2013 – Two bombs explode at the finish line of the Boston Marathon, killing 3 and injuring 264.
Images of the suspects were released on April 18th. A fire fight ensured after one of the suspects was located. Chechen Tamerian Tsarnev was shot and pronounced dead on the scene after he had killed an MIT police officer and severely injured an MBTA police officer.
A manhunt on April 19th which included thousands of law enforcement officers combing a 20-block area of Watertown, Mass. led to the arrest of brother Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.
This simple-minded and hate-filled act of terrorism was a resounding failure for one simple reason: we are not a country that can be bullied into submission.
You can say what you want about this country and our leisure or vices; that fortunate abundance of resources or lack of disease or a greedy and selfish capitalistic economy have led to our status of 1st World Country. But do not leave out the one factor that absolutely shined through this terrible ordeal in Boston: our strong resilience.
You attacked one of the largest competitions in America to dishearten us? The Boston Globe reported that it expects over ONE MILLION people to line the marathon route and cheer competitors on. That number is twice what a typical year gets. Donations have poured in from all across the country to aid victims and their families. As of September, 2013 the One Fund Boston program has received more than $69.8 million
Not only did you bring your disillusioned “impactful” attack to the wrong country, but you also attacked the wrong group of people. Runners do not respond to pain and fear like most people. When the deep ache of oxygen debt begins to catch hold of us or the finish line feels infinitely far away we take one deep breath and say, “This hurts pretty bad. I should probably keep going.” Some of the marathon finishers who had just run 26.2 miles continued running… right to the nearest hospital to donate blood. The 2014 Boston Marathon currently has over 36,000 registered participants, the second highest number that its ever had. Thousands of others were unfortunately turned away because the sheer size of the race would be too much to handle.
We live in a time when terrorism has turned into an unfortunate form of communication. No one blinks an eye when you read about how one group voices their displeasure to another group through senseless acts of violence. This violence becomes cyclical and endless. We are above this in America, however. Do not bring that hateful garbage in here. You will not bring us down and we will become a stronger community because of it.
Please remember Krysti Marie Campbell, Lu Lingzi, Martin William, and officier Sean A. Collier who lost their lives during the bombing and fire fight that followed.
Lane 2 