Law enforcement agents are treating Sunday's shooting deaths of six Sikhs at their temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, as an act of domestic terrorism, but they are not publicly speculating on the motive of the 40-year-old white gunman, who was shot dead by police. But many Sikhs, and many others, have a guess: Ever since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, Sikhs have been victim to — by one count — more than 700 incidents of violence and murder at the hands of people who wrongly assumed they are Muslims. Is it likely that the assailant, reportedly a "skinhead" with a "9/11" tattoo on his arm, was not only depraved enough to shoot six innocent men but also ignorant enough to target them based on a religion they don't practice?
Yes, this is a case of "misdirected hate": It sure looks like Sikhs "once again may have been targeted with a misdirected hate crime," says Patricia Anstett in the Detroit Free Press. For the ignorant among us, "observant Sikh men can be confused with Muslims because they wear full beards and turbans." Attacks like this are precisely why Sikhs have been working hard since 9/11 to educate their neighbors on how to differentiate their peace-loving, non-terrorist religion.
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