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Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez visited the Sikh Religious Society (SRS) here March 22 to showcase her “Hate Crimes Advisory and Prosecutions Council” (HCAPC) initiative. Her aim is to build relationships and develop partnerships with the especially vulnerable Sikh community that is to have a voice in the council to recommend preventive measures. She has named Amrith Kaur Aakre HCAPC and Rajinder Singh Mago, a Sikh American community outreach and public relations activist, to her Asian-American Advisory Council.
Alvarez was greeted by the SRS president Jasbir Kaur Saluja, community leaders and more than 500 congregation members. In a news conference while meeting with the gurdwara board, Alvaro and her associates were given an educational presentation “Who Are the Sikhs?” by Aakre highlighting the salient features of Sikhism, with emphasis on equality of mankind. Crucial information was shared such as the fact that post 9/11, Sikhs bore the brunt of bullying and hate crimes. Efforts to stop them were discussed.
Alvarez was visibly moved after watching the video of a 12-year-old Sikh boy in Georgia being taunted and bullied in a school bus by his peers for wearing his turban, a Sikh article of faith:
http://www.11alive.com/story/news/local/duluth/2015/03/05/gwinnett-sikh-boy-school-bus-video-terrorist/24418273/
Kuldip Singh Makker said, “This boy is actually my grandnephew. He came home crying many times saying that his classmates mocked him daily.” Adding that “all this is due to intolerance and misinformation,” Makker suggested educating youth at an early age about diversity and other cultures around us including Sikhs as part of the curriculum.
Satnaam Singh Mago responded, “It’s the Judeo-Christian mindset that is hesitant of teaching other cultures.” He addressed this as the reason why misinformed people react in ways we see today. He brought up the Boston Bomber story and how the media hastened to broadcast a picture of a Sikh man labeled onscreen as terrorist, who had been mistakenly arrested in connection to the crime at first, prior to nabbing the actual perpetrators.
Alvarez told the congregation that her office is working to educate the public and local law enforcement about the Sikh community, who “suffered with the shooting in Wisconsin in 2012, so we’re always worried that something like that may happen here, so we want to be ready…it is my job to reinvigorate efforts to raise awareness. Hate crimes go unreported and have a ripple effect on the entire community.”
Aakre, an Assistant State’s Attorney, handles diversity programs, trains law enforcement about the Sikh community and attended the gurdwara while growing up. HCAPC will create and maintain proactive partnerships with communities typically targeted in hate crimes. Despite FBI tracking, the rate of reporting has lessened perhaps due to embarrassment, Alvarez said.
With 25 million followers, Sikhism is the world’s fifth largest religion. Aakre said Sikhs promote equality and, at its founding, was committed to abolishing the Indian caste system. One of the marks of the faith is the wearing of the turban, which has become a target for religious intolerance.
“There has been a significant amount of negative media post 9/11, and there is still that perception that many turban wearing individuals in the U.S. are Muslims, Middle Easterners somehow connected to terrorism,” Aakre said.
“We do not mean to say that since we are not Muslims so leave us alone and go after them. Our stand rather is that no innocent person, no matter what faith they belong to, should be the target of hatred or violence,” said Mago.
Statistics from the Sikh Coalition show that more than two-thirds of Sikh students are victims of bullying, Aakre said.
Photo caption: Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez, who visited the Sikh Religious Society, Palatine, Illinois, March 22, to showcase her “Hate Crimes Advisory and Prosecutions Council” initiative, is seen here (blue jacket), with Amrith Kaur Aakre to her right, visiting the Sikh Sunday School. Rajinder Singh Mago stands second from left, SRS President Jasbir Kaur Saluja is third from left. The pictures at the back were drawn by the school children to commemorate EcoSikh Day during the week of March 14
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