In yet another senseless act of violence, France has once again been struck by a terrorist attack. During Bastille Day celebrations in Nice, a truck rammed into a crowd gathered along the famed Promenade des Anglais. The perpetrator also opened gunfire on spectators before being fatally shot by the police. As of now the death toll is over 80, a number which includes several children. Horrific photos of the aftermath have been posted on social media, showing several corpses still lying in the street.
Witness Damien Allemand described a scene of complete chaos, saying “I saw bodies flying like bowling pins along its route. Heard noises, cries that I will never forget.”
This massacre comes only eight months after the shootings in Paris on November 13, which killed 130 people. France has been in a state of emergency since then, one that President Francois Hollande has recently extended by three more months. In a speech given shortly after the attack, he declared “It is clear we have to do everything in our power to fight this terrorist plague.”
As someone who once called France their home for nine months, seeing this news is devastating. After personally witnessing how on edge the country was following the Charlie Hebdo incident, my heart is breaking for what the French must be going through now. The fact that this disaster took place on Bastille Day, comparable to the Fourth of July in the U.S., is an added blow. This attack was clearly an attempt to crush the French spirit while it was at its highest.
Moments like these traumatize an entire nation’s psyche, instilling fear in every citizen’s heart. People are starting to feel unsafe in their own homes, and now have to worry if they might one day be at the wrong place at the wrong time. This is to say nothing of the survivors of such tragedies, who must carry memories of this ordeal for the rest of their lives.
We must remember that no people have a monopoly on terrorism. While ISIS is suspected to be behind the attack, it’s vital that one doesn’t pass judgement on an entire religion. The last thing a country needs after a terrorist attack is more division, yet there will surely be people who see this as an opportunity to stoke fear. In fact, there’s already been doctored photos that implicate a Sikh man for the killings circulating around the internet.
This act of violence is the latest in a series of terrorist attacks across the world that have killed hundreds. It’s becoming plain as day that terror knows no borders and doesn’t discriminate against race, religion or creed. Humanity itself is under siege, and at a time like this we must come together to face a common enemy.
In the meanwhile, France needs the global community’s utter support, just as all nations who face such destruction do. So many lives were lost or have permanently been altered because of pure hatred, and all we can do now is offer the victims love.
