Dr. Tarunjit Singh Butalia, Religions for Peace USA Special Advisor, responds to hate crime against Inderjit Singh Mukker in Chicago this past Tuesday evening.
“What happened to Inderjit Singh Mukker is deeply troubling. Over the course of my 20 plus years of working in and outside of faith communities, stories like Mukker’s are all too common.
This is the unsettling fact: that our national community is not yet what we ought to be in regards to respecting people of all religions and races. To be violently attacked and have hateful words such as ’terrorist’ hurtled at Inderjit reveals the reality that some in our country chose to focus on hate rather than respect.
My work through Religions for Peace USA has again and again revealed the importance of getting to know our religious neighbor. All religions deeply share the value of respect and dignity for all.
My thoughts and prayers go out to the family of Inderjit Singh Mukker, and I am thankful to those who are standing in solidarity, decrying such violence, and working to create a stronger national community in all of it’s diverse beauty.
Siri Guru Granth Sahib, the Sikh scripture, says: “No one is an enemy, none a stranger. I get along with all.” (Translation from original in Gurmukhi)”