The assault of two Sikh men on a street in New York City has given rise to massive worldwide condemnation. A 20-year- old man has been arrested for the alleged assault amidst strong calls for action against increasing hate crimes in the city.
The deplorable incident took place less than a week after; an elderly Sikh man was attacked and left severely injured in the same neighborhood.
According to the reports of the local media, the two men were attacked while they were on an early morning walk in their otherwise peaceful neighborhood. The reports also state that the two men were ambushed with a pole and their turbans were forcefully removed.
Video footage of the incident showing the two individuals surrounded by a plethora of locals and police personnel is making rounds on social media. The footage shows one of the injured sitting on the side of the road while his companion is seen standing next to him, covering his injured eye with a cloth. In the video, the two Sikh gentlemen are seen without a turban on their heads.
Response by delegates
In the light of the incident, New York Attorney General Letitia James expressed her displeasure, “Another hateful attack against the Sikh community in Richmond Hill, both the victims should be brought to justice. Anyone with the smallest bit of information about the alleged assaulters should immediately contact the NYPD”, she tweeted.
The Consulate General of India in New York rebuked the entire incident by calling it deplorable. “We have approached the local authorities as well as the New York City Police Department in the matter”, they stated.
They also added that they are in touch with the members of the community and are ready to offer all the required assistance to the victims.
The Sikh Coalition
The Sikh Coalition, an organization that works to combat and prevent hate against Sikhs asserted that they continue to stand with the Sikh community against such hate crimes. “The people of our community have repeatedly experienced such incidents of unprovoked violence, now multiple times within a month”.
The coalition also mentioned that they were not revealing the names of the victims in the public domain out of sheer respect for the privacy of the two individuals. “The targeted hate is not only deeply traumatizing to the individuals who are involved in it but also to the entire community”, commented Nikki Singh; the senior policy and advocacy manager of the coalition.
The Sikh Coalition also stated that they are in direct contact with the NYPD Hate Crimes Task Force, who have already arrested one of the alleged suspects and are on the lookout for the other one.
NY State Assemblywoman, Jenifer Rajkumar; the first Punjabi American to be elected to the New York State Office took to Twitter to criticize the occurrence and questioned the alarming rise in hate crimes against the Sikh community in the recent years.
“We will educate everyone about the Sikh culture so that everybody knows about the generosity and the kindness that is embedded in the Sikh American community” she tweeted.
Improper attention by authorities
Hate crimes have severely affected people of different races over the years. Various efforts are being made by Sikh American Leaders and hundreds of civil organizations to draw attention to the unprovoked hate received by the Sikh community.
Many such happenings were trivially dismissed by the authorities, who didn’t consider them to be hate crimes. According to FBI data, there has been an unprecedented increase in anti-Sikh hate crimes of over 68 percent from 2019-to 2021, with most of them being conducted by white people.
Edited By: Vanshika Sahu
Published By: Akshaj Joshi
