Rep. Bera Comments on the Anniversary of Oak Creek Shooting

Statement

Rep. Ami Bera, M.D. (CA-7) offered the following comment on the one year anniversary of the shooting at the Oak Creek, Wisconsin Gurdwara which killed six people:

"Since the September 11th attacks, too many Sikh Americans have been wrongfully subjected to hate crimes and discrimination. Our own community has not been immune from this violence - in 2011, two elderly Sikh Americans, Gurmej Atwal and Surinder Singh, were shot while out for a walk in Elk Grove. The Oak Creek shooting is another horrific example of violence and intolerance against Sikhs.

I have worked closely with the Sikh American community and I am committed to protecting domestic civil rights. I am pleased by the FBI's recent decision to track hate crimes against Sikh, Hindu, and Arab-Americans, among other categories. The Sikh faith promotes equality, religious tolerance and community service. Religious tolerance is a fundamental value of our nation and I hope we can come together to prevent tragedies like this from ever occurring again."

Source