World News | Biden Urges Americans to Stand Up to Hate and Bigotry as He Remembers Oak Creek Gurdwara Shootout

Washington, Aug 5 (PTI) US President Joe Biden on Thursday recalled an act of "unspeakable hate" by a white supremacist who shot ten people at a Sikh gurdwara in Winconsin in 2012 and urged Americans to stand up to hate and bigotry and ensure that all are able to practice their faith without fear.

On August 5, 2012, a white supremacist opened fire inside the Oak Creek gurdwara in Winconsin, killing six people.

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"Nine years ago today, we witnessed an act of unspeakable hate as a white supremacist shot ten people at a Sikh Temple," Biden tweeted.

"As we remember those we lost in Oak Creek, we must continue to stand up to hate and bigotry and ensure that all are able to practice their faith without fear," the US president wrote as Sikhs in the country marked the ninth anniversary of the tragedy.

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In 2020 too, Biden, then the presidential nominee of the Democratic Party had joined several lawmakers and the Sikh community to remember the victims of the Oak Creek gurdwara shootout, urging the people to reduce gun violence and give hate no safe harbour.

“Eight years ago, a white supremacist targeted a Sikh temple in Oak Creek, WI - ultimately taking seven lives in an unspeakable act of terror,” Biden had said in a statement.

“To truly honour those we lost, it's up to all of us to stand up to bigotry in our lives, give hate no safe harbour, and reduce gun violence,” Biden said on August 6, 2020.

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; Sita Singh, 41; Ranjit Singh, 49; and Suveg Singh Khattra, 84. All of the male victims wore turbans as part of their Sikh faith.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)