Satendar Singh’s alleged murderer flees the United States Washington, DC – August 14, 2007 – The Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund (SALDEF), the nation’s oldest and largest Sikh American civil rights and advocacy organization, commends the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department and District Attorney Jan Scully for the steps they are taking to address the murder of Satendar Singh last month. Last week, DA Scully filed formal charges against Andrey Vusik, for involuntary manslaughter and with committing a hate crime, and Alex Shevchenko, for committing a hate crime and issued warrants for their arrests. “We commend Sacramento authorities for recognizing the nature of the attack on Mr. Singh and charging his alleged assailants with a hate crime,” said Kavneet Singh, SALDEF Managing Director. “Hate crimes are intended to create a sense of fear within a community and must be dealt with in a serious manner to ensure that perpetrators realize that these vile acts will not be tolerated.” Mr. Singh died on July 5, 2007 as a result of a severe brain injury he received after a vicious assault four days earlier. The individuals who perpetrated the attack hurled racially, ethnic and sexually charged slurs at Mr. Singh and his friends. Mr. Vusik, who faces up to eight years in prison, is believed to have fled the United States after the incident. Sacramento County Sherrif’s Department are working with the FBI to secure his arrest. Schevchenko, who faces up to three years in prison, is in police custody at a Sacramento County Jail. If you believe you have been the target of bias, harassment, or a hate crime please contact SALDEF at info@saldef.org or 202-393-2700.
Sacramento County Files Hate Crime Charges in case of Slain Sikh American
Police are investigating the “suspicious” death of a local student. By David Schultz August 13, 2007 The death of a 21-year-old college student on the side of an Arlington highway earlier this month has caused controversy in a local Sikh community and has caused local police to conduct an investigation. Simran Singh, a George Mason University student from Burke, died in the early morning of Aug. 4 while traveling by car from Washington, D.C. to Arlington. Singh and several acquaintances were on southbound I-395 when, according to a police report, Singh became violent. After the other occupants of the vehicle tried to restrain him, they noticed that Singh was non-responsive. The vehicle pulled over near the Glebe Road exit where one of the occupants performed CPR on Singh until medical personnel arrived. He was taken to Inova Alexandria Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 2:09 a.m. Arlington County Police are investigating Singh’s death and have described it as “suspicious.” However, they have not labeled the incident a homicide. Police spokesperson Steve Gomez said that detectives will decide whether to change the case’s classification after the Medical Examiner issues a report next month specifying the cause of Singh’s death. Because the death has not been ruled a homicide yet, Gomez said that police have not identified any suspects or persons of interest. Priti Patel, who was dating Singh at the time of his death, said that Singh was a happy and outgoing person with no enemies that she knew of. She spoke to him a few hours before he died and said he sounded normal. “He didn’t sound intoxicated at all,” she said. Patel also said that Singh was planning on moving to Canada in a few weeks. “He had been in Virginia a majority of his life,” she said. “He said he needed a change of scenery… He wanted to move somewhere that was a little more liberal.” According to Rajbir Datta, the executive director of the Sikh-American Legal Defense and Education Fund who has been involved with Singh’s family since his death, Singh went out the evening of Aug. 2 with one of the people that were in the car when he died two days later. When he came home the next day, Datta said, there were bruises on his shoulders. “He was visibly shaken up and visibly afraid,” Datta said. Singh, a native of Fairfax County, was a member of a large Northern Virginian Sikh family originating in India. Close to 300 people attended his funeral, which was held on a Wednesday, and over 1,000 people attended religious services this weekend. According to Datta, the mood in the local Sikh community is “very tense” because of actions taken by Arlington Police immediately following Singh’s death. Datta said that many in the Sikh community feel that police were too reluctant to label Singh’s death suspicious, despite injuries on Singh’s body that, according to Datta, indicate that foul play was involved. He also said that many Sikhs were skeptical as to why police prohibited Singh’s parents from viewing his body until five days after his death. “What we’re trying to do is calm down the community,” Datta said. “It’s going to take time and patience.” Datta also said that “The change in direction of the county police from [calling it an] accident to [a] suspicious death has alleviated some concerns.” [http://www.connectionnewspapers.com/] Arlington Connection
SALDEF and CAIR condemn senseless act of violence Washington, DC – July 16, 2007 – The Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund (SALDEF) and the Council of American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) are saddened about the death last week of Mr. Satendar Singh, a 26 year-old Sikh American victim of a vicious hate crime, as he was removed from life-support at a local hospital. On Sunday July 1, 2007, Mr. Singh was beaten unconscious while enjoying a picnic with some friends at Lake Natoma in Folsom, CA. His attackers reportedly yelled xenophobic, anti-religious and homophobic remarks to him and his friends. After being taken to the hospital, Mr. Singh clung to life for four days before family members agreed to remove him from life-support after seeing he was registering little to no brain activity. SALDEF and CAIR are concerned with this senseless murder of a promising young man. Hate crimes are designed to create fear amongst particular communities. Mr. Singh was targeted due to the color of skin, his national origin, and because he was the only one in his group without a female friend present. This attack was intended to create fear in the Fijian, South Asian, Arab, Muslim, Sikh, and LGBT communities. “We strongly condemn this act of violence. Such hate has no place in this country,” said SALDEF Volunteer Attorney Neilinder Singh. “Sadder still, Satendar Singh had lived peacefully in the US since he was 19, only to have his life ended around the Fourth of July, when we celebrate the freedoms and principles of inclusion that this country was founded upon.” Mr. Singh passed away in the intensive care unit at Mercy San Juan Medical Center thousands of miles away from his parents who live in Fiji. He lived with his aunt, uncle, and grandmother in Sacramento. ” The Sacramento Valley community has made a pledge in Mr. Singh’s memory to fight against hate, said CAIR-Sacramento Valley Executive Director Basim Elkarra. “This tragedy shows highlights the importance of the community coming together to fight against hate.” Together SALDEF and CAIR stand in solidarity against all acts of hate. We hope the community and all of America will not tolerate such acts of violence. We hope that the residents of Sacramento will put aside any differences and realize a stronger sense of community after this tragedy. Additionally, a number of local organizations and activists have formed the Satendar Justice Coalition to document and call attention to hate crimes as well as to raise funds for the Satendar Singh Memorial Fund. As of this release, no one has been arrested for this crime. If you or anyone you know has any information about the assailants of this heinous crime, you are urged to contact the Sacramento County Sheriff’s department at (916) 874-5115.
Editor’s Note: Twenty-five years after Vincent Chin was beaten to death because of his race, hate crimes against Asian Americans continue unabated, reports NAM contributor Julia Kitlinski-Hong. She is a student at Emmanuel College. On July 1, 2007, Satendar Singh, a 26-year-old Fijian man of Indian descent, was picnicking by a lake with his friends when he was beaten to death in what witnesses say was an ugly racial hate crime. Singh’s friends said that “a group of Russian-speaking men and women had directed homophobic slurs at Singh, and racial insults at his group before the physical attack,” according to a report in The Sacramento Bee. No one else was injured in Singh’s group. Singh’s family members and doctors decided to end life support after four days. Singh is one of the latest victims in the growing number of hate crimes against Asian Americans. According to a report by The Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program, on a national level, 46.3 percent of 11,430 offenses that occurred within the single-bias incidents were motivated by racial bias in 2001. Investigators determined 6.6 percent out of the 46.3 percent (5,290) offenses reflected an anti-Asian or anti-Pacific Islander bias. In the post-Sept. 11 climate, experts say that Asian Americans are even more at risk of being victims of hate crimes. In a nationwide Hate Crime Statistics Act study done by the FBI in 2001, the known hate crime offenses against Asian/Pacific Islanders were 349 compared to 317 in 2000. The number of victims in 2000 was 339 in comparison to 363 in 2001. The data on the report in 2001 was gathered post-Sept. 11. Hate crime is an especially sensitive topic in the post Sept. 11 world, with the increase in hate crimes against South Asians. “There has always been an escalation of hate crimes against people who are deemed to be the other,” said Kavneet Singh, managing director of Washington-based Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund. He noted the recent rise in hate crimes against Sikhs who are mistaken to be Muslim. South Asians have to always look over their shoulders when they are out in public, Singh said. He indicated that cultural beliefs are being compromised because of the fear of hate crimes. “Sikh men specifically [are] shedding their turbans, shaving their beards.” South Asian cab drivers or convenience store owners are even more at risk of hate crimes because they do not have any control over who they interact with publicly, he said. Hate crimes against Asian Americans continue to plague the community 25 years after Chinese-American draftsman Vincent Chin was beaten to death because of his race. His case was a turning point for Asian-American activism for fighting hate crimes and finding justice within their community. On June 19, 1982, Chin was beaten to death at his bachelor party in Detroitby two unemployed auto workers, Ronald Ebens and his stepson Michael Nitz. Ebens and Nitz blamed the growing Japanese auto industry for taking their jobs away and killed Chin even though he is Chinese-American. Chin was attacked solely because of his racial appearance. Ebens and Nitz never served time. They received three years probation, which created enormous outrage from the Asian-American community. At a panel discussion last month held by Asian Pacific Americans for Progress to commemorate Chin’s tragic death, Asian-American community leaders say that the media and police don’t always necessarily view attacks against Asian Americans as hate crimes. A hate crime last November against Hai Vo eerily resonates Chin’s case. Vo was beaten into a coma outside a bar in Grand Rapids, Mich. According to news reports, a group of men made racial remarks against Vo’s friends and family, who were celebrating a birthday that evening. Although Vo survived, he suffered many medical complications. None of the men accused of the crime was charged. In June 2003, another crime that hit close to home for many San Franciscans involved five Asian-American boys who were beaten by a group of students who attended Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory high school in San Francisco. Though there were as many as 20 boys accused of the attack, only one was brought to trial and sentenced to community service. San Francisco Police Commissioner Yvonne Lee said it is time to recognize how the authorities’ tendency to overlook the “racial angle” on a crime has influenced society’s opinion on hate crimes. She emphasized that Asian Americans must speak out because a lot of cases slip under the media radar because authorities did not label them as hate crimes. According to Southern Poverty Law Center, an internationally known independent law firm that specializes in fighting hate groups, just 44 percent of hate crimes are reported to police. They argue that some hate crimes don’t make it into FBI statistics for various reasons: police may not necessarily report it as a hate crime; their departments may not report hate crime statistics to state officials; and in turn those officials may not accurately report to the FBI. “If we had taken the word [of] what the authority tells us, many of these hate crimes would never come out as a hate crime statistics, and without statistics we could not make a point,” Lee said. Chin’s crime was not initially labeled as a hate crime by the authorities. Instead, it was seen as just another bar room brawl. It was not until the Asian community pushed for further investigation that the case became one of the first high-profile hate crimes against an Asian American. Helen Zia, an award-winning author and activist, was one of the primary activists involved in advocating justice for Chin and his family. “None of us thought it would still be talked about 25 years later,” Zia said. She recalled that at the time, she and other activists were cynical that the Chin case could gain such momentum in the public eye. Lee pointed out that even with the increased dialogue on hate crimes, there is a lack of activism today compared to when the Chin case was on trial. She said the Asian-American community needs to personalize hate crimes and let people know that anyone can be a victim of a hate crime. “Anyone of us has the potential of becoming a target of a hate crime,” Lee said. “Just because we have the best and the brightest in law enforcement working with the most determined in the community does not mean hate crimes will be addressed. We have to continue to be vigilant.” http://newamericamedia.org/ New American Media
26 year-old Sikh American lies in critical condition after being attacked on July 3rd Washington D.C. – July 5, 2007: The Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund (SALDEF), the nation’s oldest Sikh civil rights and advocacy organization, urges the entire Sikh American community to be vigilant against possible bias motivated incidents during the July 4th holiday week. During the course of the past several days, the world has been in a degree of shock regarding the string of failed terrorist attacks in the United Kingdom. The attempts in front of a night club and Heathrow Airport earlier this week to the controlled bombing by law enforcement of two vehicles and the recent arrests of eight young suspects have pushed the nation into a relative state of fear. Earlier this week, 26 year-old Sikh American, Satender Singh of Sacramento, CA, was violently assaulted by a group of individuals while at a local park with several of his friends. The perpetrators of this vicious attack reportedly yelled xenophobic and homophobic remarks at Mr. Singh. As of this morning, Mr. Singh lies in critical condition in a local hospital on life support and with minimal brain activity. “Many hate crimes are perpetrated by individuals who have a history of making hate and bias-motivated speech,” remarked SALDEF Managing Director Kavneet Singh. “It is incumbent upon the community to track and report comments and hate-inspired conduct which may result in violent crimes in the future.” Over the past decade, SALDEF has observed that following any incident relating to terrorism, bias-motivated crimes against the Sikh American community have often increased. Over the July 4th holiday celebration and holiday weekend, SALDEF urges the Sikh American community to remain vigilant against possible bias motivated comments and hate crimes. Additionally, over the past week SALDEF has participated in conference calls with FBI Headquarters and the FBI Washington Field Office to discuss community concerns regarding the recent international events. SALDEF commends the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security on their efforts and the messages they and President Bush have used in an effort to minimize fears in the United States. A few precautions you can take during the July 4th Holiday: Ensure you know where you and your family are at all times. Make sure you know who the proper authorities in your community are and how to contact them. If someone makes a comment, ignore it, and document what happened and what was said against you or a family member as soon as possible. If physical action is taken against you, call 911 and document the incident as soon as possible so that nothing is forgotten. Please download and distribute SALDEF’s Know Your Rights Guide for a complete list of how to handle a number of different potential situations. SALDEF and the entire Sikh American community offer our sincere condolences to the family and friends of Satender Singh, and pray for his recovery. If you have any additional information about this case or have tips about the suspects, please contact investigators at 916-874-5115. If you believe you have been the victim of a hate crime or a bias incident (comment) report it immediately to SALDEF at http://saldef.wpengine.com/reportform.aspx or directly at 202-393-2700 ext 27 or info@saldef.org.
SALDEF Encourages Community Action on Hate Crime Prevention Washington D.C. – June 9, 2007: The Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund (SALDEF) strongly urges all Sikh Religious Leaders to sign on to an interfaith letter in support of The Matthew Shepard Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act (LLEHCPA) (Senate bill number S. 1105). In the previous Congress, this bill enjoyed broad bi-partisan and law enforcement support from across the nation. The interfaith letter, available online here, urges United States Senators to co-sponsor and pass ground breaking hate crimes legislation which will provide local governments with necessary resources to serve their communities. Bias crimes are increasingly a cause for concern within the Sikh American community in a pre- and post-9/11 context. The FBI Hate Crime Report, although voluntary, has documented over 115,000 hate crimes since 1991. In 2005, 7,183 hate crimes were reported, of which, 17.1 percent were perpetrated against individuals of faith and 14.2 percent against ethnic minorities. Current law authorizes federal involvement only in those cases in which the victim was targeted because of race, color, religion, or national origin. Unfortunately, some local jurisdictions neither have the resources nor will to investigate and prosecute assailants alleged to have committed a hate crime. Additionally, current law does not protect victims on the basis of their actual or perceived sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, or disability. LLEHCPA will allow the federal government to assist states and local law enforcement in investigating and prosecuting hate crimes when the local agencies request such support. Doing so will make our nation safer for all Americans and allow smaller municipalities to procure additional resources to effectively investigate and prosecute bias crimes. The law also extends serious hate crime legislation to those states where current laws are inadequate. “This legislation represents a significant step in ensuring those who violate someone’s civil rights will be brought to justice,” said Kavneet Singh, Managing Director of SALDEF. “Our elected officials must recognize the need for stronger and more effective laws against hate crimes. These crimes are not just against the person, but against the entire community he or she represents.” The legislation has a broad range of support of over 200 civil rights, advocacy and law enforcement organizations including; the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, Anti-Defamation League, Human Rights Campaign, the National Sheriffs’ Association, the International Association of Chiefs of Police and the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association, among many others. To sign the letter, go here. Click on “Sign the letter” and fill out the appropriate contact information. Indicate that you heard about the letter through SALDEF. By signing this letter you join religious leaders of a multitude of faiths from across America, SALDEF, and its coalition partners in denouncing hate crimes. For more information on SALDEF’s past legislative and hate crimes initiatives, please see below: SALDEF meets with FBI Director Robert Mueller SALDEF Congratulates House for Passing Hate Crime Bill Partnerships with U.S. Muslim, Sikh Leaders Boost Law Enforcement SALDEF Welcomes Congressional Legislation on Hate Crimes
JOLIET, Ill. — Illinois’ Joliet Police Department is in hot water for the recent assault of a Sikh American by one of its police officers. The Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund is seeking an immediate probe into the attack, calling it racially motivated and xenophobic. Kuldip Singh Nag, a decorated U.S. Navy veteran, was accosted by the police officer in his home for an expired vehicle registration tag. An altercation ensued and the officer assaulted Nag with his pepper spray and baton while saying anti-immigrant statements. “We are horrified at the anti-immigrant sentiment the officer allegedly used as he violently accosted Mr. Nag, and further that his 6-year-old son was a witness to this violent assault. We call upon both Joliet and Illinois officials to investigate this incident and for the Illinois community to stand in solidarity with Mr. Nag,” said SALDEF managing director Kavneet Singh.
GROUP SEEKS PROBE April 13, 2007 By BRIAN STANLEY Staff Writer JOLIET — A man says a police officer used excessive force and racial epithets while arresting him last month. The Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund (SALDEF) e-mailed a press release Thursday asking for an investigation into the March 30 incident. Joliet police Cmdr. Keith Turney said Thursday the department had not been contacted by the representatives of the man arrested, Kuldip Nag, 49, or SALDEF. “We have not received any complaint,” Turney said. “The first we learned of this was from the media.” Around 3 p.m. March 30, police responded to “an anonymous citizen complaint” regarding a vehicle parked on Nag’s driveway at 3574 Buck Ave. An unidentified officer spoke with Nag’s wife, Vera, about the van’s expired plates and learned the vehicle was inoperable. “The officer put a seven-day tow notice on the vehicle when he was approached by Mr. Nag, who questioned why he was putting a sticker on a vehicle in his driveway,” Turney said. “The vehicle was in public sight and there is a city ordinance against (parking inoperable vehicles),” he said. “Mr. Nag was upset the officer was on his private property telling him to move a vehicle he owned,” said SALDEF spokesman Rajbir Singh Datta. Both police reports and SALDEF’s release indicate a struggle followed between Nag and the police officer. Police say Nag pushed the officer and was subdued with pepper spray. SALDEF contends Nag did not touch the officer before he was sprayed. “As Mr. Nag screamed in agony, the officer removed his baton and violently struck Mr. Nag numerous times until he fell to the ground,” SALDEF’s release said. “While the assault ensued, the officer was reported by both Mr. and Mrs. Nag as saying, ‘You (expletive) Arab! You (expletive) immigrant, go back to your (expletive) country before I kill you.'” Turney said reports do not indicate the officer made these statements and that he was requesting backup during the struggle. He ceased struggling with Nag before other officers arrived. Datta said Vera Nag photographed her husband’s arrest. “She was so shocked and stunned at the officer’s behavior she went into the house and got a camera just inside the door,” Datta said. Nag was arrested on charges of aggravated battery to a police officer and resisting a police officer. As he was being booked at the police station, he complained of pain and was taken to Silver Cross Hospital. “Nag stayed for five days due to complaints of intense pain and head trauma,” SALDEF’s statement said. He “also received numerous bruises and a serious head injury which have caused him to go blind for several minutes at a time.” Nag was booked into the county jail following his release from the hospital April 3 and released on bond the next day. “He spoke to a community member who advised him to contact us,” Datta said. Datta said a letter detailing the incident and asking for an investigation was sent to the police department earlier this week. Datta said Thursday another letter would be sent after police said they had not received the first one. Reporter Brian Stanley can be reached at (815) 729-6079 or bstanley@scn1.com [http://heraldnews.suntimes.com/index.html] Joliet Herald News
SALDEF calls for immediate probe into assault and the xenophobic, anti-immigrant statements by police officer against bronze star recipient Washington D.C., April 11, 2007 — The Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund (SALDEF), the oldest Sikh American civil rights and advocacy organization in the country, today called upon the Joliet Police Department to investigate the actions of one of its officers when patrolling a local neighborhood. On Friday March 30, 2007 at around 3:00pm, Mr. Kuldip Singh Nag, a Sikh American who was awarded the Bronze Star for his service in the U.S. Navy during the first Gulf War, was at his home in Joliet, IL when a local police officer noticed that a van parked on Mr. Nag’s private property had expired registration tags. Upon being confronted with this, Mr. Nag’s wife, Vera Kaur Nag, informed the officer that the van is parked on their driveway and was inoperable. Mr. Nag then came outside to answer the officer’s questions regarding the van. The Joliet police officer then demanded that Mr. Nag park the van inside his garage and not on the driveway, to which Mr. Nag responded to the officer that it was not possible and that regardless, the van is parked on his private property and he has a right to park it on his driveway. At this moment, the officer pulled out his pepper spray and attacked Mr. Nag. As Mr. Nag screamed in agony, the officer removed his baton and violently struck Mr. Nag numerous times until he fell to the ground. While the assault ensued, the officer was reported by both Mr. and Mrs. Nag as saying, “You f****** Arab! You f***** immigrant, go back to you f****** country before I kill you!” Mr. Nag’s wife and six year-old child both witnessed the violent assault, which resulted in Mr. Nag immediately being admitted to the hospital where he stayed for five days due to complaints of intense pain and head trauma. Mr. Nag also received numerous bruises and a serious head injury which have caused him to go blind for several minutes at a time “This case seems to be a clear incident of police misconduct in Illinois,” said SALDEF Managing Director Kavneet Singh. “We are horrified at the anti-immigrant sentiment the officer allegedly used as he violently accosted Mr. Nag, and further that his six year old son was a witness to this violent assault. We call upon both Joliet and Illinois officials to investigate this incident and for the Illinois community to stand in solidarity with Mr. Nag.” SALDEF has garnered the strong support of the Illinois Sikh American community and is currently working with The Chawla Group Ltd to represent Mr. Nag in a criminal case brought on by the City of Joliet.
Participants turn out to celebrate their religion and bring awareness to recent hate crimes. By Jia-Rui Chong, Times Staff Writer April 9, 2007 With gold- and orange-fringed parade floats and the sound of harmoniums playing traditional hymns, more than 10,000 members of the Sikh community paraded through downtown Los Angeles on Sunday. Many participants wore traditional Sikh turbans as they celebrated Baisakhi, a harvest holiday that commemorates a key moment in the development of the religion. On the minds of many were recent hate crimes, made all the worse as they were apparently provoked by mistaken identity. “People don’t know. They think we’re Muslims,” said Raj Singh, 66, a Brea resident who was watching a float go by. “I hope, for the people standing on the road, or seeing this from their roofs, this will enlighten them.” Last month, a Redding man rammed a construction tractor into a Sikh temple and reportedly told police that he thought the building was owned by Arabs. Sikh leaders say such incidents have become more common since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. “People see Osama bin Laden with a turban and beard, and they see us as the same because of ignorance,” said Sarbjit Singh, who teaches children about Sikh religion and culture at the Sikh Study Circle in Los Angeles. (None of the Singhs interviewed for this article are related.) Sarbjit Singh, 45, said that he doesn’t blame anybody for the harassment and that the Sikh efforts should not be taken to mean that the community believes it’s acceptable to discriminate against Muslims. “It hurts us when anybody gets harassed,” he said. Kavneet Singh, the Oakland-based managing director of the national Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund, said his office gets calls every month about acts of discrimination or misunderstanding about the religion. In one case this year, he said, a man was refused entrance to a bar in Costa Mesa because owners had a policy of not allowing hats — and he was wearing a turban. “There’s a real need for us to be more engaged in our communities,” said Kavneet Singh. “We need to introduce ourselves to our neighbors and make sure local law enforcement know who we are.” Baisakhi, which marks the year’s first harvest and the day when a principal guru in Anandpur Sahib, India, codified the religion’s spiritual and personal codes of conduct. For example, adherents keep their hair long and wear turbans as crowns of spirituality. Sikhism is the world’s fifth-largest religion with about 23 million practitioners worldwide. About 15 Sikh temples around California came together for the event. Daman Singh, 55, of Anaheim Hills said her family comes every year to L.A. to celebrate Baisakhi, which is also considered an auspicious day to get married. “It’s like people celebrate Christmas every year,” she said. As parade-goers talked about how the holiday is celebrated in India, Daman Singh pointed to a small boy who was in her husband’s arms. “This is for our grandson, to show him the culture of our land,” she said. Onlookers leaving the Lakers game at nearby Staples Center were at first puzzled by the glittering floats and sea of people, many of them in fancy embroidered versions of the traditional long shirt and pants known as shalwar kameez. Christian Portillo, 13, of Inglewood wondered, “Weren’t they a bunch of Islamic people?” Christian’s friend Cameron Harris, 13, of Gardena knew the difference. Cameron said he had asked one of the people in the parade what was going on and found out that they were celebrating a Sikh holiday. He said he understood his friend’s confusion because many ethnic groups wear turbans. “I got the message that they were trying to explain themselves and not be seen as outsiders,” Cameron said. “They look like good people to me.”
jia-rui.chong@latimes.com http://www.latimes.com/