Sometimes, when I mention that I encountered racist spew while growing up in Northern California, I am greeted with extreme skepticism; “No way. Not in CALIFORNIA!”. Yes way, in my beloved golden state. Yet again, someone’s father/brother/grandfather almost died because of ignorance and hate. Via the Mercury News (might require registration) (Thanks, Dave and Kamala):
The day after the stabbing of a Santa Clara grandfather left South Bay Sikhs reeling, prosecutors are weighing hate crime and attempted murder charges against his neighbor, who apparently believed the man belonged to the Taliban.
Iqbal Singh, 40, was waiting in his carport with his 2-year-old granddaughter around 10:50 a.m. Sunday when the suspect approached him and stabbed him in the neck with a steak knife, Santa Clara police Sgt. Kurt Clarke said.
Singh was still in the hospital Monday with serious injuries. The girl was unhurt.
I thank any deity you prefer that Iqbal Singh’s baby granddaughter wasn’t also attacked by this sick @$$#0(#. What is this world coming to, when you aren’t safe in your own driveway? From people who probably know you better than strangers, even if we’re all bowling alone?
Santa Clara police arrested Everett Thompson, 20, of Santa Clara, later Sunday, Clarke said. He was booked into Santa Clara County Jail on suspicion of attempted murder and a hate crime, Clarke said.
Perhaps we have an explanation for something so senseless:
There are indications that Thompson, who may suffer from mental illness, believed Singh was a member of the Taliban, officials said Monday. Singh is not.
I love that clarification at the end there, just in case anyone was unclear on the concept that SIKHS ARE NOT MEMBERS OF THE TALIBAN.
I’ve always maintained that there is a special place in hell for people who attack others when they are praying (or about to):
When Singh was attacked, he was waiting for the rest of the family to come down to the carport from their upstairs apartment on Agate Drive. They were on their way to worship services at San Jose Gurdwara Sahib, Gurmeet Singh said.
(Sikhism)…promotes peace and understanding.
“We are simply trying to peacefully live, earn a living and practice our religion,” Gurmeet Singh said. “This hate is driven by ignorance.”
Fantastic post by TheKingSingh in #99 — I support you 100% bro and am very proud of you 😉
Amardeep,
Incidents certainly happen, whether it’s just veiled animosity during one’s normal day-to-day interaction with the public, or attacks on gurdwaras (as happened shortly after 7/7), but the overall frequency seems to be less in the UK in terms of the number of incidents vis-a-vis the size of the total British Sikh population.
In terms of the perception of Sikhs in the eyes of many non-desis here, remember what I said in the “colour” thread about the more macho (some would say warlike and aggressive, although it’s been tempered somewhat post-9/11) stance of very many 2nd-Generation Sikhs in the UK, which was substantially influenced as a reaction to the racism desis here had grown up experiencing (especially their parents). Non-desis who have grown up in high-density Indian areas, or have studied/worked/socialised amongst them, are very often aware of this. English people in general are also aware of the military history of Sikhs (both as a group and in relation to the British Empire) so to some extent that’s also affected perceptions. Either way, younger Sikhs jumping on the gangsta bandwagon in days gone by and their corresponding behaviour, especially their somewhat-forceful reactions to racism (rightly or wrongly), has also been a factor, which is of course not to say that thuggish or ignorant non-desis aren’t going to try to pull a stunt with them anyway. But enough Sikhs subtly or overtly sending the message “Don’t f*** with me” has played a part in influencing the image of Sikhs and whether they are perceived as “vulnerable targets”.
Applying some lateral thinking, I would also say that the fact that Sikhs here (who tend to be very sociable and outgoing) are known for their fondness for drinking may have helped their “acceptance” by some quarters of the English population if both parties have significantly socialised in pubs, bars etc together (English people love drinking alcohol), and the infiltration of bhangra into the mainstream consciousness has possibly been a factor too. In any case, just normal everyday face-to-face friendly interaction and positive experiences, especially in London and the Midlands (both areas where most British Sikhs live), has played a huge part.
People like Monty Panesar makes a huge difference to the image and awareness of Sikhs in England too.
Don’t forget Bend it Like Beckham which was set around Southall was one of the biggest movies in the UK of the last ten years – every English person I know has seen that film and enjoyed it and knows about Sikhs of West London through it.
There is not much that I can add, as most of what I would have said has been said. However untils Sikhs actively reaise their profiles with the same fervour as jews, muslims et al have, no one will care or understand. To often the community is insular, and does not mix or strech out. Muslims and Chritian have the Red Crescent and Red Cross. Where is teh Red Khanda? The point is, unless Sikhs do something actively for and with everyone, they are doomed to carry on having occasional incidents like this. Sikhs claim to be charitable, then why not go beyound building yet another Gurdwara ( Southall probably has 1 Gurdwara for every 10 Sikhs now), but instead sopend the money on Punjabi Langugae development, art and Osmosis with the main community..
Even in the UK where Muslims, Sikhs and Hindus are all over the TV, the turbaned man is less so. But only the media can help project positive images and negative ones as well will occur. Ever heard the phase first they came for the jews and I did nothing.. when they came for me, there was no one to protect me?
Okay , so Hardeep Singh Kohli is an exception, ( its about time don’t you think?), but generally it is hard. There was once a superbright kid on Countdown as well wearing a turban. Anyhow, in short Americans ar ignorant of the world period.
In the story on the Mercury News website it says “For Sikhs, Gursharan Singh said, the turban is not as much religious as it is cultural.” I think they are misinformed. The Turban is religious for Sikhs.
Rupinder,
I agree that Sikhs are not as proactive about matters as they could be. Maybe it’s because Sikhism isn’t really a proselytising faith, or maybe there are some other reasons. But the community as a whole should be a little more dynamic about certain things than it presently is, as per the basics of the religion. The current incompetence back at the Akal Takht probably doesn’t help matters either (whole other issue).
Red Khanda = Excellent idea and exactly in line with the faith’s humanitarian principles. You may also wish to take a look at this link from Sikhnet regarding a concept called “Seva Central“, along with the Sikh Humanitarian Aid Organization (“SHAO”).
Sikhnet has a “Media Outreach” page too.
The current “friendly fire” incidents in the Israel/Lebanon conflict were terrible but I was impressed to see keshdhari Sikh soldiers there as part of the UN force. Technically, Sikhs should be more actively involved in ethical military interventions too.
Good point, although I think using donations to sponsor hospitals, medical research, food distribution to the poor/elderly/homeless, disaster relief efforts etc would be a more constructive move too.
However, it was good to see that Sikhs were involved in relief efforts in response to the Tsunami and (I believe) also after Hurricane Katrina (please see here and here). So Sikhs are not necessarily as passive and insular as one may think (possibly they just don’t advertise their efforts as much as some people may expect), but there is certainly room for improvement.
Agreed, but these things should be done selflessly and without excessive fanfare, not to raise the profile of oneself or Sikhs as a whole. Any improvement in the public image of Sikhs should be a beneficial by-product and not the primary aim, as per the tenets of the faith 😉
Very sad incident which took me back to the post 9/11 days when my friends and I would be constantly on the SAJA website and read about similar incidents. Kudos to them for doing such a fine job in those days. Just goes to show what a redneck nation this can be.
good point! just like Jews, Sikhs need to stick together. Here in Carteret, NJ (aka kartarpur) there are as many as six Guruduwaras: one for jatts, one for sainis and so on. two of them are built one block away from each other. sheesh.
99 thekingsingh, tell em how we do it! proud of you
What can you do Anna? I guess blaming the victim is always the easy way out. “he shouldnt have been standing in his driveway, he asked for it”
Some of you may be following this story too, re the hate crime convictions in Highland Park, L.A. Did they have wait for someone to be killed?
“Just goes to show what a redneck nation this can be.”
Not all ‘rednecks’ are bad racist people. Living in the south for about 20 years now, my turbaned father has experienced less racism than he did during the 20 years he lived the New Jersey and New York. My father had to deal with many racist so-called educated colleagues when worked as an engineer in NJ. My father has driven through many palces in the Deep South and whenever his car has broken down (rural Florida), battery die(Alabama), tire blowout(Texas) and unlike that movie where the turbaned father couldn’t get any help, my Dad was helped by so called pickup drivin rednecks. Education and a diverse neighborhood doesn’t always negate racism. Some folks will be jerks no matter what.
Gal Sun, Agree with your comment. Besides the person involved in this incident appears to be african american. So it would be wrong to use the redneck (I hate this word) stereo-type. Well for that matter it is wrong to use all stereotypes.
The fact that this crime occured is due to stereotype and ignorance.
I’m disappointed that the amount of energy placed into identifying and labelling terrorists is not mirrored in nationwide education programs about those Americans among us who aren’t. Not protecting the good is also bad. sigh
Also, if someone hadn’t scaled back money for mental health and education programs, Crap For Brains may not have done this horrible thing.
In PA, where I live, on 78, in the middle of NOWHERE, there’s a billboard for the “American Sikh Alliance”, which points to a GMail address. I can’t find anything out about the organization, but it’s good to see that they’re trying to raise awareness of who Sikhs are. I worked with a great guy by the name of Mandeep at a previous employer who worked routinely with the Philadelphia Police to explain who sikhs were and what they believed and how to tell the differences. Thinking back he complained that many members of Nation of Islam would confuse him for Muslim and address as such.
Next time I drive down Route 78 I’ll get the information off the billboard and post it here.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1844519.cms
I guess we should be thankful that the largest newpaper in India didn’t call the attacker a n****r.
There are interesting dynamics at play between people of color. Some people close to me were once attacked outside of a club by a group of white and latino young men, soon after 9/11, calling them “taliban” and so forth. Around the same time (I was in school then), I was at a club in a college town with about 50 other desi people, and a white guy started racially insulting someone I knew. It turned into some sort of confrontation. The police came into the club and decided to mace the entire room. We filed a complaint against the police for this action; there was no threat of a mob action, and the vast majority of people maced were brown. Usually the “hate” incidents that I observed first- or second-hand were simply white-on-brown; the brown-on-brown or black-on-brown was far less common.
However, it clearly happens too. I had no idea the “Dotbusters” were mostly Latino. I think the key for me is to understand that “hate” is not a simplistic expression of some basic human need to fuck over other people, but is often tied to larger processes, even when it doesn’t quite look that way. I found this quote here:
Using whiteness as the universal scale of cultural valuation also results in violence among non-whites. The Dotbusters were a group in the late 1980s in Jersey City who specialized in committing acts of violence (including murder) against Indians specifically. The bindi (dot on the forehead) became the reason for calling themselves Dotbusters. The Infinity Foundation has a research project underway to document and publish the history of this tragic movement. We found one TV documentary in which a local anchorwoman interviews some of the Dotbusters, who express anger because the Indian immigrants pray, eat, dress and appear different than “us.” The irony is that these Dotbusters were Hispanic youth who had become whitened as “us” and saw Indians as being lower on the whiteness scale as “them.” The second irony is that when Indians retaliated, they took out their anger against local blacks who had never caused them any harm: The Indians had assumed whiteness to get rid of their “problem” and gazing down at blacks was the result.
I agree – it’s a criticism I’ve had about our own community for a long time. After a while, though, through lots of observation, and my own analysis, I came to realize, that a lot of it also has to do with them being a fresh immigrant population (Mostly 1st and 2nd gen’s). The majority of the first generation came here not for religious freedom, but for the financial and educational opportunities a few decades back. Their initial priority was not “How do I establish myself as a Sikh in this country and protect my religious freedoms?”; it was more like “How do I feed my family and educate my kids?” They were running on their survival instinct, and so, the only time they had to worry about asserting and protecting their freedoms was when something bad happened. The 2nd generation is in a much better position to battle ignorance because of their vast educational, political, and financial resources. However, they still have the 1st generation to deal with. They all need to work together, but the 1st generation has just become used to dealing with something once it happens, and not preemptively striking, or not letting something happen again. They didn’t just deal with things that way in the US – they also did it back in the motherland.
of course, I think the situation with Everett Thompson is different still:
“Reports of the crime shocked the suspect’s close-knit family. Thompson’s cousin Gary Lopez described a large multicultural family, that includes a Sikh great-uncle in Los Angeles.
This is not something a sane person would do,'' Lopez said.This isn’t something that the Everett I know would do.” But Thompson began to change two years ago, Lopez said. He was arrested for crouching on his hands and knees in the middle of a South Bay street and barking like a dog, Lopez said. The family intervened and Thompson began taking medication. Lopez could not explain Thompson’s alleged attack on Singh.”I think the interactions of mental illness and racism are quite interesting. Thompson seemed to have been under the influence of a prejudiced delusion about Singh, consistent with a popular paranoid schema. The “Fifth Column” is nothing new, but it fits well with someone experiencing paranoia, delusions, and bizarre symptoms.
I think all of this is important to solving the root causes of “hate”. Too often we oversimplify it as just another tragic occurrence in the world that could be solved with some cognitive panacea.
I think it shows the power, and the ingrained nature of racist stereotypes. One of the best explanations of how the “acting out” on racist stereotypes and it’s linkage to mental deterioration is Tim Wise’s anecdote, describing her grandmother, an ardent anti-racist during her more fruitful years:
He goes on to describe, that the reason she reacted this way, was her conscious mind was eroding away from Alzheimers:
I would have summarized it myself, but I think Tim Wise does it best. The entire article can be read
It did not take me too many posts to realize that Sikh not only suffer discrimination being mistaken as belonging to the ‘bin laden group’ which can be contributed to lack of exposure and ignorance.
What is far more disturbing is the response from their own countrymen who constantly harp about forgetting the 1984 tragedy yet continously bring it in a discussion when it serves their own purpose. Sikhs have bigger problems at hand. Not only do they need to educate their neighbors in foreign land but also must put up with discrimination by their own countrymen. Good luck.
oops link didn’t come through
http://www.zmag.org/ZMag/articles/july99wise.htm
Yeti
Your point makes sense considering the evidence.
Fuerza Dulce
Again I understand what you are saying. As a kid I knew I was a sikh, I has the 5 K’s and janamsakhis, images of evil mogals etc..also I saw the economic hard work our people did, and I understand all that. I was also interetsde in Punjabi but this was a last priority for all. Had this been the first I would have realised that Muslims and Hindus were alos Punjabi and we have a sharde culture and Literature and that Pakistan has same culture. But parents did not have time to expalon. Instead they concentrayted on the 1947 dark year memmory which caused rift and hate within punjabis. The result was that I was a Sikh firsts, then English and then punjabi. It is probably the other way round now. The point is Sikhs don’t want to go too far this way either, as we will then be seen like the Jewish and Islamist far right groups. The Sufi approach is best, in fact ethics and explanationis best. The guys with the turbans are our amabasadors so should not smoke etc to help show positive image. Monty Panesar ( see the huge section on him in Today’s guardian’s Sport) is the main man in the Uk for this right now. It also empahsises that concentration on economic gain pushed culture, literature and other good stuff way behind.
That said don’t think that he K is that better than the US. Amrdeep knows who I work fo, so will understand the following statistics authenticity, re the Police ( see today’s Guardian Socirty section)and the following reported incidents terated as racist just over this month ( less than 1% of those reported).
Friday July 28 2 Asian men ( read Desi) aged 24 + 30 set upon by 10 white youths in Salford Manchester and beaten with sticks
Satuday July 22 Shezan Umarji 20 stabbed to death by white gang in Preston
Same day, Mohammed Pervaiz the taxi driver killed by white gang in Yorkshie
Wednesday May 17 A 30 year old Asian man in Barking satbbed and racilly abused by 4 whites
Thursday Feb 23 Khizar Hyat kille by black man who fire bombed his convience store and attacked other asian businesses
Note Colour on Colour crime is rising. Note that Sikhs are alo attacked, but strangely turbaned Sikhs are LESS ( does not mean they are not) attacked than clean shaven ones. Clearly being Muslim or Shajdhari is the problem in the UK. 7/7 has perptuated this. Some Sikhs wear clothes that say” I am a Sikh, not a Muslim”…
sorry fast typing meant I mispelt things
The arguments that somehow Sikhs had failed to create enough awareness about themselves and were therefore in some way responsible for this made my skin crawl. This is akin to blaming the victim of rape by telling her that it was she who was wearing skimpy clothes and therefore responsible for what happened to her. Let’s keep our arguments logical people.
In case anyone missed it the first time round (Red Snapper originally posted this in the News tab), here’s an article from The Times detailing the rise and rise of Monty Panesar in the UK. Apparently he’s going to on the front cover of Esquire magazine too.
Pickled Politics also has also just started a good discussion about Monty, you may wish to check it out for the British view on things. Racial attacks statistics aside, it also mentions the success and acceptance of Sikhs within British society which I have mentioned myself previously on this thread. WIth all due respect to commenters/Mutineers here who have disagreed, perhaps it may be difficult to understand the latter if one doesn’t actually live in the UK and therefore hasn’t had first-hand exposure to the way Sikhs are generally treated and regarded in this country.
Apologies, I forgot to post the link to the Times article: Here it is.
And yes, Rupinder is correct in stating that the problem in the UK, with regards to “mistaken identity”, is more prevalent for clean-shaven Sikhs (and Hindus for that matter), not our Keshdhari brothers, as I mentioned in post #100.
I don’t see the parallel. If the style of dress makes you a higher target for racist violence (however illogical and immoral that is, it’s still a world reality that should be acknowledged) from a practical point of view, there are two options, stop dressing that way, or spend the time and money to educate those around you that… turbans do not equal taliban.
As for the rape analogy, I’m not totally sure, but most rapes occur between acquaintences and relatives, and not total strangers that see a “skimpy-dress”-clad woman and just have to have her.
The point you’re making seems to be that the two situations are not identical. But who would say they were?
Surely you’re not saying they have no points of comparison: they are both acts of aggression, perpetrators tend to pick their targets based on appearance, reasonable people find this kind of targeting reprehensible…
In other words, racist attacks are similar to rape in some ways, and dissimilar in certain other ways. Anna was drawing attention to the similarities.
Please don’t be like those folks who insist, contrary to all evidence and experience, that apples cannot be compared to oranges.
True, but then a lot of other criminal acts can be included as well: robbery, murder, etc.. I didn’t know A N N A drew a comparison, I was more responding to comment#124.
I don’t want to dwell excessively on the rape example as it veers too far off-topic, but here are some brief thoughts:
Yes, but the second point was a perspective which was prevalent in the West as a way of (at least partially) blaming the victim until a few decades ago, and unfortunately such an attitude still exists in certain quarters of the subcontinent and in some other parts of the world too.
It draws attention away from the fact that, no matter how provocatively (or “differently”) the woman may be dressed or acting, there is still no excuse for anyone to attack her. People have to take responsibility for both their actions and reactions, and the fundamental flaw lies in the mentality and behaviour of the attackers, not the woman.
You can, of course, extrapolate this logic to the example of turbaned/bearded Sikhs. As follows:
It’s also worth bearing in mind that, as TheKingSingh stated in post #99, the outer symbols are non-negotiable for committed Sikhs and especially those who are baptised/Amritdhari.
The attacker was also lucky that he was not killed (or at least severely injured) by his target during the physical struggle; along with the spiritual aspects, traditionally (and especially historically) devout Sikhs are also encouraged to be skilled in martial arts — both armed and unarmed combat — to be used only in self-defence to incapacitate any attacker, along with situations requiring the defence of any vulnerable/innocent third-parties. I don’t know if Iqbal Singh has had such training or even if he had sufficient time to react, but there are plenty of Sikhs that it would be a very bad idea indeed for a would-be murderer to attempt to pick on.
A colored boy?,
In India, ‘negro’ is generally not known to be an offensive term for a black person and is considered simply descriptive and indeed, if the world didn’t carry so much historical baggage, “negro/negroid” would be in the same league as Caucasian/Mongoloid as non-judgemental terms.
I think TOI’s use of “colored boy” is learned foreign-speak from some outdated Western literature. In fact, in many parts of India, “colored”= “fair”= light skinned.
Wow thats news to me because when I see the term “colored” used in India (where I’m from) it’s almost always to describe someone NOT fair. When it’s someone light skinned it’s “FAIR” not “colored”.
Jane, I know “fair” is indeed the term of choice. And “colored” is not used in that form exactly. I know that at least in TN and Kerala, when speaking in the vernacular (with English mixed in), people could say that “Their daughter is very colorful”. OK, that translation is making me ROFL :D, can’t do it. For example, in Tamizh, it would be “Avanga ponnu romba coloraa irukka” or “Kashmiris nalla
aa iruppanguh”. Maybe someone can translate this better. Of course, this is quite “country”, not educated speech.
In Telugu, of course, “Nalla color” would mean something totally different, LOL. (Nalla=Black)
Would you like to hint about where this place might be. Sentences in pure English don’t count.
Yeah, relying on outdated racial typology for your labels is not such a good idea 🙂 Mongoloid is hardly complimentary either, and Caucasian is more aptly expressed by “White” 🙂 But I agree with you that these words and labels vary from country to country. Take “Asian” in the U.S. vs. “Asian” in the UK.
-s