A New Day Will Rise

Reflecting on Sunday’s antisemitic terror attack in Colorado

Last summer, my wife Marina and I visited Israel—our third trip in recent years. It felt different this time, coming just nine months after the October 7, 2023 terrorist attacks, and with the war in Gaza underway.

The pain felt by so many Israelis was palpable. Posters with messages of support for the hostages and their families were everywhere; the entire nation was in mourning. We spent time with Marina’s family in Tel Aviv, and at one point drove an hour and a half south, to the site of the Nova music festival massacre, stopping along the way to visit several of the kibbutzim that were brutally attacked by Hamas. We were seeking, in our own way, to bear witness to the calamity that was still ongoing.

The following day, we went to a rally in Tel Aviv’s Hostage Square to show our support for the hostages and their families. We gathered with thousands of people that evening, and were overcome by a flood of emotions—love and interconnectedness, combined with a profound feeling of sadness and loss. Touched by our experience, I brought home a yellow wristband imprinted with “#BringThemHomeNOW.”

Today, almost a year later, the imprint on my yellow wristband has faded away—but I wear it every day, and think about the fact that 58 Israeli hostages are still being held by Hamas, over 600 days after they were first stolen from their families.

Reflecting on Sunday’s tragic antisemitic terror attack in Boulder, Colorado, I’m feeling the same mix of emotions that I felt last summer in Hostage Square. Especially the sadness.

I’m heartbroken that we have reached a point in this country where a man armed with a blowtorch and molotov cocktails feels emboldened to heartlessly attack and burn at least a dozen innocent people on the eve of the Jewish holiday of Shavuot—including an 88 year old Holocaust survivor—while shouting “Free Palestine” and “Fuck you, Zionists.”

I’m heartbroken that this latest attack against Jewish people comes just 10 days after two Americans who worked for the Israeli embassy were shot dead in Washington D.C. by a man yelling “Free, Free Palestine”—and six weeks after an arson attack on the home of Josh Shapiro, the Jewish governor of Pennsylvania, by a man claiming that he wanted to “stop having [his] friends killed” in Gaza.

Let me be clear: Those perpetrating acts of hate against Jewish people, while claiming to support their “friends” in Gaza are blind to the reality that the two million people living and suffering in war-torn Gaza need to be freed not from “Zionists”—but rather from the Hamas terrorist organization’s brutal reign of terror against their own people.

Of course, it’s fair for people to criticize the Israeli government—I know a number of Israelis who are critical of their government’s policies across a wide range of issues. But it’s not fair to claim, as some have, that there is moral equivalence between Israel and Hamas. And it’s not fair to insist that Israel should compromise with those who seek its destruction. In the words of Israel’s first female Prime Minister, Golda Meir, “They say we must be dead. And we say we want to be alive. Between life and death, I don’t know of a compromise. And that’s why we have no choice.”

The challenge we face is great, and the stakes could not be higher. But we need to remain true to our values, especially now. If we respond to these attacks by hardening our hearts—or by becoming consumed with hatred—then our side, the side of love and light, has lost. Even if we win on the battlefield against evil, we will have lost our souls.

I’m reminded of what Nova massacre survivor Yuval Raphael sang just a few weeks ago, winning her second place in this year’s Eurovision contest:

New day will rise

Life will go on

Everyone cries

Don't cry alone

Darkness will fade

All the pain will go by

But we will stay

Even if you say goodbye

In the face of these tragedies, it’s ok to feel sad. It’s ok to cry. But please, don’t cry alone. Let these acts of inhumanity bring us closer to our families, our communities, and our shared humanity. And help us find the courage and compassion to counter ignorant hatred with righteous love.

Am Yisrael Chai! The people of Israel live!

Bion Bartning is an entrepreneur, investor, and co-founder of the Prohuman Foundation. He previously co-founded and led the launch of eos Products, a personal care brand best known today for its iconic egg-shaped lip balm. Bion earned his MBA from Columbia Business School, and graduated magna cum laude with a degree in economics and environmental studies from Occidental College.