostages.
Police Lt. Col. James White said six assailants were gunned down in the raid. Two police officers were killed in the early stages of the takeover."
I would bet not one of your friends tweeted this story about the attack in Dhaka, Bangladesh because it was in Asia, not Europe. Why is that? Why do we change our Facebook profile pictures to the French flag and use hashtags like #WeAreOrlando when terror attacks happen in Western Europe or America? I am in no way downplaying the grief we feel toward lives lost in the Paris and Florida attacks. We should grieve. Innocent lives were lost in a senseless, hateful manner. But innocent lives were also lost in a senseless, hateful manner in Saudi Arabia, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Turkey in the last week alone.
If #AllLivesMatter (and I believe they do), then why is it that the people who flippantly throw that hashtag around on a regular basis didn't bat an eye to the 242 lives lost in the last week? Is it because we can relate to American lives more than foreign lives? Possibly. Is it because we learned French in school instead of Arabic? Probably. Is it because the darker skin or hijabs are unfamiliar to us? Maybe. But just because someone looks different, or speaks a different language, or lives in a country we haven't visited, does not mean that their murder is any less devastating than the ones in Paris and Orlando.
Terrorists are not targeting Westerners. Terrorists are targeting the world. Now is a time to pray for our Asian and Middle Eastern friends who are grieving the loss of their loved ones. Now is the time to show terrorists that we care about every single life on this planet - no matter their ethnicity or nationality. Now is a time for unity toward the fight against terrorism.
