A 50-year California Sikh was viciously beaten by two men who told him to ‘go back to your country.’
Two thugs beat up the man last Tuesday night while he was putting up election campaign signs for local candidates along a rural road south of Modesto.
The Stanislaus County Sheriff’s office described the incident as a “heinous” hate crime.
According to the Modesto Bee, Sheriff Adam Christianson said the assault is being investigated as a hate crime.
“This is a random despicable criminal act against a member of the Sikh community,”
In a popular Facebook post, a friend of the victim’s daughter posted a photo of the pickup truck the Sikh man had used to drive to an isolated location to place election signs.
A Celtic Cross and a hate message were spray painted on the victims vehicle.
“Just so everyone knows, violent acts of racism are happening in your area. This is one of my best friend’s dad’s truck that was vandalized after he was badly beaten in the head with a rod,” said Casey Musgrave in a Facebook Post.
“They also threw dirt in his eyes. He has been here for 35 years and does a lot to help his community,” she said.
“Fortunately he is okay physically due to his turban protecting his head… but everyone be aware of what is going on in our area. This happened in Keyes.”
The area around Modesto, Sacramento, Yuba City, Davis has a high population of Sikhs, many of them having lived there for generations.
Last April, the Sikh Coalition said Sikhs are often targeted because of their religious dress code including a turban.
In some instances they’ve been attacked after being mistakenly perceived to be Muslim.
