On August 5, 2012, a white supremacist opened fire inside the Oak Creek gurdwara in Winconsin, killing six people
Washington: A top US government official participated in the candlelight remembrance vigil last week to mark the 10th anniversary of the attack on a gurdwara in Wisconsin, the US State Department said on Monday.
On August 5, 2012, a white supremacist opened fire inside the Oak Creek gurdwara in Winconsin, killing six people.
A seventh person severely paralysed, died from his injuries in 2020.
US Ambassador at Large for International Religious Freedom Rashad Hussain travelled to Oak Creek, Wisconsin, to participate in the 10th anniversary of the incident, the US State Department said.
“The event convened federal and state government representatives, civil society, and religious leaders to honour the victims of the 2012 attack and to stand in solidarity with the Sikh community,” it said.
During his visit to Wisconsin on August 5 and 6, Hussain met with community leaders and local government officials to discuss our continuing efforts to work together to combat hate and protect religious freedom and places of worship everywhere, the State Department added.
US Ambassador at Large for International Religious Freedom Rashad Hussain travelled to Oak Creek, Wisconsin, to participate in the 10th anniversary of the incident, the US State Department said.
US President Joe Biden called for reducing gun violence and banning assault weapons in the US to defeat “domestic terrorism” and hate in all its forms, including the “poison of white supremacy”, as he condemned the attack on the Sikh gurdwara in Wisconsin on its 10th anniversary.
The incident in brief
On August 5, 2012, a mass shooting took place at the gurdwara (Sikh temple) in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, United States where 40-year-old Wade Michael Page fatally shot six people and wounded four others. A seventh victim died of his wounds in 2020.
Page committed suicide by shooting himself in the head after he was shot in the hip by a responding police officer.
The six victims killed included one woman: Paramjit Kaur, 41; and five men: Satwant Singh Kaleka, 65, the founder of the gurdwara; Prakash Singh, 39, a Granthi; Sita Singh, 41; Ranjit Singh, 49; and Suveg Singh, 84.]All of the male victims wore turbans as part of their Sikh faith.[34][35] Four of the victims were Indian nationals, while the rest were Americans.
Among the injured was Baba Punjab Singh, a Sikh priest who was shot in the head. He was left partially paralysed from the wound for more than seven years and died on March 2, 2020.
Responding officer, Lt. Brian Murphy,[ who was shot fifteen times at close range, including once in the face and once in the back of the head. He was discharged from the hospital on August 22, 2012.
Sikhs for Justice, a New York-based group, pledged a $10,000 award to Murphy. Two Sikh residents of Yuba City, California donated another $100,000 to Lieutenant Murphy and praised his bravery
Page was an American white supremacist and Army veteran from Cudahy, Wisconsin. Wade Michael Page was armed with a 9mm Springfield XD(M) semi-automatic pistol.[12][9] Page had legally purchased the gun in Wisconsin
Apart from the shooter, all of the dead were members of the Sikh faith.
At the time, the incident drew responses from President Barack Obama and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Dignitaries attended candlelight vigils in countries such as the U.S., Canada, and India. First Lady Michelle Obama visited the temple on August 23, 2012.
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