Two
weeks ago, nine innocent African-American lives were taken by a white
supremacist inside the iconic Charleston, South Carolina Emanuel
A.M.E. Church. The tragedy, mourned by Americans of all faiths, was
yet another horrific reminder of the hate and bigotry we still face
together as a nation.
For
every Sikh American,
it was also impossible to ignore the tragic parallels between the
Charleston violence and the grief our community experienced nearly
three years ago in Oak Creek, Wisconsin. In my own moments of prayer,
I found myself grieving for everybody impacted in South Carolina, but
also for the Oak Creek sangat, who courageously continue to inspire
all of us with the Sikh spirit
of Chardi Kala (eternal optimism).
Within
hours of the Charleston shooting we engaged
the American media with
the very clear message of solidarity with our African-American
brothers and sisters, while also emphasizing that the tragedy should
be viewed as an act of domestic terrorism. It’s crucial that these
threats are recognized and addressed in the same way that we handle
other national security concerns.
We
also quickly partnered with Valarie Kaur and Groundswell to promote
messages of Sikh American solidarity to the families of
Charleston and
collaborated with the One Nation Fund to promote
charitable donations back
to the impacted community. We further mobilized with Sikh Academy
Advocates and Ambassadors to effectively share the appeal for
charitable giving in Gurdwaras across the country.
Finally,
we moved to work with Sikh Coalition colleagues,
allies, and Sikh Academy
Advocates to draft, edit, and successfully place nine
Op-Eds in American news outlets,
which reached nearly five million Americans. The Sikh voice
matters on this issue and we worked to ensure that our collective
voice was heard.
Next
month will mark the third anniversary of the Oak Creek mass shooting
and we urge everybody who can make it to Oak Creek to join the
annualChardhi
Kala 6k Memorial Walk & Run on August
1st. For those who can’t make it to Wisconsin, we look forward to
working with you to stand in solidarity through our National
Day of Seva events
across America. If you haven’t signed up yet, please
email [email protected].
In
the wake of Charleston, our fortitude to combat hate in America
remains as strong as ever. The work is hard, the challenges are
obvious, but our relentless pursuit of a better America for you and
all of our children drives our resilience every single day.
In
Chardi Kala,
Sapreet
Kaur
Executive
Director
The Sikh Coalition
