LOS ANGELES: In the wake of the California massacre by a radicalized Muslim couple, a Gurdwara in a suburb here has been vandalized with hateful anti-ISIS graffiti.
The Gurdwara Singh Sabha’s board members and community members said in the early hours of December 6, the Gurdwara in Buena Park, a suburb of Los Angeles, along with a community member’s truck in the parking lot were vandalized.
“We are concerned about the safety and security of our community members. We are of the opinion that this is a hate crime and that this is a direct result of a possible backlash from the San Bernardino killings,” said Inderjot Singh, president of Sikh Gurdwara in Buena Park.
The Gurdwara’s members reported the crime to the Buena Park Police Department and are actively cooperating with law enforcement officials probing the incident.
“The Gurdwara was vandalized during Sunday early hours and a hateful graffiti was seen on the walls of the Gurdwara and also a truck parked in the parking lot. The graffiti included the phrase, “F*** ISIS,” and the words “Islam” and other reference of gangs,” Washington-based Sikh Council on Religion and Education said in a statement.
The Gurdwara is attended by over 800 community members on a weekly basis. The White House, which was informed about the incident, has forwarded the incident to the Department of Homeland Security to investigate.
“The Sikh community across the nation is in a heightened state of alert and is deeply troubled by this latest incident. We are appealing to all Sikh place of congregation to be in touch with the local law enforcement agencies as well with the elected officials,” Dr Rajwant Singh of the Sikh Council on Religion and Education said.
Singh also expressed concern over the recent anti-Muslim rhetoric made by some of the contenders of American presidency.
“This will directly result in elevated level of violence against minority religions in America and particularly the Sikhs. We are fearful that this kind of hate speech against Muslims with engulf Sikhs and members of the Muslim community across the nation,” he said.
“We believe that the Gurdwara Singh Sabha was vandalized because it is a Sikh house of worship,” Rights group Sikh Coalition’s Senior Staff Attorney Gurjot Kaur said.
The incident is the latest in a number of hate crimes against Sikhs in America. In September, a Sikh-American father was viciously assaulted in a suburb outside of Chicago after being called “Bin Laden”.
In 2012, a gunman with Neo-Nazi ties walked into a Sikh Gurdwara and shot and killed six innocent Sikhs in Oak Creek, Wisconsin.–PTI
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