Gov. Jay Inslee was dressed down in jeans, a head covering and socks as he and his staff padded into Spokane’s Sikh Temple to greet worshipers. Today is Vaisakhi, a holy day for Sikhs worldwide, and Inslee’s visit marked a show of support for the small community still reeling from a March break-in.
Jeffrey Pittman, 44, was arrested last month with first-degree burglary and malicious mischief after allegedly breaking into the temple, spraying a fire extinguisher throughout the building and ripping out pages of the Sikh holy book, called the Guru Granth Sahib. Damage was estimated at $30,000.
The temple has since been professionally cleaned, and looked spotless as the congregation gathered for the service Wednesday evening. The temple’s spiritual leaders, dressed in white with a black turban leads a prayer, with a translation on the screen for those who need words in English.
Inslee, sitting cross-legged on the floor among a group of men, speaks after the prayer is over. “In our state, there are no others,” he said. “There are only Washingtonians.”
Inslee said he was impressed by the Sikh community’s response to the vandalism; one of love, rather than fear. He lamented the increase in hate crimes against various faiths that have occurred in recent months throughout the United States.
“Many faiths have been subject to this,” he said. “This does not represent who we are in the state of Washington. It will not become tolerated.”
Inslee also spoke out indirectly against inflammatory political rhetoric used against religious minorities. He did not mention anyone by name, saying only, “unfortunate language by some people who have microphones” would not succeed in pushing groups like the Sikhs to the sidelines of the United States.
Spokane’s religious communities and law enforcement have been very supportive since the vandalism occurred, said the temple’s babaji (similar to a priest in Christian churches), Gurjeet Singh Aujla. At a gathering after the incident, members of the Catholic, Christian, Jewish, Muslim communities and others all came to show support.
“The best thing we can do is utilize this hate for love and education,” said Suburna Nagra, spokeswoman for the temple. And they have – in response to the vandalism, the Sikhs are hosting a community open house and a dinner for the public later this month.
Sikhism is the fifth-largest religion worldwide, with about 25 million followers. Estimates on U.S. Sikh populations vary, but one figure compiled by Pew and the World Religion Database puts the number at approximately 280,000. Some fundamental beliefs and practices of Sikhism include monotheism, or belief in one god, keeping long hair and beards, and a focus on service to others, which includes the service of a meal at the temple in a common kitchen called a langar.
Meals are vegetarian; Sikhs believe animals shouldn’t be killed, and they want to make sure people with dietary restrictions can eat the meals, said Maneet, a Kaiser engineer and Sikh temple attendee who asked that only her first name be used.
“The intent is that everyone is welcome – we serve food, no one can object to that,” Maneet said.
About 75 to 100 people eat and worship at the Spokane Sikh temple each week.
The Sikh open house is scheduled April 24 from 11 to 1 p.m. For more information, contact the Sikh Temple at 509-892-3799.
