A city united by tragedy
Re The search for answers, Editorial, April 25 In seeking answers, your editorial reminds us that even terrorists are human. It also notes that loneliness and alienation may have played a key role in fostering such anti-social violence, and that the heinous act may have been inspired by Elliot Rodger, who in 2014 rebelled against his involuntary celibacy — “incel.” Since this attack, in turn, may inspire others to follow suit, it is important to learn from this event.
Perhaps this helps explain why the U.K. created a Ministry of Loneliness — in recognition of the fact that alienation is a sickness we ignore at our peril. Its role in suicide rates was first studied by Emil Durkheim more than a century ago, but it seems we have learned little since.
The moral of this tale is not simply for us to be kinder to one another, as Premier Kathleen Wynne suggests, but for Ontario to double down on the vision of a fully inclusive society. Since no one can be secure until everyone belongs, the best antidote to alienation is inclusion. Salvatore Amenta, Stouffville My respect for the police has waned in the past few years with the open aggressive behaviour and criminal activity of many officers, not only in Toronto but in the rest of Canada and the U.S.
Const. Ken Lam, the police officer who single-handedly arrested the man accused in Monday’s tragedy in north Toronto, is truly a hero for his actions. No one would have blamed the officer for shooting the suspect, considering he was pointing an object at him, but he remained calm under a very stressful situation.
It is unfortunate Const. Lam wasn’t called to the streetcar incident in July 2013. I have no doubt the outcome would have had a peaceful result.
There are plenty of videos of Const. Lam’s actions and they should be used to help train all officers how to defuse a dangerous situation and bring respect back to this public service. Ken Robertson, Barrie You are doing a great job reporting on the terribly sad and horrific events of Monday. As journalists, it is your duty to report all angles of the story and I appreciate this one has many complicated dimensions.
However, why do we have to continue to see the accused man’s face and story? He doesn’t deserve it. Why is his face and story as prominent as those who fell victim and those who rose to immense strength to stop him and help the ones he killed and hurt?
I understand that we need to learn and heal and perhaps avoid something like this in the future. But please don’t let his face be the thing we remember. Please don’t let my children remember his name and face over the victims. Tori Laurence, Toronto This most tragic and deadly rampage will forever remain a horrific nightmare for all those who lost loved ones, those seriously injured and everyone who witnessed the carnage and assisted the victims.
I can’t remember a time when so many first responders (police, EMS, fire, transit police and security) responded in such numbers and so very quickly to the scene to tend to the injured, transport them to emergency centres and generally get the situation under control. This terrible event clearly demonstrated how very lucky we are to have an army of first responders in this city who are second to none in North America. Marty Fruchtman, Toronto Toronto city council should call for submissions from sculptors to submit designs to create a lasting memorial to the dead and injured following Monday’s shocking incident on Yonge St. The memorial should be unveiled on April 23, 2019, so we never forget this tragedy. Grahame Woods, Cobourg There was an unsung hero at the Maple Leafs game Monday night. Following the horror Toronto experienced that day, I was moved by the singing of our national anthem. The lovely lady with her fabulous voice started to sing, realized the entire audience was singing along and pointed her microphone to the audience. She let the audience sing. It brought the audience and our city together. Such a small gesture spoke volumes. Kathy Citrullo, Toronto The heinous slaughter of innocent people on Yonge St. was tragic beyond words. Oddly, while I was watching TV coverage of various groups from differ- ent religions praying for the victims and their families, it struck me how beautiful Canada is. Where else would you see a multicultural multi-religious country freely praying together for unknown victims? Lillian Shery, Toronto If Monday’s horrific attack had occurred in any American city, the van driver would be dead. That, no doubt, is what the Toronto driver was counting on. The police officer showed remarkable restraint as the man taunted him with hand motions that made it look like he had a gun. That restraint may deter other attackers. Joe Spence, Ottawa I wish to commend the extraordinary bravery and discipline of Const. Ken Lam. In the face of brazen provocation, he made a cool assessment of a very dangerous situation, contained the threat to the public and subdued the perpetrator of a horrific crime.
Such a resolution is almost impossible to imagine here in the U.S., where the concept of de-escalation appears all but unheard of among American police forces. Const. Lam’s tremendous courage and remarkable regard for human life should receive the highest commendation.
Let me add my sincere condolences to those victims and family members affected by Monday’s tragedy. As former residents of Toronto, our family is especially saddened by this appalling event in a city we had grown to love. Francis Guinan, Elmhurst, Ill. As the city and the world mourn another horrendous murder of innocent civilians, there is a renewed respect for our police force. Const. Ken Lam is rightly being praised for his heroic performance in the line of duty. He represents the superb training of our police. It is time to celebrate our police force, starting with the community insisting on the right of uniformed officers to march in the Pride parade. Lawrence B. Cohen, Toronto
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