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"A scene of the procession of the parade held in downtown Phoenix on April 21st." (Source: Valley India Times)

A country of many colors

July 18, 2013 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

A man was giving small handbills to passersby. We saw a drawing of an American flag, and read this introduction:”We are loyal Americans. We join all Americans in condemning the violence in Boston.” I remembered the shootings at the Sikh temple in Oak Creek, Wis., in August 2012. I finished the letter, and realized it was a plea not to blame the Sikhs of Phoenix for the bombs in Boston. — Melissa Musick Nussbaum writes in the National Catholic Reporter […]

Categories: Hate Crimes, Reflections • Tags: Arizona, Balbir Singh Sodhi, Boston, Boston Marathon, Melissa Musick Nussbaum, Mesa, Oak Creek, Phoenix

What, or who, is “terrorism” in America?

April 22, 2013 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

In The Guardian, Glenn Greenwald compares the application of the word “terrorism” in the case of last week’s Boston Marathon bombing against recent previous acts of mass violence in the United States: It’s hard not to suspect that the only thing distinguishing the Boston attack from Tucson, Aurora, Sandy Hook and Columbine (to say nothing of the US “shock and awe” attack on Baghdad and the mass killings in Fallujah) is that the accused Boston attackers are Muslim and the […]

Categories: Civil Rights, Hate Crimes • Tags: Arizona, Barack Obama, Boston, Boston Marathon, Columbine, Connecticut, Glenn Greenwald, Guardian, Massachusetts, Newtown, Oak Creek, Salon, Sandy Hook, Terrorism, Tucson, Wajahat Ali, Wisconsin

Sikh wins religious accommodation case against AZ Department of Corrections

February 6, 2013 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

The Sikh Coalition shared news today of a victory in a recent religious accommodation case in Arizona, in which a Sikh correctional officer employed by the Arizona Department of Corrections was threatened with dismissal unless he removed his articles of faith. According to the Sikh Coalition, after 10 years of employment with the Department, Ikhbinder Singh Bassin was told in December that he would be terminated unless he shaved his beard and removed his kara (steel bracelet) within 10 days, […]

Categories: Civil Rights • Tags: Arizona, Arizona Department of Corrections, Balbir Singh Sodhi, California, Employment Discrimination, Ikhbinder Singh Bassin, Jan Brewer, Sikh Coalition, Trilochan Singh Oberoi, Workplace Religious Freedom Act

Vetoed: Arizona Governor preserves memorial to Balbir Singh Sodhi

May 3, 2011 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

In recent days, I have heard concerns from some of the Arizona families directly affected by the 9/11 attacks and their aftermath. For their sake, I am sorry this issue has reared its head once more. — An excerpt from Arizona Governor Jan Brewer’s letter to the Secretary of State, explaining why she vetoed Arizona’s state bill HB 2230, which sought to modify the state’s 9/11 memorial, including the removal of (post-9/11 hate crime victim) Balbir Singh Sodhi‘s name. The bill’s original […]

Categories: News Bits, Politics • Tags: 9/11 Memorial, Arizona, Balbir Singh Sodhi, Jan Brewer, John Kavanagh

“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

Considering the experience of Sikhs in America.

Tag: Arizona