Chief Executive Director @ Combat Anti-Semitism Movement | Advocacy, Strategic Planning
Today marks D-Day, a pivotal moment in modern history that we must never forget. On June 6, 1944, the Allies, led by the United States, assumed the monumental responsibility of standing up to hatred. They made it clear that Nazism and extreme ideologies have no place in our world, underscoring that freedom comes at a heavy price. The cost of liberating Europe from the Nazis and their collaborators was immense. The sacrifices made on D-Day were extraordinary, with over 4,400 Allied soldiers losing their lives on that single day. Over the course of World War II, an estimated 70-85 million people perished, including millions of Allied soldiers and countless civilians who endured the horrors of war to defend our freedom. In the 1930s, as hatred was on the rise, we failed to recognize the insidious spread of extreme ideologies within our societies. We hesitated to take the necessary actions to safeguard our freedom, waiting over a decade to respond. Each day of inaction made the eventual price we paid even greater. Today, we face a similar crossroads. Are we repeating the mistakes of our past by allowing dangerous ideologies to grow unchecked? The threats we face now come from various sources, including radical Islamism, radical wokism, and extremist movements on both the left and the right. What price will we pay in ten years if we fail to act now? Our democracies must begin to ask difficult questions and adopt strategic thinking, drawing lessons from our history to avoid repeating past mistakes. While I don’t have all the answers, I do know this: history tends to repeat itself, but perhaps this time, we can choose not to wait until the cost becomes too unbearable.
Partner at Ares Management, L.P. (LinkedIn views are my own)
6moSaving Private Ryan notwithstanding, I cannot even begin to image what it must have been like for a bunch of twenty plus year olds storming those beaches. Same for the Pacific Theater. Their sacrifices were beyond measure and are best visualized by a visit the the beaches and sacred burial ground in Normandy, which are awe inspiring. 🇺🇸💪🙏🙏