Sikhs in the US have been the target of discrimination since Sept 11 terror attacks

'The turban and beard have become a symbol of hate'

By Tracy Quek, The Straits Times, 8 Aug 2012

WASHINGTON - Miss Shalvinder Kaur was just 10 and in middle school when the terrorist attack on New York's twin towers changed life for the Sikh community in the United States forever.

"We suddenly went from feeling safe to feeling vulnerable. It was as if everything changed overnight," said Miss Kaur, the youngest of four children whose parents moved from Punjab, India, to StLouis, Missouri, in the 1970s.

Her family was subjected to racial slurs and threats of violence. She recalled the time a driver pulled up alongside her family's car, made a fist and declared he was going to beat them up if they did not "go home".

"I could not understand it. I learnt in school that America was the land of freedom, but at the same time, I feared every day for the safety of my family," said Miss Kaur, now 21 and a student at the University of Michigan.

The Sept 11, 2001 attacks marked a turning point for many of the 500,000 Sikhs in the US.

Since then, almost every Sikh has either been subjected to some form of discrimination and harassment, or knows of another Sikh who has experienced it, members of the community told The Straits Times. In most cases, aggressors think they are radical Muslims because Sikh men wear turbans and have beards.

Against this backdrop, the Sunday shooting at a Sikh temple in Wisconsin - an unprecedented act of violence against Sikhs in the US - was, to some members of the community, unsurprising.

For many, the violence also raises questions about whether Sikhs themselves have done enough to explain their religion and culture to outsiders.

"We are in shock, but at the same time, we feel it was just a matter of time that something like this would happen, given that the community has been targeted time and time again following 2001," said Mr Kiratbir Singh, 27, a volunteer at the Sikh Coalition, the largest Sikh civil rights organisation in the US, formed in the wake of Sept 11.

Since 2001, the coalition has received thousands of requests for legal assistance from Sikhs who have been the subject of hate crimes, employment discrimination and school bullying.

"There has been a phobia in America since Sept 11, and the turban and beard have become a symbol of hate," said Mr Prabhjot Singh, the Sikh Coalition's co-founder and a trustee.

On Sunday morning, a gunman entered a Sikh temple in Wisconsin with a 9mm handgun and killed six worshippers, wounding three others.

In the past decade, the Sikh Coalition and other groups have reached out, talking to schoolchildren about Sikhism, tackling bullying in schools and supporting a Bill to allow employees to freely practise their religion at work.

The shooting suggests more needs to be done. "I am not going to lie. While we have made some progress over the past decade, I don't think the understanding of Sikhism in the US is at the level it should be at," said Miss Kaur.

Mr Prabhjot Singh said the tragedy will only prompt the redoubling of such efforts. "We are now more motivated to see how we can do more, so that something like this never happens again."

The Sikh Foundation of Virginia said it was planning two vigils this week for Sikhs and non-Sikhs to come together in a show of unity. Mr Surjeet Sidhu, 61, a board member, said he expected many more than the usual 450-strong congregation to show up.

Sikhism is a monotheistic religion known for its openness and accessibility. Its temples are open to anyone who wants to partake in worship. The shooting will not change that, Mr Sidhu said.

"Our members have responded to the shooting with prayer and hope," he said. "There is no anger, we just hope something positive comes out of this."

Despite their struggle to come to terms with the violence, all the Sikhs The Straits Times spoke to expressed a similar desire to see good come out of evil.

The shooting, while tragic, will shine a national spotlight on their religion and culture, and hopefully go a long way to end the discrimination of the past, they said.

"For this one act of violence, we have encountered 10 acts of support," said Mr Simran Jeet Singh, 28, a graduate student at New York's Columbia University. He added that he has received dozens of messages of support from friends and neighbours.