Stop Hate

For those of you who do not know, I’m a Sikh. Sikhism is a religion. What does that mean? Oh it means so many things, I suggest you Google it to find out more information if you are not familiar with this faith.I’m proud to be a Sikh. I may not be a traditional Sikh but generally have faith in my religion. Alongside the rise of Donald Trump some scary stuff is happening in this country regarding religious freedom to Sikhs in particular. Some people are confusing Sikhs as Muslims because Sikh men wear turbans. Some people are spreading hate:

Spokane’s Sikh Temple vandalized, holy book desecrated

THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2016, 1:27 P.M.A naked man who was arrested early Thursday inside the Sikh Temple of Spokane is facing a possible hate crime charge after he allegedly desecrated sacred items there. About $30,000 in damage was done to the interior of the temple...“actions like this are indicative of growing Islamophobic sentiment across our nation, where there has been a steady increase in backlash and hate crimes targeting Muslim, Sikh, South Asian and Arab communities.” ---The Spokesman Review

LA Sikh Bus Driver Assaulted and Called “Terrorist”

On November 6, 2015, a turbaned Sikh bus operator for the Los Angeles County MTA was brutally attacked by a bus passenger who called him a “terrorist“ and “suicide bomber,” and accused him of hijacking the bus.December 8, 2015 (Buena Park, CA) –  A Sikh gurdwara (house of worship) in Orange County, CA, along with a community member’s truck in the parking lot, were vandalized with hateful graffiti. The graffiti included the phrase, "Fuck ISIS," along with gang references.----Sikh Coalition.Another NYC Sikh Injured in Hate Attack 2nd Attack in 2 Weeks

Shocking Hate Crime in Queens, NY: Sikh Man Struck, Dragged 30 Feet By Pickup Truck

August 8, 2014 (New York, NY) – A Sikh resident of New York City was attacked and injured on Roosevelt Island last night in an apparent hate crime. The attack occurred just days after another suspected hate crime, in which Sandeep Singh—a Sikh American—was run over and dragged on a public street in Queens by a driver in a pick-up truck.---Sikh Coalition.

Gunman Kills 6 at a Sikh Temple Near Milwaukee

OAK CREEK, Wis. —In an attack that the police said they were treating as “a domestic terrorist-type incident,” the gunman stalked through the temple around 10:30 a.m. Congregants ran for shelter and barricaded themselves in bathrooms and prayer halls, where they made desperate phone calls and sent anguished texts pleading for help as confusion and fear took hold. Witnesses described a scene of chaos and carnage.---New York TimesHonestly, did you know about any of this? All of this? You should know.Sikhs and Muslims are not the only ones being targeted… Some people are so ignorant that they are confusing Sikhs as Muslims. They don’t care who they are discriminating against or being violent towards. They see us as all the same: we are the enemy. It makes you think, who is the real enemy?If you ask me I’m more afraid of a white man with a gun shooting up a school than I am of a Muslim terrorist bombing an airplane. Forgive me but I work in schools, I barely fly. I am more afraid that I will be a target of some racial hate crime because I too look Muslim, than I am of being the target of an actual ISIS attack. I’m more afraid of police officers beating up my brothers for being brown or black than I am of Middle Eastern men populating the streets of Dearborn, Michigan, a city nearby me that has the largest Middle Eastern population outside of the Middle East.

Actually let’s be realistic: I’m more afraid of Donald Trump than I am of ISIS.

Let me explain this: Donald Trump is a bully and bigot. The government of the United States is at least trying to protect me from terrorists and they have protected me thus far, even living in New York City during 911. If the government itself starts hating minorities, where does that leave me? Yeah, this is personal.The idea that we should sit around fearing terrorists is an easy escape from our real local problems. People in the inner city do not have jobs, poor kids are dropping out of school and we have more people in jail than any other country. Let the government worry about ISIS, while Americans try to get decent jobs. People have more immediate concerns.  There is more of a chance that I will die in a car accident because some idiot is texting and driving than some random terrorist incident.After all is said and done I am the most afraid of having a dictator like Donald Trump in office. He doesn’t know I’m not Muslim; he doesn’t care. He would throw me under the same bus that he would throw all minorities. For god’s sake he is not really that upset that the KKK is following and voting for him. He basically hates Mexicans. Now the leader of the Nation of Islam is praising Trump because he hates Jews. This is getting complicated.If a large enough percentage of people are for Trump, what does that say about the people in this country? Although actually it is much less than half the population, but it is still a huge number. I’m not going to lie I’m deeply disturbed and a little scared. I lived in New York during 911 and I wasn’t as afraid for my country as I am now. Terrorist attacks are isolated; a dictator is pervasive."His proposal to close America’s borders to people from a single religion, if taken literally, would leave the country a global pariah and play into the propaganda of extremists from such groups as Islamic State. If his proposal were to include American citizens (the details are vague, the proposal being nonsense) it would trample the constitution."---The Economist.In the beginning I thought it was a joke when people started to compare the rise of Trump with the rise of Hitler.It’s not funny anymore. He is so completely ignorant that he accused a Sikh man of wearing a ‘hat’ in one of his rallies, and had the man escorted out. African American people who were simply peacefully attending his rallies have been escorted out, or more accurately thrown out.After being assaulted by known white supremacists and other Trump supporters, this brave young student from the University of Louisville spoke out to a local interviewer. "I was called a nigger and a cunt. They were pushing and shoving at me, cursing at me, yelling at me, called me every name in the book. They were disgusting and dangerous."--ShiyaMany of the people I associate with would love to escort Trump out of this country. He is not an American. Even his own party does not want him as a leader.A man who defends referring to women as "fat pigs," "dogs," "slobs" and disgusting animals," is not really good for women.—Huffington PostWhat exactly is going on here? They say people are angry so they are turning to Trump. Who are they angry at and what are they angry about? Are they angry because their jobs are not paying enough and they have to work more and get paid less? Are they angry because minorities will soon comprise the majority of the population of America? Are they upset that minorities are taking away jobs from Caucasians?Let’s break this down. It is true that jobs are paying less and the cost of living is going up. The reasons for this are varied depending on who you ask. However if you ask some people it is because Wall Street and big businesses are eating up all the wealth in this country. They are profiting while we are suffering. Trump owns big businesses and has no agenda to thwart their progress.Yes it is true that minorities will be the majority soon. I’m sorry, but America is a country that was started by immigrants and will continue to be a tossed salad of different ethnicities, religions, and races. America was not really built on White Supremacy as much as it was built on the backs of Black slave labor. People of ‘color’ are just as American as White people are. If ‘minorities’ are getting all the good jobs, it may be because they are sometimes more hardworking because they know they have to be better than the average American in order to succeed in this country.

I am a minority but I am an American.

I may not look like the American that Trump sees as legitimate. I may not be as pretty as Trump’s wife, but I look more like her than he does. The irony is that this man’s children are born of the blood of immigrants. He is more than just a regular hypocrite; he is what I would genuinely call a monster created by the rhetoric of fear and hate on the right. Republicans he is your ‘Frankenstein,' you created him, now stop him.Let me make something clear I don’t hate Donald Trump, I fear Donald Trump.See the thing is, as much as I want to insult Donald Trump’s followers, I don’t believe in hate. I don’t think that hating the people who are voting for Trump is the answer. I think that hate breeds more hate. I want to talk to these people, reason with them. I know, I know, I’m a dreamer. (Want to join me.) These people who are on the side of Trump voted for presidents like Ronald Reagan, who now looks like a saint compared to the Donald. I don’t believe that they are bad people.I think they are just tired of the same old bullshit, year after year. They want someone to talk to them on their level. They want to hire a person, not a politician for the presidency. I agree that Donald can shoot the shit with the best of them. His watered down uneducated words somehow resonate with regular people who are tired of hearing politicians talk politics. We all want a human being up there as president, not a robotic political machine.The problem with Hilary Clinton is that she talks the talk of politicians. She does not sound genuine. She is too polished and primed. She says all the right things at all the right times. The Donald pretty much says all the wrong things at all the wrong times. As idiotic as he seems to liberals, he seems human to conservatives. He’s messy, he doesn’t always make sense, and he swears every now and then. That is what they relate to.“I know where she went – it’s disgusting, I don’t want to talk about it. No, it’s too disgusting. Don’t say it, it’s disgusting." –Donald Trump on Hillary Clinton taking a bathroom break during a Democratic presidential debate."If Hillary Clinton can't satisfy her husband what makes her think she can satisfy America." –Donald Trump"We won with poorly educated. I love the poorly educated." –Donald Trump on his performance with poorly educated voters who helped him win the Nevada Caucus.

So how do we relate to them, the Donald followers?

I don’t know. I’m at a loss. This man represents wealth and success to a lot of people who are looking for that in their lives. The fact that he has been bankrupt several times does not even bother these people. I guess what I would say to his followers is this:I know you are better than this. You know this man is a tyrant. He will lead the presidency as a dictator and no one will comply with his orders. Nothing will get done because no one in Washington wants him there, even his own party.Actually who am I kidding? I can’t change your mind if you want to vote for Donald. However I can tell those who don’t want to see Trump in office to vote. Tell your friends to vote. Go out and rally people to vote. Please, please. More people than not want to make sure Trump does not win. The more people that vote, the more chance we have of avoiding a huge, gigantic political mess.Remember this is America. If you want something, you have to vote for it. If you don’t want something, you have to vote against it. You might not like the options you have, but if you don’t pick an option other than Donald, if you decide to be complacent and not exercise your right to vote because you don’t like politics or the democratic candidates: don’t complain when America doesn’t look like America anymore. I don’t care if it is Hilary or Bernie at this point, I don’t care if Ronald McDonald runs as the democratic nominee. I will blindly vote for anyone who can stop the Donald from getting into office.This is the time to act.Our country is at stake.nina