Blogged by Jasleen Kaur I was sitting on my cousin’s couch in her beautiful Geneva apartment. I could hear the noises of the annual Lake Geneva Festival from her living room window. I was relaxing, about to have dinner. Then I got a few text messages from friends back in the States. Turn on CNN right now. There’s been a shooting at a Gurdwara. A shooting at a Gurdwara? In-fighting was my first thought. I turned on CNN. This was not in-fighting. This was something much more serious. It was like the morning of 9/11 all over again. I remember I was just in 5th grade, but everything stopped. My brother and I didn’t go to school. My mom and dad took the day off. We were glued to the TV, as I was glued to CNN on August 5, 2012. As the day wore on, the accuracy of CNN improved in their representation of Sikhs and the narrative of the shooting. Though Don Lemon cautioned the characterizing the incident as a ‘hate crime,’ police eventually admitted that it would be investigated as an act of domestic terrorism. Facts are facts. And the fact here was that a man, Wade Michael Page, targeted a peaceful community at their place of worship out of pure ignorance and hate. This story is not new. This motive is not new. Different time, different place, different perpetrator, more victims. But what now? The hate crimes we’ve all seen take place over the last decade were never on such a large scale. Maybe that’s why CNN paid attention to Sikh Americans this time. Numbers. But what about Fox? What about your local Channel 4 news? Most Americans may still have no idea what happened. CNN and Huffington Post were exceptions to the norm. However, Wisconsin was a wake up call. Our efforts as a community, Sikh organizations’ efforts, though hard fought, need renewal and revival. We are reminded that there still exists ignorance, violent ignorance that can strike at any time. I was abroad during those intense two weeks that followed August 5, but from my international perch I was able to observe the surge in volunteers and activists organize around the tragedy in hopes of remembering the lives lost and reminding us all of the work yet to be done to create a space for the Sikh community in America. What I fear is the fading of such passion. Sikh Americans can come together in reactionary response, but what about focusing on preemptive education? As a member of the SikhLEAD’s first Leadership Development Class, I am forever reminded of the need for leaders, for educators, for activists, to continue critical work in educating both our community and our neighbors so that violence in the form of 9/11, Wisconsin, and all the hate crimes that took place in between, cease to be an option for Americans ignorant of their fellow citizens. This is when I remember LDP – Leadership Development Program – hosted by SALDEF’s SikhLEAD program. I am reminded that I had the fortunate opportunity to see the passion and ambition of sixteen young individuals who are striving to do something good for their own communities and the Sikh community. I am even more encouraged that in October 2012 will mark the incoming of another class of such young activists. This is the start of change. Wisconsin and the sentiments it awakened will not be forgotten.