“Who you are speaks so loudly I can’t hear what you’re saying.”

“I find it fascinating and refreshing you have such a good spirit about this, especially so close to this incident happening earlier today. You’re not accusatory. You’re not angry. You are inviting people to come in, and I think that’s amazing. I just can’t thank you enough for doing that. And again, I applaud you for it.”

          - Don Lemon, CNN newscaster to Rajwant Singh, Chairman of Sikh Council on Religion and Education

Lemon interviewed Singh after a mass shooting took seven lives during the Sunday service yesterday at a Sikh temple in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The interview revealed Sikh beliefs and practices as well as their spirit. Lemon commented on the fact that the Sikhs had prayed for the shooter as well as the victims. Singh explained that every prayer ends with “Oh, God, please take care of everyone. Every human being is your child.” Singh expressed the desire that “we all come together as a nation and a community and take a lesson from it and support each other.” He invited all Americans to join Sikhs at a temple next Sunday for a meal. “This is our tradition. We want to share our love and feelings with each one of you.” Singh went on to explain every Sikh male has the same last name. “Singh,” means “lion,” and represents being fearless in any situation. All females share the last name “Kaur,” or “princess.” The shared-name practice is to bring people together in equality. “That is a concept we honor deeply in our faith.” The equality of all people, devotion to one God and service to community are the main tenets of their faith.

“Who you are speaks so loudly I can’t hear what you're saying,” said Ralph Waldo Emerson. Who Rajwant Singh is speaks loudly. Once again, just two weeks after Aurora, the light has an opportunity to shine in the darkness. It shines through Don Lemon’s interview and appreciation of Singh. It shines through Americans outpouring love and support for the Sikhs. It shines through the Sikh women serving in the temple kitchen by preparing the community meal. It shines through the policeman shot nine times who directs his colleagues to help those inside the temple. It shines through many others, including Valarie Kaur, a documentary filmmaker.

In the first hate crime after 9/11, a Sikh man, mistaken for a Muslim, was gunned down in front of his gas station in Mesa, AZ. Valarie Kaur, whose family knew him, dropped out of college at the age of twenty, spent the next ten years filming the stories of Sikh Americans and produced “Divided We Fall,” a documentary film which examines hate crimes against them. One hundred years ago, her grandfather emigrated from India to California’s Central Valley where he farmed but was not allowed to own land or become a citizen. Valarie studied religion and law at Stanford University, Harvard Divinity School and Yale Law School where she now directs the Yale Visual Law Project. Interviewed on CNN after the temple shooting, Kaur said, “Americans are not ignoring violence against the Sikhs and are rallying in support. This time something new happened. The whole nation paid attention. Thousands of people posted messages of love and support in the face of unspeakable tragedy.* Today and in the days to come, I believe Americans are hungry for the next step. We are ready to come together in a groundswell of healing, hope and renewed commitment to a world without violence. We are ready to come together in true national unity." Who Valarie Kaur is speaks volumes. 

This time something new happened. Attention was paid. Love and support were offered. Are we approaching critical mass and a paradigm shift as light is added to light, love after love expressed? "Who you are speaks so loudly I can't hear what you're saying." What is who you are saying to the world? What is your next step?

*You can add your message at www.groundswell-movement.org at the bottom right of the page.