Watch video report...
Hundreds of Sikh community members marched in Queens Monday against the harassment they say Sikh kids suffer inside city schools.The Sikh Coalition says 65 percent of Sikh students in Queens report being harassed because of the turbans they wear to protect their uncut hair.
"We think of [our hair] as God's gift," said student Arshdeep Singh. "We wouldn't cut off one of our organs, would we? That's how we keep our hair."
On June 9th, a 12-year-old female student at P.S. 219 cut a Sikh girl's hair and threatened to rip her brother's turban off.
The attack followed an earlier incident at Richmond Hill High School in which Sikh freshman Jagmohan Singh Premi was punched in the face with a fist full of keys. The alleged offender has been suspended and faces criminal hate charges.
"This is absolutely unconscionable," said City Councilmember John Liu. "In the year 2008 when kids in New York City public schools have to endure the bullying, the harassment, the racist taunting by other kids."
Sikh leaders say that since 9/11 anti-Sikh incidents have increased.
"People think either we are Arabs or we are followers of Osama bin Laden," said Swaranjit Singh of World Sikh Peace Foundation. "I've been called Osama more than a hundred times. There's a lot of need for education. We need to educate our fellow New Yorkers."
That's what Premi says he was trying to do when he was attacked.
"The kid called him a terrorist and he clearly explained to him, 'no, we're Sikhs,'" recalled Premi of the attack, through a translator.
A Sikh organizer says the school system needs to do more.
"These things happen in the schoolhouse, sometimes in front of the teachers and the teachers don't understand that calling a Sikh a terrorist is like calling an African-American the 'N' word," said Sikh Coalition executive director Amardeep Singh. "The DOE can implement and track as much as they want, but until they have a plan to protect Sikh kids in particular, we're not going to make any progress."
Chancellor Joel Klein says the education department is working with the Sikh community to implement new anti-bias regulations.
"We're in the process of promulgating a regulation on this, but let me be unequivocal: any intolerance is unacceptable," said Klein.
But one Sikh high school student who spoke to NY1 says he took off his turban and no longer wears it because it brought him so much taunting that he feared for his safety.
"I don't feel safe," said the student. "I don't want to be harassed, you know. I have feelings too."
When school resumes in September students will get a brochure that lays out the new anti-bias regulation.
