Source: The New York Times

On September 18, 2001, The New York Times reported that "A continuing wave of attacks yesterday on Muslims, Sikhs and others who appear to be Middle Eastern brought condemnation from President Bush and murder charges against an Arizona man accused in a weekend shooting that has been deemed a hate killing." (See more extensive coverage of the murder of Balbir Singh Sodhi, a Sikh from Arizona, below.) The article reported on ongoing threats and attacks, including an attack on an Islamic Center in a suburb of Cleveland; the incident, in which a car was crashed into center, is being investigated as a hate crime. The article concluded by quoting an American Sikh: "'Our turbans have turned us into targets,' said Mandeep Singh Dhillon, a Sikh spokesman in California. 'It's made it incredibly difficult for Sikhs to walk down the streets safely.'"