What have we received from God in Oak Creek? Certainly, death and pain and grief. The magnitude of this loss would cause most people to display anger or a desire for revenge. But when national leaders came to Oak Creek to mourn with the victims, they stood in awe of the Sikh community’s response. They witnessed acceptance rather than anger.
Even as the govt. express their commitment to protecting Sikh Americans in response to the massacre, there is one glaring problem with how govt. monitors hate crimes against Sikhs in America: It doesn’t.
Visuals matter. And in a racially charged political climate, a turbaned and bearded man will be presented to the country by Republicans as a fellow American. This is a remarkable step forward.
"Today, I want to talk about something really sad and important. How many of you know what happened in Oak Creek, Wisconsin?"
I see a light and in that aura of eternal peace the windows of my soul open
"DUKH DAROO SUKH ROG BHAYA JA SUKH THAM NA HOYE" (Gurbani) In my pain no one can help me, only Waheguru......I cry out to him....
Whatever the roots of Mr. Page’s hatred, it is wrong to assume that every attack against a Sikh is really meant for a Muslim. That assumption overlooks the long history of discrimination and hatred directed at Sikhs in America
Most importantly, these films about the Sikh American experience catalyzed remarkable moments of solidarity.
It is important that we take time to humanize these individuals. In overlooking their humanity, we lose a part of our own. We can maintain our own humanity by registering and remembering the effects that hate-crimes have on more personal levels.
The legacy of anti-Sikh violence and its contemporary prevalence make it painfully obvious that anti-Sikh violence is often purposeful and targeted.