This time it was in Oak Creek Wisconsin where an, armed to the teeth gunman, walked into a Sikh temple and opened fire – killing six people. We may never know the shooter’s motivation since he was killed as well, but authorities are piecing together what looks to be a hate crime against Sikh worshippers – who’ve routinely been mistaken for Muslims and targeted for hate crimes since 9/11.
According to early reports – the shooter was an Army veteran who may have been a white supremacist. Eyewitnesses report the shooter had a 9/11 tattoo on his arm. The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence released a statement reminding Americans just how common mass shootings now are in America, saying: “There have now been 61 mass shootings since the tragedy last year in Tucson and 100 school shootings since the one at Columbine High School. Tomorrow, another 32 Americans will be murdered by guns.” But beyond gun violence, this latest mass shooting may also be a result of growing Islamophobia in America.
The shooting occurs just weeks after Congressional Republicans led by Michele Bachmann warned of an infiltration of the U.S. government by the Muslim Brotherhood. And while Sikhs are not Muslims – that distinction is often lost on the frightened and the naïve who are whipped into action by Islamophobes and encouraged to “take their country back.” Keep an eye on this developing story.
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