SPLC CEO Margaret Huang Reflects on the Anniversary of the Tree of Life Synagogue Attack 

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) President and CEO Margaret Huang issued the following statement reflecting on the third anniversary of the white nationalist attack on the Tree of Life Synagogue.  

“Today we pause to remember the mass shooting that occurred three years ago today at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. On that Saturday morning, an antisemitic white nationalist who was radicalized on social media took the lives of 11 people, and injured at least six, who had gathered inside the synagogue for Shabbat morning services. White supremacists on fringe websites celebrated this deadly attack in its aftermath, even as family members mourned the loss of their loved ones. 

“This is one in a sadly long-string of attacks our nation has suffered over the last several years as extremists and white supremacists have become more emboldened and their messages and propaganda have increasingly infected the mainstream. 

“We must remember the lives of those lost and their families, and all those impacted. We must also recommit ourselves to reject antisemitism and white supremacy. Only through the courage to stand up and fight back in this manner will we be able to turn the corner from these dark days in our nation’s history and defend inclusive democracy in America. 

“We ask you to join us to prevent hatred before it turns to violence, to help us expose the dangers of antisemitic hatred, and to call upon our government to dismantle the structural racism that perpetuates it.”