THE SIKH CONNECTION
Dr Rajwant Singh had sent me an email request on 9 Jan, 2013 to send him my opinion on gun violence to forward an opinion from the Sikh perspective and as an input from the Sikh community. Envisioning imminent prospect of an intense Gun Control debate, pursued in the interfaith arena through intense activist interventions by church groups, I concurred that we need to be meaningfully engaged in this debate as a faith group. I also felt that given our strong espousal of kirpan as part of our observances and support for gun control measures, there are obvious complexities in our various stances and clarity on Sikh position should be important. I promised to try and work on a short perspective paper and revert in a few days.
The American Sikh community has a stake in this subject because for several years now they have been the subject of hate crimes and random killings mostly explained away as 'mistaken identity' offences by the investigating agencies and the media. The subject received serious national attention in August 2012 after the killing of 6 Sikh worshippers at the Gurdwara in Oak Creek, WI. Sikhs therefore want to bring their view points to Public attention as also to the notice of those charged with the task of sifting through and influencing the action choices in the crafting any corrective measures. This paper is intended to present the Sikh perspective on this complex and vexing issue.
THE TRIGGER
The run up to the Presidential election was greatly instrumental in sharpening the competing visions of future America by the two main political parties and even though the people gave a clear endorsement for Obama, they in their characteristic wisdom left the control of Congress divided between the warring parties. This has set the stage for a continuing contest of visions on all important national issues.
In this environment, the tragic deaths of twenty school children in Newtown, CT, in a mass shooting on December 14, 2012 by a youth brought the gun control issue once again to the center of political debate in the US. The facts of the case, as known, are that the killer, Adam Lanza, 20, lived with his divorced mother and is reported to have used the licensed weapons kept by her at home to kill her and then repair to the Sandy Hook Elementary School to gun down twenty 6 to 7 year old toddlers plus some of the teachers at the school before taking his own life.
Lanza was wearing black clothing, earplugs and an olive green utility vest as he shot his way through a locked glass door at the school using his mother's .223 Bushmaster XM-15 assault rifle equipped with a 30-round ammunition magazine. His motives are not clear but there is speculation that, as a loner youth from a broken home, he could have accumulated a lot of pent up emotion seeking violent expression. He was not on drugs or connected to any gang or extremist group. He killed his mother and used the weapons acquired legally by her and kept at home to carry out his nefarious design.
The shocked nation looked for some concrete steps to avoid recurrence of such violence and killing of innocent children. President Obama vowed to initiate appropriate measures and set up a task force under Vice President Joe Biden to suggest measures for Gun Control. At the Capitol Hill, Democratic lawmakers introduced legislation for imposing ban on certain types of assault weapons. The NRA declared that they were receptive to background checks and conversation on issues of school safety, mental health, marketing of violence to kids and failures of federal prosecutions of violent criminals.
OTHER RECENT INCIDENTS OF MASS SHOOTINGS
Earlier on August 5, 2012, the Sikh community was traumatized when six worshippers at the Gurdwara in Oak Creek, WI, were gunned down by one Wade Michael Page, reported to be a veteran connected to a white supremacist group. There is no evidence to suggest that he had any specific anger against the Sikhs. He was armed with a Springfield XD (M) 9-millimeter semi-automatic pistol equipped with a 19-round ammunition magazine legally purchased by him in Wisconsin. The investigation is being treated as a possible act of domestic terrorism.
Another case of mass killings happened on July 20, 2012, in a movie theatre in Aurora, CO, screening a midnight premiere, when the alleged shooter James Holmes entered clad in body armor and wearing a gas mask. He tossed tear gas canisters into the theater and began firing upon the audience using an AR-15 assault rifle equipped with a 100-round magazine. After the assault rifle jammed, he continued with a 12-gauge shotgun--killing 12 and wounding 58. Holmes had purchased the weapons and 6,000-rounds ammunition at gun shops and over the Internet. In addition he had heavily booby-trapped his apartment to detonate plastic shells and several glass jars filled with gasoline and gunpowder. He was apprehended by the police. He faces a minimum of life imprisonment and a maximum of death if convicted.
In Albuquerque, NM on 19 Jan. 2013, Nehemiah Griego, 15, is reported to have shot his mother while asleep and then his kid brother and two younger sisters. Later when his father, former Calvary Church pastor and chaplain at a local jail, returned home from his night shift, Nehemiah shot him using an AR 15 rifle. The weapons used were stolen from the family closet. Nehemiah was very fond of violent video games and is reported to have sent a picture of his dead mother to his 12 year old girl friend. He spent the day with her and the pair drove to Calvary Church around 8 p.m. where Nehemiah said his family had died in a car crash. Someone from the church then called 911.
GUN VIOLENCE & ADVOCACY
The American Constitution allows its citizens the right to bear arms. This partly is attributed to the historical necessity when the frontier settlers had to often assume responsibility to self-protect and guard frontiers. The right to own guns became a strong part of their 'free people' identity, especially in the West and South.1
Another stereotype is that of gun ownership and culture of violence coming together in a so-called 'redneck'. This stereotypical view is widely shared in metropolitan cities of America, North-Eastern states and parts of West Coast.
There is a subterranean layer of others who contribute significantly to the violent use of guns in the American society. These include networks of organized crime, drug dealers, terrorists, supremacists et al plus various hues of criminals and mentally instable persons - all enabled by easy availability of guns to engage in their violent pursuits with relative ease.
An emerging group of violence prone persons is youth who unbeknown to others harbor a fascination for violent act as an end in itself. People around them cannot anticipate that they can commit acts of unprovoked, meticulously planned, ruthless violence. They seem to thrive in anonymity and possibly are emotionally deprived, vulnerable to get carried away by their misplaced urges - the Holmes's, Lanza's, Griego's, in our narration above. Possession of fire arms in the US has been relatively easy. Guns have also been the preferred means of committing most violent acts. There were15, 953 murders in 2011 including 11,101 caused by firearms. Suicides and unintentional shootings by guns account for another 20,000 deaths each year. Concern for controlling gun violence therefore seems legitimate especially since mass shootings occur in all regions.
GUN CONTROL ACTIVISM
The Gun Control activism is driven by a variety of interest groups that includes civil liberty groups, religious organizations like churches and interfaith groups, medical and mental health groups, women's associations, groups engaged with children's issues, peace activists and the like. The interest in the subject therefore is spread across the entire social fabric and is driven by a variety of safety concerns as well as ideological positions.
With such diverse mix, the approaches and the metaphors that various protagonists may use can be very interesting as will be seen from extracts of a recent write up for a church group2: 'Back in 1990, the Presbyterian Church issued this warning: "The religious community must
--- take seriously the risk of idolatry that could result from an unwarranted fascination with guns, which overlooks or
ignores the social consequences of their misuse." Two decades later
--- too many, guns have become idols
--- An idol's followers boldly claim divine status for it.
--- Charlton Heston, during a speech as NRA president, intoned, "Sacred stuff resides in that wooden stock and blued
steel
--- when ordinary hands can possess such an extraordinary instrument that symbolizes the full measure of human
dignity and liberty."'
The following news and action summary issued by Reverend Sandy Strauss, PA Council of Churches Advocacy Ministry, on 15 January 2013 is an example of gun control advocacy by Church Groups:
1. Protecting our children is our highest priority, but putting more armed police in schools doesn't make them safer. Please sign the petition to say NO to the NRA proposal for more armed guards in our children's schools. http://pachurchesadvocacy.org/weblog/?p=1339
2. The Children's Defense Fund is partnering with a wide spectrum of faith communities to protect children from gun violence. During the weekend of January 18 - 20, we encourage you to focus on ending gun violence and keeping children safe in your prayers, service, education programs, and advocacy activities. Will you please join us (http://www.childrensdefense.org/programs-campaigns/protect-children-not-guns/)?
3. Day of Action on Gun Violence-January 23, Harrisburg: Thank you for joining with people of faith across America to stand up and speak out from our places of worship to demand that we protect children, not guns.
Part II of this article is here