Introduction
Wisconsin Sikh shooting took place near Sikh temple. The temple is in a 13 acre land made of brick and big in size located near Lake Michigan. The shooting resulted in the death of seven people. Among the people shot was a police officer who was shot ten times, a law enforcement officer and the leader of the religion. The shooter was described as Caucasian who is said to be approximately 40 years old. Law enforcement agencies have claimed that the attack was a domestic terrorism. After several minutes of shooting the shooter was subdued and gunned down which was the only option of preventing him from shooting and killing more people (CBS, para 1-5).
Many people have tried to speculate the reason for the shooting but no one has come up with a clear explanation. However, the police have speculated that it was domestic terrorism (CBS, para 8). Sources from the CBS news claim that racism is the reason behind the shooting. After the 9/11 attack research has shown that hatred for the Muslims has grown. Hence, the shooter, who is a veteran, shot the Sikhs. The anti-Islamic attacks were the main reason for the shooting because the rate of bias attacks had increased. Furthermore, investigation from the police shows that the shooter had tattoos that showed his racist nature (Nye, para 1-4).
It is reported that the shooter chose the Sikhs because they were similar to the Muslims; they wore turbans and their beards make them similar to them. The Sikhs have long hair because in their religion it is a taboo to cut the hair and beards. However, Sikhism is a different religion from Islam. Studies have clearly shown that Sikhism is a religion that originated from South Asia (CBS, para 15-17).
Their attack is believed to be as a consequence of their resemblance to the Muslims. The shooter’s tattoos show that he belonged to many groups namely; the Supremist groups, FBI, Hammerkins and Volks front etc (Yea, para 19). These groups are allowed to be in America because there is freedom of expression and therefore liberty is promoted at all costs. It is speculated that the fact that these groups are allowed and permitted to own a gun contributed to a greater extent to the occurrence of this incident. Studies show that in America, citizens are allowed to own guns only on the approval of their home states. Owning of guns has come with more disadvantages than the advantages and one of them is that folks have used it to carry out such shootings that cause the death of innocent people. Therefore, one can say that it is because of the law that permits folks to carry guns that the incident happened (Messerli, para 1).
Conclusion
Wisconsin incident involved the shooting of the Sikhs who are a religious group resembling the Muslims. Studies from the law enforcement show that there has been an increase of bias attacks in the United States after the 9/11 attacks on American soil. According to the reports given through the investigations conducted on the case, this incident is considered to be a multicultural attack.
Works Cited:
CBS. "Shooting at Sikh Temple in Wisconsin at least 7 dead." CBS News, 2012. Accessed on 12th August, 2012 http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57486965/shooting-at-sikh-temple-in-wis-at-least-7-dead/
Messerli, Joe. Should civilian possession of handguns and other non-hunting guns be banned or severely restricted? 2012. Accessed on 12th August, 2012
Nye, James. "The Secret Racist Code behind the Wisconsin Temple Shooter's Tattoos." Mail Online, 2012. Accessed on 12th August, 2012
