Within 10 Days, Three Sikhs Were Attacked on the Same N.Y.C. Block

After the arrest of the 2 males, who should not a part of the Sikh neighborhood, others realized they’d seen them each within the native Sikh temple, referred to as a gurdwara, within the days earlier than the assaults. Sikh prayers start as early as 3 a.m. Because the assaults, youthful folks within the space have begun to escort their elders to and from companies, mentioned Japneet Singh, an area organizer who helped put collectively Thursday’s rally.

“The factor with this neighborhood is they arrive residence after a protracted day, watch TV for slightly bit and fall asleep and repeat,” he mentioned. “And we simply wish to ensure that this occurs to no one once more.”

Sikhism is the fifth largest faith on this planet, with 25 million believers worldwide. Most Sikhs reside within the Indian state of Punjab, and an estimated 500,000 reside in america, in line with the Sikh Coalition.

However Sikhism stays extensively misunderstood in america. Few Individuals know the tenets of the religion, which emphasizes religious oneness, or the concept that there’s one God who’s equally current in all folks, which makes all people equal earlier than God.

It is not uncommon for Sikhs to have considered one of two final names, Singh or Kaur, as a method to rebuke the historic caste system of South Asia and promote the religion’s egalitarian beliefs. However pious Sikh males, for whom sporting a beard and turban is a spiritual requirement, are often mistaken for Muslims.

Many Sikh victims of hate crimes have been mistaken for Muslims, a spiritual neighborhood that has confronted widespread discrimination in america in latest a long time. Within the first month after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist assaults, the Sikh Coalition documented greater than 300 situations of violence and discrimination in opposition to Sikhs in america.

Simply days after Sept. 11, Balbir Singh Sodhi, a Sikh man, was killed outdoors his fuel station in Arizona throughout a gun rampage by Frank Roque, who mentioned he needed to kill Muslims. That very same day, Mr. Roque went on to shoot at a person of Lebanese descent and into a house owned by an Afghan American household. He was later convicted of first diploma homicide.