9/11 | American Turban

The US flag is raised in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks in 2001. (Source: Martin Ramirez)

“Since 9/11”

September 15, 2013 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

The neighborhood in which I live is one of those that sprung up during the real estate bubble eight years ago. The houses are, for the most part, very similar. Composed of four or five standard models, the streets offer a consistent character of a typical Californian subdivision. There is one house among the many, however, that is a bit different. It is unique in that an American flag waves outside its front door. The residents of that house are […]

Categories: Civil Rights, Events, Hate Crimes, Reflections • Tags: 9/11, hate crimes, Islamophobia, Sikhophobia, xenophobia

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Thinking about that day in September, eleven years later

September 11, 2012 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

In the morning of this day eleven years ago, I was in a hotel preparing to attend the second day of a technical conference. It was a rather mundane and typical data users meeting. In retrospect, the topic of this meeting became insignificant in comparison of the terrorist attacks on the United States that morning. That morning, as I was about to walk out the door of my room, the television news broke to images of a tall building on […]

Categories: Reflections • Tags: 9/11, Balbir Singh Sodhi, National September 11 Memorial Museum, New York, New York City, One World Trade Center, September 11 attacks, World Trade Center

Bollywood movie “I Am Singh” opens tomorrow

December 1, 2011 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

Opening tomorrow, “I Am Singh” is a Bollywood film that is based on the discrimination that Sikhs faced in the United States after 9/11: This story is about a young Sikh named Ranveer Singh, a young, confident man settled in India. Ranveer’s elder brothers are citizens of America. Ranveer’s life takes a turn when he receives a call and he comes to know that one of his brothers is dead, his father is seriously injured and his other brother is […]

Categories: TV/Movies • Tags: 9/11, Bollywood, I Am Singh

Captured on film: Post-9/11 experiences of American Sikhs

May 19, 2011 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

It was a serendipitous post on The Sikh Coalition’s Facebook page that linked to the independent film A Dream in Doubt (2007), which follows Rana Singh Sodhi after his brother, Balbir, was killed in a post-9/11 hate crime in Arizona. The documentary aired on PBS’s Independent Lens : When his brother is murdered, Rana Singh Sodhi finds himself coping with national tragedy and murder, finding support in community and attempting to reclaim the American dream.

Categories: Hate Crimes, TV/Movies • Tags: 9/11, 9/11 Memorial, A Dream in Doubt, American Made, Balbir Singh Sodhi, Divided We Fall: Americans in the Aftermath, hate crime, Independent Lens, Jan Brewer, Rana Singh Sodhi, Sharat Raju, Sikh Coalition, Valarie Kaur

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“I apologized”: Arizona lawmaker backs down on removal of slain Sikh’s name from 9/11 memorial

April 27, 2011 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

On September 15, 2001, Balbir Singh Sodhi was shot and killed outside of his gas station in Mesa, Arizona. His murder was one of the first post-9/11 hate crimes in the United States. His murderer, Frank Roque (who mistook Balbir Singh as an Arab), is currently serving a life sentence for the crime. Balbir Singh’s death was a turning point for Sikhs in this country, who since that day have undertaken significant efforts to bring about more Sikh awareness in the United […]

Categories: Hate Crimes, News Bits • Tags: 9/11, Arizona, Balbir Singh Sodhi, Frank Roque, hate crime, Jan Brewer, John Kavanagh, memorial, Mesa, SALDEF, Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund

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Seizing the wind: South Asian mobilization after 9/11

February 23, 2011 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

In grad school I was taught that for certain public policies to come to fruition, there needs to be a “window of opportunity”. For the South Asian community, the catalyst for this window of opportunity was the Twin Towers falling. As tragic of an event it was for everyone in our nation, that day was a starting point for our community not wanting to get together but NEEDING to get together. We were forced to organize and mobilize. We still […]

Categories: Civil Rights, Hate Crimes, Reflections • Tags: 9/11, Tanzila Ahmed

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American Turban

Considering the experience of Sikhs in America.

Tag: 9/11

“Since 9/11”

Thinking about that day in September, eleven years later

Bollywood movie “I Am Singh” opens tomorrow

Captured on film: Post-9/11 experiences of American Sikhs

“I apologized”: Arizona lawmaker backs down on removal of slain Sikh’s name from 9/11 memorial

Seizing the wind: South Asian mobilization after 9/11