Oak Creek: A
shooting remembered, but only by some
Three years ago, white supremacist Michael Wade shot and killed six worshipers
(Paramjit Kaur Saini, Sita Singh, Ranjit Singh, Prakash
Singh, Suvegh Singh Khattra, and Satwant Singh Kaleka) and injured
four others at the Sikh Gurdwara (house of worship) in Oak Creek, WI. At that
time, it was the worst attack on a U.S. place of worship since the 1963 16th
street church bombing, only to be unfortunately surpassed by the recent
Charleston, SC shooting.
Sikhs, along
with other minority groups, have been targets of increased hate since that
fateful morning of 9/11. Almost 14 years later, we continue to face
discrimination, hate, and the ever-so-obvious "uneasy" glances from
our fellow Americans. I have now lived half of my life in the post-9/11 era.
Words cannot explain how I went from never thinking twice about the way I look,
to thinking three times before stepping foot outside. I went from never
listening to comments, jeers, and snickering, to noticing them at every moment
of the day. The glances or stares are so piercing that I have almost developed
a sixth sense for them. What left me in disbelief is that there was not even
the slightest link between those senseless terrorists and me. Why do people
associate my image with those terrorists? The media spent months flashing
pictures of turbaned men, almost perpetuating the image of a terrorist being
one who ties a turban.
Oak Creek was tragic and obvious proof of the media's deadly role through its
rating wars. Regardless of the outreach conducted post 9/11, there is limited
knowledge of the Sikh faith. Even on that tragic morning of August 5, 2012- the
news channels were not even aware of what a "Sikh" was. News channels
were calling in individuals from the Hindu and Muslim religions, asking their
opinions. At one point, the Gurdwara was referred to as a Hindu temple. 11
years after 9/11, it was obvious that there was work to be done.
The possible silver lining? The Sikh community thought that Oak Creek would
bring about national attention to the Sikh faith and the tragedy would raise
awareness of the Sikh faith and help educate the masses. The thought was that
those six "Shaheeds" would save the lives of countless others who
may possibly have been attacked or killed in the future due to hate.
Unfortunately, I don't think enough has happened. If you do a simple
"Google" search of Oak Creek, you will see countless op-eds just like
mine, Sikhs talking about Oak Creek. You won't see major news outlets covering
the tragedy, you won't see news outlets stating it was “an attack on an
American house of worship,” you will simply see "Sikhs commemorate Oak
Creek".
I am not
saying that we as Sikhs must not commemorate or educate, that is a must. I am
saying that Oak Creek was not just a Sikh tragedy, it was an American tragedy.
An attack on a house of worship or any attack that takes innocent lives should
transcend faiths and even borders. However, the tragedy has been largely
forgotten or many individuals don't even know it occurred.
Over the weekend, The Sikh Coalition successfully held a "Day of
Seva" across 16 cities. I participated and led the Fremont, CA event,
which was attended by non-Sikhs. Over 95% of the attendees were non-Sikh. None
of the attendees were aware of the Oak Creek shooting. At this moment, I was
unsure of what was more disappointing, the lack of Sikh presence at the event
or the fact that none of the attendees knew about the tragedy.
Aurora, Sandy Hook, and Charleston are household names, but Oak Creek draws a
blank. Even today, those other tragedies are slowly fading from our memories. Until
Oak Creek becomes an American tragedy, it will continue to be forgotten. Unless
all these tragedies are constantly covered, remembered, and observed, they will
all be forgotten.
I ask you to remember Oak Creek and learn from Oak Creek. Oak Creek can happen
anywhere and at anytime. Take the time to educate your neighbors, your friends,
and your own family. Learn about other faiths, traditions, and cultures. Let's
do our part to ensure there are no more Oak Creeks and no more Charleston,
South Carolinas.
"Those
who cannot remember the past, are condemned to repeat it"- George
Santayana
