Manchester Unites in Mourning, Remembrance After synagogue Attack
MANCHESTER, England – Following a recent attack on a synagogue, the city of Manchester is once again demonstrating its resilience and compassion in the face of terror, drawing on hard-won experience from past tragedies.Soccer fans will observe a minute’s silence before matches this weekend, and players from Manchester United and Manchester City will wear black armbands as a mark of respect for the victims.
The outpouring of support echoes the city’s response too the 2017 Manchester Arena bombing, an event that deeply impacted the community, including Manchester city manager Pep Guardiola, whose wife and two daughters were in attendance that night. Guardiola recounted in 2018 the fear he felt when his wife’s phone call was cut off mid-sentence, only to learn his family had escaped unharmed.
“When this kind of thing happens it shows the best of us,” Guardiola told the BBC. “Sometimes these kind of things happen. The times we are living right now, all around the world many things have happened…. it needs open arms to go in there and try to help them.”
Local charity Our Communities emphasized the city’s inherent strength, stating Manchester “has this huge, compassionate heart and it’s a hard-working place were people will want to react positively.” The institution intends to focus on “love in action,” moving beyond protest to support those suffering and honor those who have lost loved ones.
“There’s always a positive,” a representative from Our Communities said. “The only good that can come from something like this is the rallying of people,the solidarity of people to care for those who are suffering,to show respect for those who’ve lost loved ones.”
Manchester United’s men’s team and Manchester City’s women’s team are both playing matches in the city on Saturday. Manchester United’s women’s team wore black armbands during their Friday game against Chelsea at the Progress with Unity Stadium in Leigh, Greater Manchester, where a minute’s silence was also held. United head coach Ruben Amorim acknowledged the unsettling climate, stating, “It is a crazy world we are living in at the moment.”
