 JUNE 18 • 2020 | 35

over in 24 hours.”
After township officials 
placed him on paid admin-
istrative leave, the 34-year 
police veteran’
s tone dramat-
ically changed. Shelide issued 
an apology, which reads, in 
part: “While an apology is 
insufficient and an insult to 
the gravity of my comments, 
I humbly and respectfully ask 
for the courtesy of forgiveness 
to those I have offended, to 
my department and more 
importantly to those I am 
sworn to serve. My record 
speaks to the commitment and 
professionalism that I have 
exhibited for more than 30 
years without incident, both of 
which were compromised by 
my emotion.”
Lippitt was not impressed. 
“He posted reprehensible 
things and he’
s policing peo-

ple. You can’
t have a police 
chief who thinks like this,” he 
said, adding he had no idea 
who Shelide was prior to all 
of this.
While friends and followers 
on Facebook are calling him a 
“warrior for justice,” thanking 
him and cheering him on, 

Lippitt says he wishes he had 
done something sooner.
“Why did I wait so long to 
speak my mind? What was 
I afraid of?” he wrote. “I’
m 
disappointed in myself. What 
if I had spoken up sooner? 
What if we all had? Please stop 
complimenting me for doing 

what I should have done in 
the first place.”
Following all the excitement, 
Facebook locked Lippitt’
s 
account for at least three days, 
saying his posts were “against 
community guidelines” 
without providing details. 
He and others protested the 
temporary Facebook ban and 
his page was reinstated. 
In the end, Lippitt says he 
wants people to know that 
actions matter, and one person 
can make a difference.
“Everybody should be 
speaking up. Imagine if 
everybody just spoke up,” he 
says. “People are entitled to 
their opinions; I’
m not trying 
to keep anybody’
s free speech 
down. But racism is bad. Just 
be nice — it’
s not that hard. 
And for God’
s sake, go vote.” 

“People are entitled to their 
opinions; I’m not trying to 
keep anybody’s free speech 
down. But racism is bad. Just 
be nice — it’s not that hard. 
And for God’s sake, go vote.”

— DAN LIPPITT

continued from page 34

STAYING CONNECTED
At this time of social distanc-
ing, the Jewish News will try 
to bring awareness to events/
learning situations offered 
online by synagogues, temples 
and community organizations. 

FILM & STUDY SESSION
7 PM, JUNE 18
The Chabad Jewish Center of 
Troy presents the film and study 
session Triumph of Hope: Personal 
Recollections of Faith Amidst the 
Horrors of the Holocaust. Rabbi 
Menachem Caytak will conduct 
the online program. The film is 
a stirring documentary, featuring 
Holocaust survivors recounting 
how their faith and trust in God 
persevered despite living in a 
brutal and horrifying concentration 
camp. In the study session to 
follow, Rabbi Menachem will 
discuss how the Holocaust speaks 
to us today. The event is free; 
however, registration is required at 
JewishTroy.com/4727853.

CCF VIRTUAL WALK 
11:30 AM-1 PM, JUNE 20
Crohn’
s and Colitis Foundation’
s 
Take Steps Walk, which raises 
funds to find a cure for the 
disease, is going virtual this year 
with local programming starting 
at 11:30 am on Facebook Live 
on the CCF Michigan page and 
national programming starting 
at noon on the national FB page. 
More information at cctakesteps.
org/southeastmichigan2020.

TOUR ISRAEL 
NOON-1 PM, JUNE 23
Temple Shir Shalom is offering 
a live, virtual tour of Tzippori, 
Israel, with Rabbi Daniel Schwartz 
and Israeli tour guide Beni Levin. 
Learn the history and stories of 
an ancient city in our community’
s 
partnership region on this one-
hour guided tour on Zoom. To 
learn more or register, call 248-
737-8700 or email audrey@
shirshalom.org.

COOKING FOR KIDS
4-5 PM, JUNE 23
Temple Israel sponsors a program 
of Israeli cooking with Maya 
for kindergarten thru seventh-
graders. Younger students may 
need a parent nearby. A list of 
ingredients will be sent to those 
who register: temple-israel.org/
event/TynerCooking. 

MUSICAL PERFORMANCES
The Detroit Symphony Orchestra 
(DSO) announced that access to 
DSO Replay — the on-demand 
video streaming archive of past 
DSO performances — is now free 
to all. Find DSO Replay at dso.org/
replay.

VIRTUAL ART TOURS
Ongoing at cranbrookartmuseum.
org/3d-virtual-exhibition-tours. 
See Cranbrook Art Museum’
s 
most recent shows online. Just 
added: the exhibition For the 
Record: Artists on Vinyl, which 
pairs album cover designs 

with artworks drawn from its 
permanent collection.

A DIGITAL DISCUSSION
8-9:PM, JUNE 25
Congregation Shaarey Zedek 
invites you to follow Rabbi Yonatan 
Dahlen (@MotorCityRabbi) on 
Instagram for a weekly live 
conversation between Yoni and 
his guests, who will cover a wide 
range of topics and perspectives.

Compiled by Sy Manello/Editorial 
Assistant. Send items to calendar@
thejewishnews.com.

On The Go

virtual events | learnings

