SALDEF in the News
Sikh preaches love 18 years after brother killed over turban in 9/11 aftermath
Rana Singh Sodhi still preaches love and tolerance 18 years after his brother, Balbir Singh Sodhi, was gunned down in the aftermath of the Sept. 11th terrorist attacks by a man who thought he was a Muslim because of his turban and beard. Sodhi added that “I want there to be more awareness, more peace in the world…I believe education is very important for our community.” The article mentions SALDEF’s contribution in raising awareness through their public service announcement and SikhLEAD program.
Recent News
Frequently Asked Questions About the Disarm Hate Act
The Disarm Hate Act, or H.R. 2708, would prohibit individuals who have been convicted of a misdemeanor-level hate crime from buying or possessing guns. The bill would also prohibit individuals who received an enhanced sentence for a misdemeanor-level offense after a judicial finding that the criminal conduct was motivated by bias from buying or possessing guns. In January 2019, a misdemeanor hate crime was committed by a man in Salem, Oregon, when he attacked a Sikh store clerk because of the victim’s perceived religion, pulling on his beard; trying to remove his head covering; and kicking and punching him.
A new pictorial book, “Sikh Heritage” turns the lens on Sikhism. The article adds that the idea of a peaceful and casteless society was fundamental to Guru Nanak Dev Ji’s message. His message of service continues to reverberate among fellow Sikhs, through the langar served in Gurudwaras are cooked by members of the community and offered without religious or caste bias to all those who come to pray.
Man who scrawled threatening messages on Sikh temple gets 16 months in prison
Artyom Manukyan, a 29-year-old man who vandalized the Hollywood Sikh Temple in 2017 was sentenced to 16 months in prison after admitting he defaced the religious building. Police were considering hate crime charges against Manukyan, saying the messages were designed as a threat to the Sikh community. “The messages were drawn in black marker and are difficult to decipher…one reads “Nuke death … Sikhs,” with a profanity in between.”
RCMP defend removal of Sikh man’s turban at Surrey detachment
In June, Kanwaljit Singh filed a lawsuit claiming that Sgt. Brian Blair joined a group of officers and suddenly and without provocation approached him and ripped the turban off of his head. He said that while he was being marched to a cell, Blair was also grabbing his hair, pulling his hair out of a “topknot” that had been used to facilitate the wearing of the turban. Singh was told he couldn’t wear a turban in a holding cell because RCMP policy and practice doesn’t allow the wearing of turbans in a holding cell, according to the defendants.
How do we better define and track hate crimes?
A group of University of Chicago Law School students began to discuss a shared concern, hate crime data were inconsistent and incomplete. They also found that most of the organizations serving those marginalized populations were already stretched thin; most had neither the time nor resources to confront the flaws in the data. They created an outline for nonprofits to be able to talk about the experiences of victims with certainty and accuracy. For example, the report recommends that nonprofits collaborate to share the burden of collection efforts and victim outreach and create a uniform definition of hate crime to serve as a baseline for data comparison.