In a crime that could only make Michelle Malkin happy, a Sikh in Northern California was stabbed in the neck with a steak knife because his attacker wanted to kill a member of the Taliban.
Never mind the fact that just because the victim, Iqbal Singh is a Sikh, not a Muslim, and had nothing to do with 9/11, he was obviously wearing a turban and had brown skin, so he must have been involved. So goes the logic.
Having worked with so many Indians now, I know the trouble they go through, especially the Sikhs, who do traditionally wear turbans. In Philadelphia, one guy that I worked with was routinely addressed as a Muslim, especially by members of the Nation of Islam (the radical religion purporting to be Islam but something totally FUBAR). Eventually he worked to educate people, and especially the police in Philadelphia so there wouldn't be as many mixups.
I keep thinking I should do the same thing here in Harrisburg.
Sepia Mutiny has a great writeup about the whole affair here.
Sikhs have a pretty bad rap in the United States. After september 11th there were a whole bunch of assaults, including an incident Providence, RI where they arrested a man on a train from Boston to NYC because he was carrying a two inch kripan.
Yeah, it's pretty terrible how often they get targeted for something they have absolutely no connection to. I guess the only thing to do is try to educate people in the US about the differences, but I feel like the people I deal with on a regular basis already know the difference.
Now, maybe if they made a TV show or movie with a Sikh hero...hmmm
"By day he was a mild-mannered Sikh business man, but at night, he became Super Singh, Crime Fighting Guru!"
Problem is, Hollywood would try to cast Nicholas Cage or Colin Farrell in the role.