Washington, DC – Representatives from the Sikh Mediawatch and Resource Task Force (SMART) again met with FBI Director Robert S. Mueller III today to discuss collaborative efforts to address hate crimes and enhance community outreach. The meeting was held as part of the Arab/Muslim/Sikh American Working Group and attended by SMART President Manjit Singh and National Director Preetmohan Singh. “Director Mueller has done a phenomenal job of bringing us together and recognizes that many in the Sikh American community continue to live in fear,” said Manjit Singh. “We have laid the foundation for consistent outreach from FBI field offices around the country. We look forward to continuing to train new and existing agents to effectively work with the Sikh American community to address hate crimes and build a better working relationship.” During the meeting, Director Mueller stated that it was as important today as September 12, 2001 to protect the Sikh, Arab, and Muslim communities against persons who want to do harm by committing hate crimes. The group also discussed FBI recruitment, no-fly lists, and other civil rights issues with representatives from other government agencies including the Department of Homeland Security. Since September 2001, SMART has also trained over 3,500 local, state, and federal law enforcement officials through awareness and protocol training about the Sikh faith and the Sikh American community. Furthermore, SMART has been working closely with the FBI’s national office and field offices to investigate hate crimes and conduct community outreach.
SMART Meets with FBI Director, Pushes Outreach and Training
SMART Training Expected to Attract 800 Participants Washington, DC— Approximately 800 local, state, and federal law enforcement officials will participate in an awareness and protocol training regarding Sikhs and Sikhism in the Washington, DC-area tomorrow. The seminar is designed to build better relationships between law enforcement and the Sikh, Arab, and Muslim community and is the final event in a six-city, nationwide training conducted by the Sikh Mediawatch and Resource Task Force (SMART) in partnership with the U.S. Department of Justice’s Community Relations Service (CRS). The day-long seminar will take place in the suburbs of Washington, DC at Prince George’s Community College in Largo, Maryland. The training, entitled Sikhism 101: Awareness and Protocol for Law Enforcement provides an introduction to Sikh beliefs, history and culture. The interactive program includes a 25-slide PowerPoint presentation, video, and visual aids of Sikh articles of faith. In addition to the morning training, SMART will hold a “Training of Trainers” workshop to allow about 75 members of the local Sikh, Arab, and Muslim community to conduct this program in their local communities. Through this program, SMART has already trained over 1,000 law enforcement officials at regional trainings in California, Colorado, Florida, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Attendees at previous trainings have included: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents; Department of Transportation Security Administration personnel; representatives of U.S. Attorney’s offices; federal counter-terrorism task force officials; and local law enforcement officials, including the New York Police Department. SMART President Manjit Singh said, “Through these trainings, SMART is working towards affecting systemic change by demystifying the Sikh faith for law enforcement officials and reducing the chance that Sikhs are racially profiled. With the support of the Sikh community and the CRS, we hope to expand this program in the coming months so we can continue educating law enforcement officials across the country.” Based on the backlash that affected the Sikh American community following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, SMART has also created a Law Enforcement Reference Card. This pocket reference card includes protocols for the turban and kirpan and provides additional resources for law enforcement officials.
SMART to Monitor Investigation, Facilitate Community Outreach Richmond, CA–In response to recent shootings of two Sikh cab drivers in the Bay Area, the Sikh Mediawatch and Resource Task Force (SMART), a national Sikh civil rights organization, recently facilitated a meeting between local and federal law enforcement officials, elected representatives, and cab drivers. Following the meeting, SMART was able to confirm good faith and diligent efforts by the Richmond Police Department regarding the cab driver shootings. The police are aggressively pursuing leads in the July 2 murder of Gurpreet Singh and the July 5 shooting of Inderjit Singh. The city of Richmond has announced a reward of $2,500 for tips leading to arrests in the shootings. El Sobrante Gurdwara has matched the city’s reward. Following the meeting, the Richmond police agreed to send officers to the El Sobrante Gurdwara to train cab drivers on how to effectively relay emergency calls to local police. Additionally drivers will be trained on how to deal with confrontational situations. Based on the cab drivers’ requests, city officials promised to consider the cab drivers’ suggestions for installing video cameras and glass partitions in cabs. Local law enforcement officials also agreed to consider new taxicab safety regulations to address safety concerns. Attendees at the multi-jurisdiction meeting included Richmond Police Chief Joseph Samuels, County Supervisor John Gioia, Department of Justice Representative Booker T. Neal, and El Sobrante Gurdwara President Harpreet Singh Sandhu, who was there on behalf of the local cab drivers seeking the Sikh community’s assistance in response to the shootings. SMART also discussed conducting awareness and protocol training it has conducted nationally with the Department of Justice to provide law enforcement officials with the necessary background and strategies to more effectively work with the Sikh community. Over thirty South Asian cab drivers, many of whom were Sikh, met at the El Sobrante Gurdwara in advance of the multi-jurisdiction meeting to express their concerns and develop an agenda for the meeting with city officials and law enforcement. Chief Samuels said he is hiring more dispatchers and officers, and invites Punjabi speaking applicants to apply for these positions. If you or someone you know is interested in working as a dispatcher or in joining the Richmond Police, please contact SMART at 202-393-2700. SMART will continue to update the community about the investigation and community relations efforts.
SMART Collaborating with Local, State, and Federal Authorities to Address Death Threats Received by Maryland Sikh Family Washington, DC—Responding to a pair of death threats received by a Sikh family in the Washington, DC metropolitan area three weeks ago, the Sikh Mediawatch and Resource Task Force (SMART), a national civil rights organization, is organizing a community forum to discuss this and issues related to hate crimes with law enforcement officials. SMART is encouraging the DC-area Sikh community to attend the event this Wednesday, August 27 at 7 pm in Rockville, MD (details below). The pair of death threats stated, in part, that the family is believed to be “closely affiliated with the Taliban…[and] plan to kill you and your family members.” Since receiving the threats, SMART has been coordinating with the family and law enforcement authorities, including the FBI, to ensure investigation of these threats as bias-motivated incidents. The community forum, “Combating Hate Crimes,” is being organized in collaboration with local, state, and federal law enforcement officials and community groups to present information about how to effectively deal with such hate-motivated incidents. The event will serve a mutually educational purpose for community members and law enforcement, and will not be a forum where the affected family’s identity is revealed. Confirmed participants include representatives from the Department of Justice, DC Bias Crimes Task Force, Montgomery County Police Department, and representatives from the Sikh, Arab, Muslim, Jewish and other communities. If you live in the DC metropolitan area, please share information about this event with your family and friends. Additionally, please request your local gurdwara to make an announcement about the event and distribute copies of the event flyer (available online, see URL below) at the gurdwara.
SMART Encourages Sikh Community to Attend Public Forum Washington, DC — On Wednesday, June 4th, a day before the House Judiciary Committee is scheduled to conduct an oversight hearing on the USA PATRIOT Act, SMART will join a diverse coalition of organizations at a public forum to examine the growing trend of law enforcement to selectively target certain immigrant communities under the guise of national security. SMART encourages the Sikh community, particularly those targeted unjustly by law enforcement since 9/11, to attend the hearing at the Senate tomorrow. The forum entitled: Justice For All: Selective Enforcement in Post-911 America, will examine the post-9/11 impact on the lives of those in the Arab, Muslim, East African, Sikh and Latino communities. A panel will include representatives from national organizations, individuals from the affected communities, along with members of Congress, including Senators Edward Kennedy (D-MA) and Patty Murray (D-WA). The forum is endorsed by over 100 national and local organizations including SMART. The details for the event are as follows: WHAT: A nationwide public forum on selective enforcement post-9/11 WHO: Community Members, Civil Rights Advocates, Senators WHEN: June 4, 2003, 10 AM – 12 PM WHERE: 902 Hart Senate Building, Washington, DC
Washington, DC – Leaders of national Sikh, Arab and Muslim organizations met with FBI Director Robert Mueller II on Wednesday, May 28 to discuss further partnerships with the community and the possible development of an advisory committee that would coordinate efforts at state and national levels. Last week’s meeting, a follow-up to the February 28, 2003 meeting, took place a week after a Sikh American truck driver was shot twice in a hate crime in Phoenix, AZ. “While we appreciate Director Mueller’s initiative to meet with us,“ said Manjit Singh, Chair of the Sikh Mediawatch and Resource Task Force (SMART) Board of Directors, “we want to ensure that preventative measures to reduce hate crimes take place hand-in-hand with investigation and prosecution, especially in light of the Phoenix incident last week.” Singh, who represented SMART, the oldest national Sikh American civil rights and advocacy organization, voiced the Sikh community’s concerns since the Phoenix incident on May 19, 2003. Following the shooting of Avtar Singh Chiera, the 52-year-old Sikh American who was shot after parking his 18-wheeler, SMART conducted training at the Phoenix Police Department headquarters for law enforcement officials and community leaders. SMART is encouraged that the FBI has responded positively to its suggestion of conducting similar religious awareness and protocol workshops at its training academy and at field offices across the country. Since September 2001, SMART has been reporting hate crimes and working closely with the FBI’s Washington, DC office and their various field offices. Following a meeting last February, the FBI issued a media release saying, “The FBI’s aggressive response to hate crimes has sent a clear message that vigilante attacks will not be tolerated. (Since the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks), the FBI has initiated 414 hate crime investigations involving Muslim, Sikh and Arab-American victims, with 17 persons being charged federally thus far. Additionally, some 129 persons have been charged with state and local crimes in connection with those investigations.” This meeting was the fourth in a series between the director and the leaders of national Muslim, Sikh and Arab-American organizations, though not all of them have been publicized. Others attending the meeting were representatives of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, the Arab American Institute, the Islamic Institute, the American Muslim Council, and the Muslim Public Affairs Council.
Phoenix Police Establishes Reward Fund; Sikh Community Urged to Support Reward, Family Funds Phoenix, AZ – Responding to requests from local and federal authorities, the Sikh Mediawatch and Resource Task Force (SMART), a national Sikh advocacy group, conducted awareness training for law enforcement officials last week, following the shooting of Avtar Singh Chiera on May 19. Last Friday, May 23, approximately 35 individuals gathered at the Phoenix Police Department headquarters to attend SMART’s awareness training, entitled Sikhism 101: An Introduction to Sikh Beliefs, History, and Culture. Attendees included representatives from the police department, state attorney general’s office, the U.S. Department of Justice Community Relations Service (CRS), and members of the local Sikh community. The training was also attended by representatives from local chapters of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) and the National Conference on Community and Justice (NCCJ). SMART would like to thank the Community Relations bureau of the Phoenix Police Department for arranging the training session on short notice and the Phoenix-area Sikh community for supporting the Chiera family following this unfortunate incident. The individuals responsible for the apparently hate-motivated attack against Mr. Chiera are still at-large. Two funds have been established following the shooting. The Chiera family is facing financial hardship as a result of this crime. Mr. Chiera has no health insurance and will be unable to work for a while. The community can contribute to the Chiera family fund by sending donations directly to the following address: FUND FOR AVTAR SINGH, A SIKH HATE CRIME Bank of America Mail Code AZ3-125-01-01 3246 East Bell Road, Phoenix, AZ 85032 A second fund has also been established by the Phoenix Police Department through the Silent Witness Reward program, aimed at encouraging witnesses to come forth anonymously with information that may lead to an eventual arrest and conviction of the shooting suspects. Contributions to the Silent Witness Reward fund can be made through an online donation to SMART, or by sending donations directly to the following address: SIKH COMMUNITY AID FUND Memo: Avtar Singh Reward Program 2313 N. Richland Street Phoenix, Arizona 85006 Since learning about the shooting from a regional SMART representative early on the morning of May 20, SMART immediately informed local, state and federal authorities to ensure a thorough investigation. SMART representatives spoke individually with the following folks to ensure a coordinated effort: the FBI Squad Leader; Phoenix Police Department Detectives; United States Assistant Attorney General, Arizona; and Director of the United States Department of Justice, Community Relations Service. Recent news reports indicate hate crimes against those perceived to be Muslim or Arab in the United States have been on the rise since the beginning of the war in Iraq. Therefore, SMART encourages Sikh Americans to do outreach, increase civic participation and become active in their communities.
WASHINGTON, DC – FBI Director Robert Mueller met with leaders of national Sikh, Arab and Muslim organizations on Friday, Feb. 28 to discuss the rise in hate crimes and racial profiling of these communities in the wake of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. The meeting was the latest in a series of meetings organized by the FBI with leaders of organizations who have been responding to post-September 11 bias incidents.
The Sikh Mediawatch and Resource Task Force (SMART), the oldest national Sikh American civil rights and advocacy organization, addressed the possible increase in hate crimes in the next few months due to the looming war with Iraq and the need for the Bureau to aggressively investigate all reported bias incidents.
“Protecting the civil rights of all Americans remains a top priority for the FBI,” said Mueller. “I”m vitally concerned that the rights of Muslim, Sikh and Arab Americans be protected. The FBI stands prepared to take strong and immediate action against hate crimes in the event of any anti-Arab American backlash to world events.”
The FBI said its response to hate crimes has sent a clear message that hate crimes will not be tolerated. To date, the FBI reportedly has initiated 414 hate crime investigations involving Muslim, Sikh, and Arab-American victims, with 17 persons being charged federally thus far. Additionally, some 129 persons have been charged with state and local crimes in connection with these investigations.
The director also stressed the importance of strengthening relationships and improving cultural sensitivity. “We can”t do it without you,” Director Mueller said.
SMART encouraged the FBI to conduct religious and cultural awareness workshops at its training academy and at field offices across the country. Since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks SMART has conducted such trainings for numerous local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies. SMART also asked the FBI director to establish a relationship with the Sikh community to ensure that hate crimes are accurately reported nationwide.
Others attending the meeting were representatives of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, the Arab American Institute, the Islamic Institute, the American Muslim Council, and the Muslim Public Affairs Council.
Washington, DC – The killing of Sikh San Francisco cab driver, Sukhpal Singh Sodhi, in the early hours of Sunday, may not be a hate crime, San Francisco Police Detective Joseph Toomey told Sikh Mediawatch and Resource Task Force (SMART) on Tuesday. According to Detective Toomey, the shooting took place in what he calls a known Latino gang neighborhood, four blocks away from where the victim’s car came to a stop. At the site of the shooting were bullet holes in another parked car and in a nearby wall. He said there was also a fresh pool of blood with a trail running along the sidewalk. The blood was not of the victim, he said. Detective Toomey said it is entirely possible that Sodhi may have been dropping off or picking up a fare, or driving by when the shooting took place. At this time he said the police department cannot determine if this is a hate crime and is actively continuing its investigation of the crime as a homicide. Also, robbery has been ruled out as a motive since the victim had a large sum of money on him following the incident. The detective said the chief of police is aware of the interest in this case and has been briefed on it. Sodhi was the brother of Balbir Singh Sodhi, who was murdered in a hate crime in Arizona in the aftermath of 9/11. Earlier SMART had contacted and urged the FBI and the Department of Justice to investigate the killing as a possible hate crime particularly after the city’s police department prematurely concluded that it did not seem to be a hate crime. A joint press conference led by SMART and other Sikh American organizations will be held in San Francisco at noon tomorrow followed by a memorial service at the local El Sobrante gurdwara (Sikh place of worship).
SMART urges the Sikh communities in California to call the office of the San Francisco Mayor and Police Department Washington, DC – Sukhpal Singh Sodhi, a San Francisco cab driver, was murdered in the early hours of Sunday August 4, while driving home. Sukhpal Singh was the brother of Balbir Singh Sodhi, who was murdered in Arizona in the aftermath of 9/11. Sikh Mediawatch and Resource Task Force (SMART), a national Sikh advocacy group, contacted the FBI and urged it to investigate the killing as a possible hate crime. SMART is very concerned by news reports quoting San Francisco Police Department detectives as saying, “the investigation is in the preliminary stage,” and who also simultaneously concluded that “we don’t believe this is a hate crime at all.” These statements indicate that the police department has unfortunately concluded that Sukhpal Singh’s murder is not a hate crime prior to conducting an aggressive and complete investigation. SMART would like to see those responsible for this crime brought to justice irrespective of their motives. However, SMART urges the Sikh communities in California to write or call the office of the San Francisco Mayor and Police Department and urge them to fully investigate this killing as a possible hate crime. Willie L. Brown, Jr., Mayor City Hall, Room 200 1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place San Francisco, CA 94102 Phone: (415) 554-6141 Fax: (415) 252-3107 (TDD) Email: damayor@sfgov.org San Francisco Police Department Public Affairs Office 850 Bryant Street San Francisco, CA 94103-4603 Phone: (415) 533-1651 Fax: (415) 553-1554 Anyone with information about the shooting is encouraged to call the San Francisco Police Department’s homicide division at (415) 431-2127. SMART will keep the community informed about any developments in this case and on the progress of the investigation. About SMART: Founded in 1996 to promote the fair and accurate portrayal of Sikh Americans and the Sikh religion in American media and society, the Sikh Mediawatch and Resource Task Force (SMART) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, member based organization. Its mission is to combat bigotry and prejudice, protect the rights and religious freedoms of Sikh Americans, and provide resources that empower the Sikh American community.