The shooting that took 11 Jewish lives may have happened at a synagogue in Pittsburgh, but it has devastated people of all faiths in the Bloomington community.

The gunman entered the Tree of Life Congregation Synagogue in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood shouting hate for Jews before opening fire. He killed 11 members of the congregation during the 20-minute attack and pleaded not guilty in court. The worshippers killed have been honored across the country during remembrance services. In Bloomington, IU students gathered in honor of those 11 lives at the IU Hillel Sanctuary.

Rabbi Sue and Jewish students spoke to the room filled with mourning community members. The attack has deeply affected the entire Jewish community, but it has hit home in particular for one IU senior, Sydney Recht. Recht grew up in Squirrel Hill and has deep family ties to the area. Recht’s great-grandparents, along with many other Jewish people, fled to the area to escape the Nazi party. “This is my safe space,” she said. “I grew up there and the fact that someone went into a synagogue was just unthinkable, unimaginable and a complete tragedy for me.”

According to an annual report by the Anti-Defamation League issued earlier this year, the number of reported anti-Semitic incidents in the United States surged 57 percent in 2017, the largest rise in a single year since the A.D.L. began tracking such crimes in 1979. Rabbi Sue, the Executive Director of IU Hillel, says this hate crime should make people of all faiths take action.”Stop someone you see doing something because of bigotry and hatred,” she said. “Speak up against it. Feel like you can make a difference because none of us is truly powerless unless we allow ourselves to be.”

Local supporters are displaying signs made by Bloomington United that say “Hate has no home in our town,” reminding the community that Bloomington encourages diversity and acceptance. For more information on upcoming events at the Helene G. Simon Hill Center, visit their website or Facebook page.