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"A new problem for Uncle Sam." Political cartoon c. 1910 (source: Echoes of Freedom)

The Top 5 Sikh American Stories of 2012: The Oak Creek Massacre

January 5, 2013 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

It is without any doubt that the most significant event for Sikh Americans during the year 2012 occurred on August 5, when a white supremacist entered the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, on a Sunday morning and opened fire on worshippers who were preparing for the day’s services. Six Sikhs — Ranjit Singh, Sita Singh, Paramjit Kaur, Satwant Singh Kaleka, Prakash Singh and Suveg Singh Khattra — were killed. Among the several others injured included Punjab Singh, who now […]

Categories: Hate Crimes, Reflections • Tags: hate crimes, Oak Creek, Sikh Temple of Wisconsin, Top 5 Sikh American Stories, Wisconsin

Political cartoon commenting on the "religion" of gun ownership.

WI Sikh physician reflects on gun control issue

January 4, 2013 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

In a recent opinion piece, Dr. Mohan Singh Dhariwal, a physician from Wisconsin, reflects on the mass shootings in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, and Newtown, Connecticut, and discusses the issue of gun control: As a physician, I am accustomed to listening to the pains of my patients that ravages of life bring them. I empathize with them, guide them and allow them to heal. As a Sikh American physician, I found the tables were turned when patients came into my office […]

Categories: Hate Crimes, Reflections • Tags: Connecticut, gun control, hate crimes, mass shootings, Mohan Singh Dhariwal, Newtown, Oak Creek, Sandy Hook Elementary School, Sikh Temple of Wisconsin, Wisconsin

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Senator Dick Durbin speaks at a press conference alongside representatives of a variety of groups at the Senate hearing on hate crimes and domestic terrorism last September (photo credit: Dosti.com)

Moving beyond “mistaken identity”

January 4, 2013 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

After the subway hate crime in New York a week ago, Laurie Patton, in Religion Dispatches, suggests an approach beyond that of education to combat hate crimes: A second focus is necessary: we might view such confusions of identity as opportunities to make common cause with other victims of hate crimes in America. The fact that Erika Menendez included both Hindus and Muslims in her rage means that both groups continue to be vulnerable in the United States. The fact […]

Categories: Civil Rights, Hate Crimes • Tags: Erika Menendez, hate crimes, Laurie Patton, mistaken identity, New York, Oak Creek, Sikh Temple of Wisconsin, subway murder, Sunando Sen, Wisconsin

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Lt. Brian Murphy (source: Greg Miller | Esquire Magazine)

Lt. Brian Murphy recounts Oak Creek attack

December 27, 2012 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

In an interview with Esquire Magazine, Oak Creek Police Lieutenant Brian Murphy describes his confrontation with the shooter during the attack at the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin in August, one that almost took his life: I’d gotten a chance to look him in the eye. There was nothing. Pure nothing. Not hate. Not anger. Not emotion. Now I think, How did he get to that point? He made himself to be someone who thought life didn’t mean anything. I mean, […]

Categories: Hate Crimes • Tags: hate crimes, Lt. Brian Murphy, Oak Creek, Sikh Temple of Wisconsin, Wisconsin

Police action during the shooting attack on the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin in August 2012. (source: Daily Record and Sunday Mail)

White Supremacy: The Unspoken Truth

December 27, 2012 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

Co-blogged with Nina Chanpreet Kaur “All the talking is done and now it’s time to walk the walk / Revolution’s in the air 9mm in my hand / You can run but you can’t hide from this master plan.” (Song lyrics by Wade Michael Page’s band End Apathy) A few weeks ago, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) closed its investigation into the mass shooting that occurred at the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin in August, in which six Sikhs were […]

Categories: Civil Rights, Hate Crimes • Tags: FBI, FBI Hate Crime Statistics, Federal Bureau of Investigation, hate crimes, Oak Creek, Sikh Temple of Wisconsin, United States Department of Justice, Wade Michael Page, White supremacy, Wisconsin

People gather outside the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin for the raising of the Nishan Sahib flag a week after the mass murder that occurred there. A group of about 50 men and boys unwrapped the orange cloth covering the pole, washed the pole with water and milk and then re-wrapped it with a fresh cloth. (source: USA Today)

Victimhood in the context of chardi kala

December 26, 2012 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

In the shadow of the mass murder of Sikhs in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, Simran Jeet Singh discusses the growing narrative of Sikhs as victims in American society in the context of Sikh history and tradition: A few of the prominent themes have included buzzwords such as “unprecedented,” “victimization,” and “suffering” endured by Sikhs in America. Although these buzzwords rightfully point to the challenges faced by Sikh Americans, they fail to aptly capture the spirit and attitude with which Sikhs have […]

Categories: Hate Crimes, Reflections, Sikhism • Tags: chardi kala, hate crimes, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Oak Creek, Sikh Temple of Wisconsin, Simran Jeet Singh, Wisconsin

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Congregation at Sikh Religious Society of Chicago commemorates the passing of HR 1193 in Illinois (credit: SAAPRI)

IL South Asian community commemorates state anti-hate resolution

December 17, 2012 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

On Sunday, the South Asian community in Chicago, Illinois, came together with local and state officials at the Sikh Religious Society of Chicago to commemorate the passing of HR 1193 by the Illinois House of Representatives, an anti-hate resolution that was a collaboration between the South Asian American Public Research Institute (SAAPRI), local groups and State Representative Daniel Biss, condemning recent hate crimes against Sikhs, Muslims and other South Asians (and specifically, the mass shooting by a white supremacist in […]

Categories: Civil Rights, Hate Crimes • Tags: Chicago, Daniel Biss, HR 1193, Illinois, Illinois House of Representatives, Oak Creek, SAAPRI, Sikh Religious Society of Chicago, Sikh Temple of Wisconsin, South Asian American Public Research Institute, Wisconsin

Children are evacuated from their elementary school in Newtown, CT, after a shooter attacked on December 14, 2012. (source: CNN)

Thoughts and prayers for the innocent lives lost in Newtown, CT

December 14, 2012 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

I am sickened with today’s news of another mass shooting in this country, this time at an elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut. Preliminary reports indicate around 20 people are dead, half or more of whom are children. It was only a couple of days ago that we were still coming to terms with a shooting at a mall in Portland, Oregon. Gun violence has been a recurring topic on this blog during the last two years, after shootings that took […]

Categories: Hate Crimes, News Bits • Tags: California, Connecticut, Elk Grove, gun violence, Gurmej Atwal, hate crimes, Newtown, Oak Creek, Surinder Singh, Wisconsin

Assistant Attorney General Thomas Perez, Department of Justice Civil Rights Division

US Assistant Attorney General visits Oak Creek, WI

December 13, 2012 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

Visiting the gurdwara, the overwhelming message I took back from the congregation is one of unity – a resolve to work together, with members of every faith to foster understanding, and to ensure that such tragic acts of violence are never repeated. — Assistant Attorney General Thomas Perez of the Civil Rights Division of US Department of Justice, after his visit to the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin last week. The Department of Justice has joined calls to have the FBI […]

Categories: Civil Rights, Hate Crimes • Tags: FBI, FBI Hate Crime Statistics, Federal Bureau of Investigation, hate crimes, Oak Creek, Sikh Temple of Wisconsin, Thomas Perez, United States Assistant Attorney General, United States Department of Justice, United States Department of Justice Civil Rights Division, Wisconsin

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Considering the experience of Sikhs in America.

Tag: Wisconsin

The Top 5 Sikh American Stories of 2012: The Oak Creek Massacre

WI Sikh physician reflects on gun control issue

Moving beyond “mistaken identity”

Lt. Brian Murphy recounts Oak Creek attack

White Supremacy: The Unspoken Truth

Victimhood in the context of chardi kala

IL South Asian community commemorates state anti-hate resolution

Thoughts and prayers for the innocent lives lost in Newtown, CT

US Assistant Attorney General visits Oak Creek, WI