Missouri Gov. Mike Parson met with St. Louis Jewish community leaders on Oct. 30 in response to the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting. 

Parson was not able to attend a vigil days earlier at the Jewish Community Center near Creve Coeur and instead met with Jewish nonprofit leaders and rabbis at the Jewish Federation of St. Louis headquarters.

The meeting took place days after a man who had expressed anti-Semitic views online entered Tree of Life, a Conservative congregation, and killed 11 people and injured six. 

“We talked about [how] society as a whole has got some problems that we’re trying to figure out how we can to find solutions [to], how we can work together, how I can be a representative for the Jewish community in this state and maybe get their message out from time to time about their concerns,” said Parson, who became governor in June after Eric Greitens resigned.

When asked during a quick interview whether they had discussed increasing security at Jewish institutions or gun control restrictions, Parson said, “We talked about security measures, what we can do in the private sector, what the government’s role is.”

The Republican governor also said they discussed, “How do we change society as a whole? And you have to look at that from a child’s perspective. How do we change children in society today to be better stewards? To understand that we need to get away from hatred.”

When asked whether that included discussion of rhetoric online — a hot-button issue in large part because of President Donald Trump’s use of Twitter — Parson said, “I was pretty open with all the people there today — it starts with us as leaders.” This problem of “trying to win elections just by the money side of it and you do whatever you can to win elections, but sometimes you need to stand on your own two feet and win elections by who you are, instead of trying to destroy one another.”

Andrew Rehfeld, Federation President and CEO, said the Jewish community was “deeply appreciative” for Parson’s “expression of solidarity and all the things he” mentioned. “We spoke meaningfully and substantively and are just grateful for [his] offering of condolences and solidarity with us right now.” 

Others at the meeting included Federation leaders; Maharat Rori Picker Neiss, executive director of Jewish Community Relations Council of St. Louis; Lynn Wittels, president and CEO of the St. Louis Jewish Community Center; and Rabbis James Bennett and Moshe Shulman of Congregation Shaare Emeth and Young Israel of St. Louis, respectively.