Sikhism

Hate Crimes Soar in Massachusetts

September 25, 2002

Source: The Boston Herald

On September 25, 2002 The Boston Herald reported that "the number of hate crimes in Massachusetts rose dramatically in the year of the attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon, largely as a result of a backlash against Muslims and Arabs, according to a new state report. A total of 576 incidents were reported in 2001, up 24 percent from the 463 reported in 2000, according to the Governor's Task Force on Hate Crimes. Among them were 133 crimes motivated by religious bias, a 43 percent increase over the previous year's...

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San Mateo Sikh Continues Patriotism and Education

September 19, 2002

Source: San Mateo County Times

On September 19, 2002 the San Mateo County Times reported that "just two days after last year's attacks, Kulwant Singh was out buying an American flag to put outside his North Central [CA] home when someone threw a Molotov cocktail inside the house through a closed window, hitting his 3-year-old son, Mantej, on the head. Although the boy walked away with minor injuries, Singh said his family has not forgotten the egregious crime. Singh declined to follow up on his own case with the FBI, saying he didn't feel punishing someone...

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Connecticut Sikhs Gather to Remember 9/11 Victims of Terror and Backlash

September 16, 2002

Source: The Stamford Advocate

http://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/local/scn-sa-sikh1sep16.story?coll=stam%2Dnews%2Dlocal%2Dheadlines

On September 16, 2002 The Stamford Advocate reported that "about 200 Sikhs from Fairfield County [CT] gathered to remember victims of terrorism and hate crimes. Across the country, several Sikhs have been attacked or killed in the past year... Mayor Alex Knopp thanked the Sikh community...

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Update: Balbir Singh Sodhi Remembered

September 16, 2002

Source: Contra Costa Times

On September 16, 2002 the Contra Costa Times reported that "a year after a Sikh man became the nation's first fatal victim of a post-9/11 hate crime, fellow worshippers of his temple called on Sikhs to turn to politics to give their community more of a voice. 'There are no Sikh (city) councilmen; there are no Sikh congressmen. Nothing,' said Bhajan Singh, a member of the Gurdwara Sahib temple... Since Sodhi's killing, Bay Area and national Sikh organizations have courted attention from public officials and media in an effort to...

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Update: Balbir Singh Sodhi Remembered

September 16, 2002

Source: The Arizona Republic

http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/local/9_16_02mesa.html

On September 16, 2002, The Arizona Republic reported that "the family of Balbir Singh Sodhi held a memorial program Saturday to honor the slain Sikh and other backlash victims stemming from the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks... About 500 attended the Balbir Singh Sodhi Embrace Diversity Memorial Event at Mesa's Red Mountain Park... Since Sodhi's death, 16 other backlash deaths have been...

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New York Subway Panic over Sikh Transit Authority Worker's Turban

September 15, 2002

Source: New York Post

http://www.nypost.com/news/regionalnews/57019.htm

On September 15, 2002 the New York Post reported that "a turbaned man spotted climbing out of a subway maintenance hatch yesterday caused a terror scare after witnesses assumed he was up to no good. But after two hours of panic, cops determined he was just a legitimate Transit Authority worker who happens to be a Sikh... Before authorities figured it out, they roped off a section of Battery Park,...

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Update: Balbir Singh Sodhi Remembered

September 15, 2002

Source: The Associated Press

On September 15, 2002 The Associated Press reported that "a memorial vigil was held Saturday night for a Mesa gas station owner shot days after last year's terrorist attacks on the East Coast. The Balbir Singh Sodhi Embrace Diversity Memorial event took place at a Mesa park about a mile from where Sodhi was shot. An estimated 800 people attended the two-hour program, delivered from a large stage that featured a collage in the shape of an American flag with the words "Embrace Diversity." Statements were read from President...

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Update: Balbir Singh Sodhi Remembered

September 15, 2002

Source: Newsday

http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/nation/wire/sns-ap-attacks-arizona-shooting0915sep14.story?coll=sns%2Dap%2Dnation%2Dheadlines

On September 15, 2002 Newsday reported that "hundreds of people attended a memorial vigil Saturday night [in Mesa, AZ] for a gas station owner fatally shot just days after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks... The two-hour memorial took...

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Some Hate Crime Victims "Feel Forgotten"

September 14, 2002

Source: The Washington Post

On September 14, 2002 The Washington Post reported that "at least a dozen murders are being investigated as hate crimes by [Texas] authorities. Families of those victims say they share the grief of the families of those who perished at the World Trade Center and Pentagon and who were aboard the jetliners that crashed that day. But amid the commemorations and observances of the first anniversary of Sept. 11, they feel forgotten. Representatives of the national charities say the issue is not so simple. The September 11th Fund...

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Diana Eck Comments on American Religious Affiliations

September 14, 2002

Source: The Washington Post

On September 14, 2002 The Washington Post reported that "Americans toward the end of the 20th century began reexamining their religious affiliations with intensity after an unprecedented growth of 'nontraditional' U.S. faiths, said Diana L. Eck, founder of the Pluralism Project at Harvard University. No longer were Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs and Muslims 'just on the other side of the world,' Eck said. Now they were 'neighbors across the street, and the encounter of people of other religions [became] more prevalent.' This trend...

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Update: Balbir Singh Sodhi Remembered

September 14, 2002

Source: SikhNet

http://www.sikhnet.com/s/Sept11EmbracingDiversity

On September 14, 2002 SikhNet reported that "on September 14th, the Sodhi family and the Phoenix Sikh community will host Embracing Diversity: Balbir Singh Sodhi Memorial Event. The memorial will honor not only Balbir Singh Sodhi, but all those who have died in the last year in backlash-related murders. The event will feature government and interfaith speakers, musicians and prayer, and will encourage unity...

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New Documentary on Sikhs in America Puts Out "Message of Tolerance"

September 13, 2002

Source: India-West

On September 13, 2002 India West reported that "the filmmakers of a documentary on Sikhs in America are hoping that the film will find a television audience in time for the November birthday of Guru Nanak, the religion's founder. 'Mistaken Identity: Sikhs in America,' directed by Vinanti Sarkar and hosted by journalist Amanda Gesine, tells the visual story of Sikhs in post-9/11 America. Sarkar and Gesine traveled across...

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Update: Balbir Singh Sodhi Remembered

September 12, 2002

Source: USA Today

On September 12, 2002 USA Today reported that "more than 200 people gathered near a freshly planted Indian rosewood that honors Balbir Singh Sodhi, 52, an Indian immigrant and a Sikh who was shot to death outside his Chevron station in Mesa four days after the terrorist attacks. In the year since those crimes, Mesa and greater Phoenix have faced head-on the fear and distrust of Arabs and Muslims spawned by Sept. 11. Sikhs, who are neither Muslim nor Arab, have sought to educate Americans about who they are, too."

Update: Balbir Singh Sodhi Remembered

September 11, 2002

Source: The Arizona Republic

On September 11, 2002 The Arizona Republic printed an editorial which stated, "it is fitting and important that all Americans take time today to mourn the victims of last Sept. 11 and to give sober reflection to the challenges America will face in coming years. At the same time, it's important also for residents of the East Valley to take a little time to reflect on our area's own particular additional sadness, the senseless murder of Balbir Singh Sodhi. After Sodhi was killed, there was a strong demonstration of sympathy for...

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