Some Missourians fear an increase in hate crimes in the wake of a six-year-old s murder in Illinois this week - an incident authorities say was motivated by the Israel-Hamas war. The U.S. Department of Justice s current hate crime fact sheet finds religion-based hate crimes in Missouri have more than doubled since 2019. .
In Washington, D.C., today, American Jews from Pennsylvania and across the country are converging on the U.S. Capitol to call for an end to the war in Gaza. It has been more than a week since Hamas attacked Israel. .
Protests have heightened in New York as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu joins the United Nations General Assembly today. Sonya Meyerson-Knox, communications director for Jewish Voice for Peace, said it is important for protesters to not limit their objection to Netanyahu s far-right government, but also to what she calls "the apartheid." "There is no place for the way that the Israeli state has been behaving," Meyerson-Knox asserted. "This is not how we want to see Palestinians treated, this is not how we want to see anyone treated. " .
In cities across the globe, including the Michigan city of Midland, various organizations are commemorating International Day of Peace today. Midland holds an official designation as of last year. Judy Timmons, treasurer for the Midland chapter of Nonviolent Peaceforce, underscored the significance of contemplating peaceful conflict resolution during polarized times. .