America
Sikh community of Chicago holds candlelight vigil for the victims of Charleston church shooting
By
Rajinder Singh Mago
Palatine, IL: Sikh
Religious Society Palatine, Illinois organized a prayer service and candle
light vigil in remembrance of the nine victims of the shooting by a white
supremacist at the historical Emanuel Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, SC., on
June 17.
Sikhs encountered a similar incident of a shooting at the Oak Creek, Wisconsin Sikh
Temple nearly 3
years ago. The Charleston
shooting opened up a wound yet to heal for the Sikh community.
More than 200 Sikhs, neighbors and guests attended this
vigil at Palatine, Illinois Gurdwara.
The event started with Ardaas (Sikh Prayers) by
Manpriya Kaur and singing of a Sikh hymn by Sahibnoor Kaur.
Nine candles were lit for the nine victims who
lost their lives during this shooting in Charleston,
while their names were read by Jaspreet Singh and Amrit Kaur Thind.
Natasha Kaur explained the importance of this event to show
solidarity against hate. "We know, deeply and
profoundly, what the pain of hate violence means. We want to show that, love, prayer and unity far outweigh
hate. We invite communities to unite and heal with prayer for the nine
victims and all of humanity," said Natasha Kaur.
"We are all connected in sorrow and determination to
end racial and hate violence in our communities," said Satnaam Singh Mago
emphasizing, through his poem, why we all need to be activists
against hate crimes so that tragedies like this are not repeated. "The
origins of Sikhism were based on activism against tyranny and standing up
for truth and justice, not only for themselves, but also
for others," he added.
The society president, Dr. Jasbir Kaur Saluja, thanked all the guests, participants and the organizers.
"We, the Sikh American Community, are shaken to the
core seeing hate crime raising its ugly head again. It will be three years in
August, when we saw the same fire of racial hatred in the eyes of another white
supremacist. We want to convey to the worshippers at the Emanuel African
Methodist Episcopal Church that we, with the Nation behind us, are more than
ever determined to preserve the delicate fabric of American Togetherness that
has been built by the sacrifices of pilgrims of past and present. Any such acts
of hate will double our determination to bring unity and peace for one and all."
All the participants of the event were invited to share
langar, the community kitchen vegetarian meal. The attendees mourned the loss
by sharing stories during the fellowship hour.
The event was coordinated by Jasvir Kaur Singh, Satnaam
Singh Mago, Natasha Kaur Sandhu, Manpriya Kaur, Jaspreet Singh, Simaren Kaur Sandhu,
and Davinder Singh.
Photos Credit: Indermohan Singh