On Sunday, August 12, prominent leaders from West Windsor and Plainsboro attended a memorial service to remember of the victims of the August 5 shooting at the Sikh Temple in Wisconsin. Among those who attended were West Windsor Mayor Shing-Fu Hsueh and Council President Kamal Khanna as well as Plainsboro Deputy Mayor Neil Lewis and Plainsboro Township Committee member Narun Nabi.
As elected officials and others reflected on the tragedy, their message to a crowd of close to 300 Sikh worshipers was peace, solidarity, and faith in America.
Lewis called the Wisconsin shooting “an affront to American principles and an affront to the community in which we all hope to live in peace and security.”
“The people of Plainsboro and its government have committed to ensure that all of our residents and all people who share time and space together with an interest in peace and helping others will be able to sustain one another in this time of loss and tragedy. You should know that the government stands with you, and we feel your loss,” Lewis said.
His fellow Plainsboro Committeeman, Narun Nabi, said the way to combat hate is to recognize and promote diversity in the U.S. “We must unite because this kind of hate crime is un-American. American people are peace-loving people and this nation has begun to diversify, so we need to make more awareness of diversity,” he said.
As an example Nabi pointed out the diversity of the four government representatives from West Windsor and Plainsboro (himself, Lewis, Khanna, and Hsueh).
“You see in the representation of our community that we are very diversified, so we have to spread the word that all communities — Sikh, Muslim, Hindu, Christian, Jewish — are all peace-loving people,” Nabi told the crowd.
State Senator Linda Greenstein, a resident of Plainsboro, also attended the memorial and spoke about the need for better gun control. Two officers from the Robbinsville Police Department attended the service in patrol uniforms but followed Sikh customs by covering their heads, walking the gurdwara’s center aisle, and bowing in front of elevated platform holding the Guru Granth Sahib — the religious text of Sikhism. One of the officers was Scott Kivet, a Plainsboro fire commissioner and resident of Grover’s Mill Road (WW-P News, February 17).
In his speech Kivet urged the Sikh community to always feel compelled to call the police whenever they observe something suspicious. He explained the routine “business checks” that police in the area make, but he said the best surveillance comes from individuals in the community.
After expressing his condolences and letting the crowd know that Robbinsville Police were continuously briefed on details of the Wisconsin shooting, Kivet ended with a simple message: “help us help you.”
Mayor Hsueh said the Wisconsin shooting led him to look back on his 20 years in West Windsor government and some racial tension that he has felt.
“When I first heard about the incident, even though the news media did not really talk about the reason for the shootings, what came to my mind was that it must be a hate crime. It’s really sad, but a lot of people really need to understand how we define American culture,” the mayor said.
“In my 20 years involved in local politics, I have heard racial remarks myself, direct towards me, both openly and behind closed doors. I always keep that in mind — this is something that we all have to overcome together,” Hsueh said.
Hsueh told worshipers to never think that Sikhism is a religion only belonging to India — their faith is embraced all over the world.
“In this country we need to respect one another in terms of our differences. Don’t let this incident discourage you,” he said.
The mayor referenced the influx of immigration from Asia. “Before the 1960’s you and I would have probably had difficulty coming to this country. The Asian Exclusion Act started in 1882 and was reinforced in 1924. Finally, after the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960’s President Lyndon Johnson signed the civil rights acts, and that changed the whole landscape of this country,” he said.
“In West Windsor and Plainsboro the communities really reflect all of the changes in this country, and we are very proud of our community,” he said.
Khanna began his comments by saying “Sat Sri Akaal” — part of the Sikh refrain “Jo Bole So Nihal, Sat Sri Akal” which translates to “Blessed are thee who say, The Immortal God is truth from before time till after.”
Khanna spoke about his strong bond with people from Punjab. He was born, raised, and educated in Punjab, graduating from the first engineering class of Punjabi University-Patiala. Khanna said his heart goes out to the innocent victims of the Wisconsin tragedy, who shared his Indian heritage.
“I migrated to the U.S. 47 years ago, and at that time there were only 25,000 immigrants from India in this country, and now we are 4 to 5 million. Why did it grow so fast? Not because the U.S. is the number one economic power in the world, and not because we wanted a better economic future for us and our children. It was because we were welcomed to America by the immigrants that came before us. Remember, America is a land of immigrants — some came before us and some come after us,” Khanna said.
Khanna added that the Wisconsin shooting was an isolated case that should not change any person’s views of America. “Our adopted country is the best in the world: no where else is there freedom of worship, freedom of speech, and freedom of participating in the government as there is in the United States,” he said.
Prakash Sachdev, a member of the Plainsboro Planning Board, delivered a strong message to his fellow worshipers. He said when he heard the news about the shootings in Wisconsin, “I felt as if somebody attacked our family, our values, and our culture. But the reality is that was not the case. What it was was a man blind in his views, full of hatred for which we are not to be blamed,” Sachdev said.
“We have spread all over the United States. We have integrated in the communities, we have built up the societies, we have built up the economic structure of this country, and there is nothing which we will not do to make sure that along with the progress of America, we also progress,” Sachdev said.
He reminded Sikhs that the U.S. is not a place with many people who hate them. “As a matter of fact, most people love us,” he said.
“A few incidents like this will happen, but we should not take this as a common routine which we have to deal with,” Sachdev said.
Khanna and Sachdev both offered advice for the future by integrating teachings of the ten Sikh Gurus. “Once in a while some crazy person will come along and do things like this. But we should follow the teachings of our Gurus — they showed love to everybody,” Sachdev said.
Khanna told the crowd that the Gurus’ messages of love, tolerance, and forgiveness are also the biggest weapons that can be used to combat hatred.
“This is what our brothers and sisters in Wisconsin showed in dealing with this tragedy. We should be proud of that,” he said.
