The Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund (Saldef), the nation’s oldest Sikh American civil rights and advocacy organisation, has praised the Senate for passing this important bill by a wide margin, following a landslide of support in the Oregon House on February 13.

Saldef has urged Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski to sign the bill into law quickly.

Saldef initiated an historic campaign on behalf of the Sikh American community to overturn ORS 342.650 in the summer of 2009. It has been working to publicise this discriminatory legislation and repeal it.

“Today in Oregon we took a big step forward to equality in our State. The coalition that came together to pass this legislation crossed all lines of religion, race and culture,” said Oregon House Speaker Dave Hunt.

“It was inspiring to see national groups like Saldef join with local groups like the Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon to achieve this great victory for tolerance and religious freedom. No longer will any law supported by the KKK (Ku Klax Klan white supremacist movement) be the law in our state.”

SALDEF has worked with Mr Hunt and a broad coalition of groups and individuals to win over Oregon legislators, provide testimony at House hearings,  and mobilise community support for a Lobby Day at the State House in Salem.

Kavneet Singh of SALDEF

SALDEF managing director Kavneet Singh said: “We commend the Oregon Senate for this historic vote to finally bury from their state’s laws the unfortunate legacy of bigotry from the KKK in the 1920s.”

He said it was a huge step for the Sikh American community. “Sikh Americans partnered and mobilised with a truly interfaith coalition behind a bill that was supportive of and that protected people of all faiths.”

The bill will now head back to Oregon House for a vote on the minor changes and amendments added by the Senate Rules Commitee.  The final legislation will land on the Governor’s desk for his signature. The change of law will become effective in school year 2011-2012.

United Sikhs, the Sikh Coalition and Saldef, the Sikh American Legal and Defense Fund, issued a statement “unequivocally” condemning the attack, which left 13 dead and 31 wounded.

“We are united in concern and sympathy for the victims and their families, and for the community at Fort Hood,” they said.

But the organisations are also urging members of the Sikh Community to be alert to the possibility of “misguided retributive violence”.

They state: “As Sikhs, we are regrettably aware that, in the past, similar tragedies have led to the scapegoating of entire communities based on actual or perceived ethnicity, religion, and national origin. We call on political leaders, the media, and the public to set a tone of unity as the investigation unfolds and the healing process begins.”

They offer Sikhs advice on how to stay safe, recommending they read Los Angeles police department guidance on Being Street Smart, which can be found online at
http://www.lapdonline.org/prevent_crime/content_basic_view/1370

They call on local Sikh communities to develop proactive relationships with the law enforcement agencies  – including contacting the police, suggesting co-operative measures on hate crime prevention and asking for more frequent patrols around gurdwaras.

The organisations have drafted a message which could be sent out to appropriate bodies. It points out the possibility of a backlash against the Arab, Muslim, Sikh, and South Asian communities and asks that an emergency bulletin be issued to local law enforcement agencies and community members to ensure that police officers and the communities they serve take appropriate precautionary measures.

The organisations are in talks with federal government to implement a national rapid response system that will safeguard vulnerable communities from hate crimes.

A week before the election, the site posted a story entitled Hate Finds Another Victim in New Jersey.

It gave space for the Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund (SALDEF) to report a street assault on a 67-year-old Sikh American in Carteret, New Jersey.

It recounted how Mr Ajit Singh Chima, walking for exercise, was struck on the head by an Hispanic man who then punched and kicked him as he lay on the ground. His assailant, in his 20s, walked away without attempting to steal from his victim who suffered fractures around his jaw and eyes and was kept in hospital for further tests.

SALDEF has urged the authorities to treat the attack as a possible hate crime.

Rajdeep Singh Jolly, legal director of SALDEF, said that previous attacks against American Sikhs and the fact that the attacker was unknown to the victim left a presumption that bias was a motive.

Cartaret police are already investigating an incident on October 8 in which a 10-year-old boy had his turban ripped off and his hair cut as he walked home from school. His attacker wore a black mask.

There are around 1,000 Sikhs in Cartaret’s population of 22,000.

SALDEF and many other organisations have expressed concern about the use of ethnic and religious slurs in the context of the presidential campaign, says The American Muslim. They protest that there is a perception in both presidential campaigns that to be Muslim or Arab is negative.

SALDEF documented an increase in verbal assaults aimed at Sikhs during October and one example of a hateful, threatening incident is given in the TAM story.

SALDEF national director Rajbir Singh Datta said the bias-filled rhetoric had reached a high and warned the USK Sikh community there was a possibility of hate and bias crimes.

“Individuals who feel no shame about verbally assaulting members of the Sikh American community usually just need a spark to turn violent. We feel the spark may be the outcome of the presidential campaign, regardless of who wins,” he said.

But SALDEF says all Sikh Americans should cast their vote in the election. Just be aware of your surroundings and stay in contact with friends and family, it cautions.

It says any incidents of harassment or violence should be reported immediately to the police and to SALDEF at legal@saldef.org or by telephone at (202) 393-2700.

• The American Muslim organisation is dedicated to the promotion of “peace, justice, and reconciliation for all humanity”.

Its aims include providing an open forum for the discussion of ideas and issues of concern to Muslims in America (based on Qur’an and Sunnah) representing no one school of thought, ethnic group or organisation, but encouraging all to be represented in its website pages and to speak for themselves.

TAM has been active in print or online for nearly 20 years.