9 Years After Oak Creek Shooting, Hate Crimes Continue to Increase
Dear Supporters,
August 5, 2021
New York, NY
A few nights ago, there was an incident of vandalism on the Gurdwara Darbar Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji New York which is under construction in Floral Park, NY. The vandalism consisted of spray-painted graffiti on the windows, walls, and fence expressing hostility towards the Sikh community.
UNITED SIKHS condemns this anti-Sikh vandalism and urges the local authorities to thoroughly investigate this incident as a possible hate crime.
Nine years ago today, a hate-filled man went to the Wisconsin Sikh Temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin and began shooting. He killed six people and wounded at least 3 others before turning the gun on himself. Baba Punjab Singh, a seventh victim, passed away in March 2020 after being paralyzed by a gunshot wound inflicted by the killer. All seven murder victims were Sikh.
The killer was a known White supremacist and a musician in White power music bands. The Wisconsin Sikh Temple was located within sight of the killer’s last place of employment.
Nevertheless, at a press conference after the shooting when asked about the killer’s motive, Oak Creek Police Chief John Edwards said, “I don’t know why, and I don’t know that we’ll ever know, because when he died, that died with him what his motive was or what he was thinking.”
Sadly, this response was very recently repeated on July 28, 2021.
On April 15, 2021 another mass shooting took place at an Indianapolis, FedEx facility. The shooter’s gun had been confiscated by the Indianapolis police because of a credible fear of danger to self or others. When the police came to confiscate his shotgun, an officer noted the shooter had been exploring White supremacist websites. The Indianapolis shooting left eight people dead, four of whom were Sikh.
At the conclusion of the investigation of the April 15, 2021 mass shooting, Police Chief Randal Taylor stated, “Unfortunately, sometimes even after months of deep investigations … the ‘why’s’ still unknown. This specific incident is something only the shooter honestly knows.”
Obviously, there are differences between the murderers and other elements of the shooting, but there was evidence that the Indianapolis shooter had also explored White supremacist websites. It is also obvious that nine years after the mass shooting at the Wisconsin Sikh Temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, Sikhs remain targets of mass shootings.
FBI data show that hate crimes have continued to increase throughout the country, despite decreases in agencies voluntarily reporting hate crime data to the FBI.
In fact, hate crimes have reached even higher levels since the shooting at the Wisconsin Sikh Temple, with the most dramatic increases in bias crimes against Asian-Americans. Nine years after the events in Oak Creek, the situation remains dire. Government action is desperately needed to protect people from hate crimes.
UNITED SIKHS hopes that the recent passage of the Covid-19 Hate Crimes Act will help to better document hate crimes, better data collection, and better education to prevent hate crimes. UNITED SIKHS welcomes the opportunity to work with local, state and federal agencies to ensure the Sikh community is included in the efforts to educate localities and decrease bias incidents.
Eva Landeo
Media and Development Coordinator
UNITED SIKHS
Recognize the Human Race as One