January 28, 2020 (Orangevale, CA) – On Saturday, January 25th, the Sikh Coalition assisted with an open house and interfaith solidarity event at Guru Maneyo Granth Gurdwara Sahib in Orangevale, CA. Hundreds of people joined the Orangevale sangat on the heels of the discovery of white nationalist graffiti on the gurdwara property earlier this month.
“Since the news first broke of this incident, there has been an outpouring of kindness for our sangat,” said Orangevale Sikh community member Dimple Bhullar. “Saturday’s open house was an opportunity to share the beauty and resilience of the Sikh faith with our neighbors, and we are grateful to the Sikh Coalition for supporting us every step of the way.”
The open house included a show of solidarity from elected officials, faith and community leaders, and partner organizations. Check out media coverage of the open house in the Sacramento Bee, and local television stations: KCRA, ABC10, FOX40, and CBS13.
In addition, Orangevale Sikh community leaders Dr. Jashan Singh and Dr. Sraon called for 100 percent of California’s law enforcement organizations to commit to reporting bias incidents to the FBI, as well as for California Governor Gavin Newsom to include a Sikh community member on the state’s Creating Safer Communities Task Force.
“The community response in Orangevale sends a strong message that hate has no place here, and we hope that state and federal law enforcement agencies, along with Governor Newsom, will echo this message by recognizing the need for further addressing anti-Sikh hate,” said Sikh Coalition Senior Manager of Policy and Advocacy Sim J. Singh. “The Sikh community is a vital and necessary part of the urgent policy solutions that are needed in response to hate in America.”
We will continue to provide more updates on this case as they become available. In the meantime, we encourage you to ask your gurdwara if they have proactively worked to make your gurdwara safer; if not, please share our Gurdwara Security Toolkit and email community@sikhcoalition.org for a free consultation in English or Punjabi. Finally, remember that you can report instances of bias, bigotry, and discrimination to the Sikh Coalition directly.
As always, the Sikh Coalition urges you to practice your faith fearlessly.