The SEED Project

Sikh Victims of Terrorism:

On the evening of April 15th, a gunman targeted the FedEx facility where he had worked and knew was primarily staffed by Sikhs. Four of the eight people killed in the massacre were Sikhs. We honor them all: Matthew R. Alexander, Samaria Blackwell, Amarjeet Kaur Johal, Jaswinder Kaur, Amarjit Kaur Sekhon, Jaswinder Singh, Karli Smith, and John Weisert.
The gunman specifically targeted Sikh employees during the rampage. A report stated that the gunman “told a white woman running towards him to get out of the way, after having just shot a Sikh man in the face.” 

The Sikh community is grieving. The massacre opened the wound of longstanding anti-Sikh and anti-Asian hate in the United States. The shooting occurred just a month after the targeting of Asian American spas in Atlanta which left 8 people dead, including 6 Asian women. It brings back memories of the hate-motivated massacre at the Oak Creek, Wisconsin Gurdwara in 2012, the ongoing racial violence since 9/11, and long before.

In the wake of the verdict over George Floyd’s murder, and in a week of racial trauma for many Black and brown communities, Better Futures partnered with over 100 organizations to help host more than 10000 people in a solidarity vigil honoring the shared experiences of all our communities. In centering Sikh communities during the vigil, we also held space for many communities of color experiencing ongoing hate violence and state violence.

For more details, read the Sikh Coalition’s letter to law enforcement in Indianapolis.

Afghan Victims of Terrorism:

In 2020, terrorist attacks struck several houses of worship of the Sikh and Hindu communities. Keeping in line with our goals to promote change for social justice, Better Futures organized an effort to grant political asylum to these refugees, raising awareness throughout local communities, and encouraging citizens to write to their congresspeople.