Present as Prologue - Reflections on the Morning After

The best way to prevent apocalyptic outcomes is not to assume that they are inevitable and fall into a fetal position, but to work steadfastly to prevent those scenarios from happening.

Synagogue destroyed during Kristallnacht

In a few days we’ll commemorate the anniversary of Kristallnacht, with renewed fears of violence, discrimination and hate. Given the victory of America’s far right last night, a clear “free and fair” victory that was nonetheless marred by acts of intimidation and violence apparently orchestrated by Russia, we can’t help but ask: Could the past be repeating itself? Here? Was this organized act of state-sponsored terror the first step of a fascist takeover? It was right out of the authoritarian playbook.

Many historians believe that the pogrom of November 1938, the night when Jewish businesses and houses of worship all over Germany were shattered by Nazi hooligans in an organized act of state-sponsored terror, paved the way for the Holocaust that followed.  Some say it gave license to the overt racism that fueled the Nazi machine, making the mass murder of Jews inevitable.

The irony of this timing is too juicy to miss, as hate groups and autocrats today are celebrating across the country and the globe. Kristallnacht always comes around the time of Election Day - in 2016 in fact, the two coincided. So it makes us wonder: Is past prologue this time as well? What has become inevitable now? 

My answer: Nothing.

There is no silver lining to be found in what has transpired; but, foolish idealist that I am, I grasp for some slivers of silver that someday might be sewn into a lining.  It’s what I do.  As a rabbi, in my dual role as one who afflicts the comfortable and comforts the afflicted, today is a day to focus on the comforting.  So, while straining to avoid Panglossian banalities, I grope for some slivers to offer, without disregarding or downplaying the well-documented dangers that a Trump presidency offers - dangers that were borne out during his first term.

And the best that I can say is that nothing is inevitable, that past is not prologue. Just as November 9-10, 1938 did not have to lead directly to Auschwitz, neither was that unique historical moment a prototype for what we are experiencing now.   Today is decidedly not “Kristallnacht: The Sequel,” or at least not necessarily.

It’s of small comfort, I suppose, that the most positive message I can muster is that when I woke up this morning, the sun rose and no Brownshirts or Cossacks were running amok in the village. To my knowledge, we haven’t seen significant post election violence - yet. (We did in 2016.)

But if we begin with the premise that present is prologue, let’s agree that today is not Kristallnacht II. Today is Day One.  The best way to prevent the apocalyptic scenarios envisioned of a Trump presidency is not to assume that they are inevitable and fall into a fetal position, but to work steadfastly to prevent those scenarios from being realized, day by day, one foot in front of the other.   If we do that, things will be far from perfect, but we still stand a chance of leaving this world a little better than we found it.

When we shackle ourselves to historical precedent, we fail to be prepared for the surprises that the world presents to us every day.  While we should study history to avoid repeating mistakes, we shouldn’t assume that any precedent will automatically be prescient.

Some more slivers of silver:

• Before we pack our bags for Canada and bemoan the racism and misogyny of America, recall that many of the same voters who elected Trump voted for Biden and Obama.  Sooner, we can hope, rather than later, these same Americans will be out to drain yet another swamp, since, as it seems, post-Covid electorates worldwide are in a permanent state of “throw-the-bums-out.” The pandemic is over but the fever still hasn’t broken.

• Despite what we’ve seen, love still supersedes hate. Before we assume that America is on its way to becoming a more brutish society, where bullies routinely prey on the enfeebled, we can be grateful that a culture of kindness can still be promoted on the local level and by each of us individually.  The power of the states, so brazenly championed by conservatives, will now provide some solace for those living in places where such a culture of kindness is championed.  States can mitigate some of the damage to our planet too, as many did last time.

• The post-Trump era is coming, and given what we’ve seen from him recently, possibly sooner than we think. I can understand the palpable concerns over JD Vance as successor, but anyone that succeeds him will not have the same hypnotic pull on his followers. Such is the tragic fate of cults of personality. They rarely outlive the icon.

• The southern border notwithstanding, the wall that will matter most over the next four years is that hallowed wall of separation between religion and state.  I believe it will continue to stand tall, because so many religious leaders of all faiths and denominations have given their lives to building bonds of friendship and mutual respect between faith communities.

Thanks to that wall of separation, the role of religious leadership has never been more important.  In the short term we need to comfort the afflicted and continue to act as agents of healing.  But over the coming months and years, we’ll need to continue to be the clear voices of conscience. With the levers of government firmly in the hands of the autocrat, clergy and journalists especially will have an outsized role to play - and we will need to be courageous and not instinctively fall into line.

So I have no instant feel-good panacea to offer as we approach another Kristallnacht, except that this event is not Kristallnacht. I know some are cheering this outcome and I sincerely hope your confidence is borne out. But I feel especially heartbroken today, for our country, for our allies, especially Ukraine and Putin’s next victims, for women and girls, for courageous leaders like Liz Cheney, and for Kamala Harris herself, who was thrust into a role she did not seek and handled it heroically.

It’s Day One, and together, one foot after another, we will need to summon our wits and compassion to face an unknown future that is still ours to determine.