Some forgo turbans despite religious tenet

By Halimah Abdullah | STAFF WRITER

September 24, 2001

Pardeep Singh's lips were still swollen, his downcast eyes still reddish-purple yesterday as he recounted how three men beat him with chairs early Saturday morning while he stood in line at Dunkin' Doughnuts on Liberty Avenue in Queens.

The memories come rushing back to him in fragments. Three men. People running. A man swinging a chair. Sharp pains. Darkness.

"He saw me and punched me in my mouth," Singh said from his Richmond Hills home. "Another guy put my hands behind my back. The other one picked up a chair and hit my head, back and stomach. Blood was coming out of my nose and eyes."

Singh and other Sikhs nationwide have been harassed and beaten since the Sept. 11 attacks on the World Trade Center. Those committing the violence against the Sikhs have zeroed in on turbaned men, confusing them with supporters of Osama bin Laden.

In response, some Sikh men, especially those who drive taxis and run businesses, have stayed home from work. Others have made the hard decision to take off turbans and cut their beards, violating a religious tenet that requires followers to keep hair covered and uncut.

"If I go to my temple like this I will get disrespected, but I have to live for my family," said Ranjit Singh Bhatia, a Queens business owner whose uncovered pony-tail brushes his waist. "But if someone kills me, I'm not going to get anything from being seen as Muslim or Sikh."

The Sikh religion was founded by Guru Nanak in the Punjab region of India in the late 15th century. Devotees believe strongly in equality, are against the caste system and run community kitchens that feed the hungry.

The mood was tense Friday in Liberty Avenue's mostly Indian-owned business district. Many shops posted signs with American flags that read "God Bless America" and "Sikh Americans Share the Pain and Grief." People walking the streets wore buttons with the stars and stripes, hoping to stir patriotic sympathy and deter would-be attackers.

Few men walked the sidewalks; instead their wives managed store counters and combed the streets asking shop owners for work. Some Sikh taxi drivers haven't made any money on fares since the World Trade Center attacks; passengers take one look at the turbans and decide to ride in other cars, said Rajinder Singh Khalsa, president of the Sikh Recognization Trust, an organization that works to educate on Sikhism.

Thousands gathered during yesterday's worship services at the Gurdwara Sikh Cultural Society in Queens, home to one of the area's largest Sikh communities.

"Right now we're going through hell," said Gurbachan Singh. He has been a member of the American Steel Workers union for 25 years and takes pride in having helped build cities all over New York. When the World Trade Center was attacked, he was turned away from rescue efforts because organizers feared his dress might arouse anger.

Still, many area Sikhs plan to work for acceptance. "These incidents have made Sikhs more determined to let people know that Sikhs stand for freedom and justice," said Hapreet Singh Toor, who is on the temple's board of trustees.