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Sikh Temple Shooting Shocks Wisconsin Suburb

“We are experiencing it as a hate crime,” she said. “Every Sikh American today is hurting, grieving and afraid.”

Those are the words of Valerie Kaur, quoted by CBS. She is speaking of Sunday’s shooting at a Sikh temple in a suburb of Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

The shooter, who hasn’t been identified by name, was described as a “bald, white man, dressed in a white T-shirt and black pants and with a 9/11 tattoo on one arm” according to a report by CNN.

He shot six worshipers and wounded two others in addition to a police responder. The shooter himself was killed by another police officer at the scene.

No motive has been named.

Members of the Sikh community are often mistakenly associated with Islam due to the traditional turbans that they wear. Since 9/11 there have been multiple hate crimes against Sikh believers.

Photo Source:  Mike De Sisti, McClatchy-Tribune News Service / SF

 

Marissa is a senior at Bowdoin College, majoring in Government and minoring in English. She's interned with NPR, The Christian Science Monitor and ELLE.com. In her spare time she enjoys writing poetry, baking cupcakes, tweeting, and admiring the big dipper. She hopes to live in a lighthouse someday, with 27 cats and a good set of watercolors.