Hate Crime –Symptomatic of Fear Dr. Bikram Lamba

StarBuzz, Toronto-

Dr. Bikram Lamba

The people were shocked when the news broke out about the wanton, uncalled for, unwarranted killing in a Sikh temple in Wisconsin. Here a thirty year old person came to the temple and starting shooting killing 6, wounding over25 and in turn got shot by the police officer. Why the wanton loss of life? Why a sudden, unprovoked attack on the people who were essentially involved in prayer and had not performed any act that might call for retribution.  I remember the 2006 documentary “ Divided We Fall” that also chronicled  violence against American Sikhs.

There are two major aspects. The first evidently is that why Sikhs have been targeted? And second one is why should any community be targeted at all?  Mostly it is a latent fear- the fear of the unknown, the fear of being different, the fear of the danger of being smothered by the new. It is all the more potent fear when in a country made of immigrants, the new groups not only maintain their individual identity, but also prove to be more successful. They have to work hard since they are in a different environment and have to face difficult life. They have to justify their move to new pastures and this leads to fear of the old established groups of being over-whelmed.  But is it justified?

Sikhism is a monotheistic faith founded more than 500 years ago in South Asia. It has roughly 27 million followers worldwide. Observant Sikhs do not cut their hair; male followers often cover their heads with turbans — which are considered sacred — and refrain from shaving their beards. There are roughly 500,000 Sikhs in the U.S., according to estimates. The majority worldwide live in India.

Sikh rights groups have reported a rise in bias attacks since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. The Washington-based Sikh Coalition has reported more than 700 incidents in the U.S. since 9/11, which advocates blame on anti-Islamic sentiment. Sikhs don't practice the same religion as Muslims, but their long beards and turbans often cause them to be mistaken for Muslims, advocates say.

Police in New York and Chicago issued statements saying they were giving Sikh temples in those cities additional attention as a precaution after the shooting, which also came two weeks after a gunman killed 12 people at a movie theater in Colorado.

The Sikh faith is the fifth-largest religion in the world, and there are as many as half a million members in the United States. Following the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, Sikh Americans faced many of the same discriminatory conditions as Muslims and Arab Americans. Because of their distinct appearance, they were visible targets of violence and harassment. How come no Mosque ever had a massacre even though Muslims have way more Mosques then Sikhs have Temples! This proves the attacker attacked the Sikh because he thought Turban means Muslim! In fact CNN and Media hid the fact that Sikhs are not Muslims.

America needs a coordinated and multifaceted response to combat the continuing scourge of violent hate crime. A hate crime occurs when an individual intentionally targets a victim or their property because of his or her actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, disability or sexual orientation.

While some have argued that these kind of laws criminalize free speech, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled in the 1993 case, Wisconsin v. Mitchell, that well-drafted hate crime laws are constitutional and do not punish speech. Rather they enhance the penalties only for acts that are already considered crimes.

The act is named for Matthew Shepard, a 21-year-old gay college student who was kidnapped, robbed, tortured and left to die, tied to a fence in a remote area outside of Laramie, Wyoming in October 1998. His mother Judy has been a tireless advocate for hate crime laws and victims.

The Shepard Act remedies legal loopholes in federal and state criminal law that fail to protect against bias-motivated attacks based on such characteristics as sexual orientation, gender, gender identity and disability.

It also removes antiquated "Klan era" language that forces federal prosecutors to tie violent racial attacks to a small number of activities such as participating in a jury, voting or using hotels. As recent events have indicated, today's violent hate offenders, unlike their predecessors, will often swing into brutal action on their own initiative without waiting for a victim to exercise a specific activity covered by old 1960s laws.

However, much of the act's potency lies not in what it punishes, but rather in its recognition of the primary role local authorities now play in combating hate crime. Nearly all hate crime investigations and prosecutions in the United States are handled by state and local authorities, such as the Boston Police or Washington, D.C., Metropolitan Police.

Hate crimes often occur as a result of prejudice and ignorance. A lack of understanding about differences among people and their traditions contributes to fear and intolerance. Left unaddressed, these sentiments may often lead to acts of intimidation and ultimately hate-motivated violence.

FBI data for 1999 identifies hate crime offenders by race and by their association with the commission of other crimes. In 1999, nearly 70% of hate crime offenders were white, 16% were black, 4% were multiracial, and 2% were of Asian-Pacific Island origin. Another 1% was Native American and 9% of the offenders were unknown. In terms of other crimes committed, 80% of the reported hate crime offenders in 1999 had also committed other crimes against people; the most frequent of those crimes was intimidation. Another 19% of hate crime offenders were associated with crimes against property such as destruction, damage, or vandalism.
In general, most hate crimes are committed by previously law abiding young people harboring some form of disdain or hatred for a member of a particular group. (In 2007, law enforcement agencies in 49 states and the District of Columbia reported 7,624 bias- motivated incidents to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the federal government agency mandated by Congress to gather these statistics. However, the FBI points out that these data must be approached with caution. Victims do not always report hate crimes committed against them to law enforcement. In fact, a victim of a hate crime is far less likely than a victim of a similar (but not bias- motivated) crime to report the crime to the police, even when the individual knows the perpetrator (Dunbar, 2006; Herek, Cogan, & Gillis, 2002).
This reluctance often derives from trauma the victim experiences, a fear of retaliation, or belief that law enforcement is biased and will not support them. In addition to race, color, national origin, and religion, individuals are targeted because of other aspects of their identity as well; including, disability status, sexual orientation, gender, and gender identity.
Hate crime laws are designed to protect all individuals. While minority group members may be at greater risk for hate crimes, anyone can become a victim of a hate crime. For example, in 2007, the FBI reported that 18.4 percent of hate crimes based on race stemmed from anti-white bias.

Race/Ethnicity. Many reported hate crimes are motivated by racial bias. In 2007, more than half of the 7,621 single-bias crimes reported to the FBI (50.8 percent) were racially motivated. Of 1,256 hate crimes in 2007 motivated by bias based on ethnicity or national origin, the FBI found that 61.7 percent were anti-Hispanic.

Religion. Bias and violence against Arab and Muslim Americans reached its height after the tragic events of September 11, 2001. It is estimated that there were more than 700 violent incidents targeting Arab and/or Muslim Americans or those perceived to be Arab or Muslim Americans in the first nine weeks following September 11th. Due to a lack of understanding of religious differences, Sikhs have been mistakenly targeted as Muslims. Since hate crimes are defined as based on real or perceived group membership, these incidents are considered hate crimes. Most religiously motivated hate crimes are acts of vandalism, although personal attacks are also common. In 2007, the FBI reported that th great majority of these crimes were directed against Jews (68.4 percent), followed by anti-other religion (9.5 percent) and anti-Islamic (9.0 percent) hate crimes.

Disability: In 2007, 62 hate crimes against individuals with mental disabilities and 20 hate crimes that targeted those with physical disabilities were reported to the FBI. However, other research suggests that persons with disabilities are four to 10 times more likely to be a victim of a crime than persons without disabilities. There is also evidence that persons with disabilities are at risk of being abused by those whose job it is to serve or protect them. Studies have shown that in cases of sexual abuse of persons with disabilities, 48 percent of the perpetrators were employed in the disability services field and gained access to their victims through the work setting.

Sexual Orientation: In 2007, there were 1,460 hate crimes based upon sexual orientation reported to the FBI, of which 59.2 percent were classified as anti-male homosexual bias. In a study of lesbian, gay, and bisexual persons, researchers found that roughly one-fifth of the women and one-fourth of the men had been the victim of a hate crime since age 16 (Herek et al., 2007). One in eight women and one in six men had been victimized within the last five years.

Gender Identity: Currently, the FBI does not track statistics of hate crimes committed against individuals because of real or perceived gender identity and expression. However, research suggests that transgender and gender-nonconforming individuals (people who dress or look differently than the normative presentation of their biological sex) are at high risk of victimization (D’Augelli, Pilkington, & Hershberger, 2002). It has been suggested that if the FBI did track hate crimes based on gender identity, it would represent the second-largest category of all hate crimes (Gender Public Advocacy Coalition, 2006).

While hate groups can pose a serious threat to communities, research suggests that the vast majority of offenders are not members of organized hate groups. Additionally, recent data suggest that over 50 percent of perpetrators of hate crimes are under age 25. According to the U.S. Department of Justice (2001), 31 percent of hate-based violent offenders and 46 percent of hate-based property offenders from 1997-1999 were under age 18.

Law enforcement officials, community leaders, educators, researchers, clinicians, and policymakers must work together to stop hate crimes. The American Psychological Association strongly recommends the following:

·         Support federal anti-discrimination laws, statutes, and regulations that ensure full legal protection from discrimination and bias-motivated crimes, including:
1. The Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2009 (H.R. 1913, 111th Congress)
2. The Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act (S. 909, 111th Congress)

·         Support legislation on standardized procedures for identifying and collecting data related to hate crimes to ensure more accurate statistics, including:
1. The Hate Crime Statistics Improvement Act of 2009 (H.R. 823, 111th Congress)
2. The Hate Crimes Against the Homeless Statistics Act of 2007 (H.R. 2216, 110th Congress)

·         Support research assessing the prevalence, incidence, predictors, and outcomes of hate crimes, as well as the psychological impact of hate crimes on victims, their families, and the community.

·         Support interventions to address the mental health needs of survivors of hate crime.

·         Support educational efforts aimed at dispelling stereotypes, reducing intergroup conflict, and encouraging broader understanding and appreciation of intercultural issues.

·         Support development and dissemination of empirically based hate crime prevention and intervention programs.

·         Support training of law enforcement, health care providers, and victim-assistance professionals regarding how they can assist individuals and communities that have been victimized by hate crime. 

·         Encourage collaborations between community members, local advocacy organizations, and law enforcement agencies to promote healthy and safe environments.

Let us be clear that hate crime is essentially born out of fear. Fear is the black god-mother of all despicable things. When in the process of immigration, new groups come and people are uneducated about them, the differences- cultural, sartorial, language, behavior et al- makes them feel different and they standout like sore thumbs, especially if they look and dress differently. What is needed is proper adjustment. And this is required from both sides. While the original residents have to be educated and taught tolerance, the new groups have also to make visible efforts to become a part of the community. Fear of the unknown vanishes when the there is more understanding from both sides. Panic reaction is no solution. The only way out is accommodation. Let the process begin now.

Dr. Bikram Lamba, is a political and business strategist. He can be contacted at 905 848 4205. Email:torconsult@rogers.com