We Are All Sikhs: A Statement on Oak Creek Tragedy and Its Impact

If your organization would like to join this statement of solidarity, please email info@saalt.org with the name of your organization and the subject line “Oak Creek Solidarity Statement.”

View a PDF of this statement here.

WE ARE ALL SIKHS: A STATEMENT ON OAK CREEK TRAGEDY AND ITS IMPACT
August 9, 2012

This Friday, August 10th, a memorial service will be held for the six individuals who lost their lives in the tragic shooting at the Gurdwara in Oak Creek, Wisconsin.  The 186 undersigned community of civic, faith-based, immigrant rights, and civil rights organizations expresses our deepest condolences to the victims and their families affected by the mass shooting which left six individuals dead, at least three others critically injured, and many others wounded.  We are grateful for the efforts by many Gurdwara congregants, first responders, and the local community in Wisconsin who helped to save lives and prevented an even greater loss of life from occurring.

We call upon Americans to respond to this tragedy by supporting the families of the victims and Sikh community members. Over the course of this week, vigils are being planned around the country with the message of “We are all Sikhs.” We urge you to stand in support of the Sikh community and the values that bind us as Americans by attending a vigil in your area (a map of vigils can be found here).

While facts are still emerging regarding the motivation of the perpetrator, the massacre at the Gurdwara in Oak Creek is part of a history of bias and violence that members of Sikh, Muslim, Arab, and South Asian communities have endured in the decade following September 11, 2001. Sadly, community members continue to report discrimination, and places of worship are routinely targeted.  Within 24 hours of the Wisconsin shooting, a suspicious fire, now being investigated as a possible arson, destroyed a mosque in Joplin, Missouri.  The level of hate and
violence inflicted on innocent Americans because of their appearance or religious faith is now at a crisis point.

While our organizations represent a wide swath of individuals from different nationalities, backgrounds, faith traditions, and belief systems, we are bound together by a common purpose: we believe in the core American values of religious pluralism, equality, and inclusion. Our collective voices send out the message that as a nation, we must denounce the hate-fueled sentiment and bigoted rhetoric that has become much too frequent in our public and political discourse.  The essence of our country after all is E pluribus unum: out of many comes a strong, unified one.

We call upon our elected leaders, and civic, faith-based, and educational institutions to take steps to address xenophobia, racism, and anti-religious hate in our country today. We ask President Obama to host a summit that brings stakeholders together to identify concrete solutions.  And we urge all individuals, regardless of faith or background, to speak out against bigotry at workplaces, schools, and family kitchen tables.  As Americans, we must stand together to protect our nation’s values of equality and freedom for all.

Endorsing Organizations (As of August 9, 2012)
If your organization would like to join the statement of solidarity, please email
info@saalt.org with the name of your organization and the subject line
“Oak Creek Solidarity Statement.”

ACCESS
Adhikaar
AJC
Alliance San Diego (aka Equality Alliance)
American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee
American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, Florida Chapter (ADC-FL)
American Association of University Women (AAUW)
American Civil Liberties Union
American Muslim Association of North America (AMANA)
American Muslims for Emergency and Relief (AMER)
Anti-Defamation League (ADL)
API Chaya
Apna Ghar, Inc.
The Applied Research Center
Arab American Action Network (AAAN)
Arab American Association of New York
Arab American Family Services
Arab American Family Support Center
Arab American Institute
Arab Muslim American Federation
Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum (APIAHF)
Asian & Pacific Islander American Scholarship Fund (APIASF)
Asian American Bar Association of Greater Chicago
Asian American Federation
Asian American Institute, member of Asian American Center for Advancing Justice
Asian American Justice Center, member of Asian American Center for Advancing
Justice
Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF)
Asian American Recovery Services, Inc.
Asian Americans for Community Involvement
Asian Americans for Equality (AAAFE)
Asian Health Coalition
Asian Law Alliance
Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, AFL-CIO
Asian Pacific American Legal Resource Center
Asian Pacific American Network (APAN) of the American College Personnel
Association (ACPA)
Asian Pacific Community in Action
Asian Services in Action, Inc. (ASIA)
Asians Against Domestic Abuse
Auburn Seminary
Bay Area Asian Pacific American Legislative Staffers (BAAPALS)
Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI)
Breakthrough
Capital Area Immigrants’ Rights Coalition
Causa Justa: Just Cause
Center for American Progress
Center for Social Inclusion
Chhaya CDC
Chicago Area Ethnic Resources
Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles (CHIRLA)
Coalition for a Better Chinese American Community
Community to Community Development
Coney Island Avenue Project
Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago
Council of Peoples Organization (COPO)
Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR)
Council on American-Islamic Relations – Arizona Chapter
Council on American-Islamic Relations – Cincinnati Chapter
Council on American-Islamic Relations – Greater Los Angeles Area
Council on American-Islamic Relations – Iowa Chapter (CAIR-Iowa)
Council on American-Islamic Relations – Minnesota (CAIR-MN)
Council on American-Islamic Relations – New York
Council on American-Islamic Relations – Oklahoma Chapter
Council on American-Islamic Relations – Sacramento Valley Office (CAIR-
Sacramento Valley)
Council on American-Islamic Relations – San Antonio Chapter (CAIR-SA)
Council on American-Islamic Relations – San Diego Chapter
Council on American-Islamic Relations – San Francisco Bay Area (CAIR-SFBA) Office
Council on American-Islamic Relations – Texas, DFW Chapter
Council on American-Islamic Relations – Washington (CAIR-WA)
Counselors Helping (South) Asians/Indians, Inc.
Daya
DRUM – Desis Rising Up & Moving
Elemental Partners
Faith in Public Life
Families for Freedom
Farmworker Association of Florida, Inc.
FICA (Federation of India Community Associations of NE Ohio)
Four Freedoms Forum
Franciscan Action Network
Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network
GlobeMed at Indiana University
Groundswell
Health Through Action Arizona Coalition
Hmong Wisconsin Chamber of Commerce, Inc.
Human Rights First
Illinois Caucus for Adolescent Health (ICAH)
Indian-American Bar Association of Chicago
Indo-American Center
Indo-American Heritage Museum
Interfaith Alliance
International Organization for Adolescents
Iota Nu Delta Fraternity, Inc.
Islamic Society of Milwaukee
Islamic Society of North America
Islamic Society of Tulsa
Japanese American Citizens League
Japanese American Citizens League – Chicago Chapter
Japanese American Citizens League – Midwest District Council
Japanese American Citizens League – Wisconsin Chapter
Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies
Laotian American National Alliance (LANA)
The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights
Leadership Education for Asian Pacifics, Inc. (LEAP)
Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service
Mai Family Services
Maitri
Manavi
Mt. Zion Church of God (7th Day)
Mujeres Unidas y Activas
Muslim Advocates
Muslim Bar Association of New York (MuBANY)
Muslim Legal Fund of America (MLFA)
Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC)
NAACP
National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA)
National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum
National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum – Greater Phoenix Chapter
National Asian Pacific Center on Aging (NAPCA)
National Association of Social Workers (NASW)
National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development (National
CAPACD)
National Council of Jewish Women
National Council of La Raza (NCLR)
National Disability Rights Network
National Fair Housing Alliance
National Gay and Lesbian Task Force
National Korean American Service and Education Consortium (NAKASEC)
National Network for Arab American Communities (NNAAC)
National Network for Immigrant and Refugee Rights
National Tongan American Society
National Urban League
Natya Dance Theatre
Network of Indian Professionals (NetIP) North America
Network of Arab American Professionals (NAAP)
North American South Asian Bar Association (NASABA)
North Carolina Justice Center
OCA
OCA – Greater Phoenix Chapter
Ohio Asian American Health Coalition
Oklahoma Conference of Churches
OneAmerica
Open Society Foundations
The Opportunity Agenda
Organization of Chinese Americans – Silicon Valley Chapter
PAKPAC
Poverty & Race Research Action Council
Punjabi Cultural Society of Chicago
Raksha
Rights Working Group
Saathi of Rochester
Sadhana: Coalition of Progressive Hindus
Sakhi for South Asian Women
San Jose State University Asian Pacific Islander Faculty Staff Association
Satrang
Seattle Chinatown International District Preservation and Development Authority
Seminary Consortium for Urban Pastoral Education (SCUPE)
Shama Inc.
Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund (SALDEF)
The Sikh Coalition
Sisters of Mercy Institute Justice Team
South Asia Society of the University of Wisconsin, Stevens Point
South Asian American Policy & Research Institute (SAAPRI)
South Asian Americans Leading Together (SAALT)
South Asian Bar Association of Arizona
South Asian Bar Association of British Columbia
South Asian Bar Association of Delaware (SABA-DE)
South Asian Bar Association of New York (SABANY)
South Asian Bar Association of Northern California
South Asian Bar Association of Ohio (SABA Ohio)
South Asian Bar Association of Philadelphia (SABA Philadelphia)
South Asian Bar Association of San Diego
South Asian Bar Association of Southern California
South Asian Bar Association of Washington
South Asian Bar Association of Washington, DC
South Asian Council for Social Services (SACSS)
South Asian Network
South Asian Progressive Action Collective (SAPAC)
South Asian Youth Action (SAYA!)
Southeast Asia Resource Action Center (SEARAC)
Southern Coalition for Social Justice (SCSJ)
The Standing Committee for Multicultural Affairs of ACPA – College Student
Educators International
Turning Point for Women and Families
United Methodist Women
UNITED SIKHS
United We Dream Network
USPAK Foundation
VAMOS Unidos
We Are All Brooklyn (WAAB)