On August 5, 2012, a

mass shooting There is a lack of consensus on how to define a mass shooting. Most terms define a minimum of three or four victims of gun violence (not including the shooter or in an inner city) in a short period of time, although an Australian study from 20 ...

took place at the gurdwara (

Sikh Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism, Sikhism (Sikhi), a Monotheism, monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Gu ...

temple) in

Oak Creek, Wisconsin Oak Creek is a city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located in Milwaukee County, it sits on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan and is located immediately south of Milwaukee. The city is one of the fastest growing in Milwaukee County and ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

where 40-year-old Wade Michael Page fatally shot six people and wounded four others. A seventh victim died of his wounds in 2020. Page committed suicide by shooting himself in the head after he was shot in the hip by a responding police officer. Page was an American

white supremacist White supremacy or white supremacism is the belief that white people are superior to those of other races and thus should dominate them. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any power and privilege held by white people. White s ...

and

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

veteran from

Cudahy, Wisconsin Cudahy () is a city in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 18,204 at the 2020 census. History Originally known as the Buckhorn Settlement, it was renamed in the late 1800s when Patrick Cudahy purchased of land in the ...

. Apart from the shooter, all of the dead were members of the

faith. The incident drew responses from President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...

and Indian Prime Minister

Manmohan Singh Manmohan Singh (; born 26 September 1932) is an Indian politician, economist and statesman who served as the 13th prime minister of India from 2004 to 2014. He is also the third longest-serving prime minister after Jawaharlal Nehru and Indir ...

. Dignitaries attended

candlelight vigil A candlelight vigil or candlelit vigil is an outdoor assembly of people carrying candles, held after sunset in order to show support for a specific cause. Such events are typically held either to protest the suffering of some marginalized group of ...

s in countries such as the U.S., Canada, and India.

First Lady First lady is an unofficial title usually used for the wife, and occasionally used for the daughter or other female relative, of a non- monarchical head of state or chief executive. The term is also used to describe a woman seen to be at the ...

Michelle Obama Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama (born January 17, 1964) is an American attorney and author who served as first lady of the United States from 2009 to 2017. She was the first African-American woman to serve in this position. She is married t ...

visited the temple on August 23, 2012.

Shooting and police response

The temple was preparing ''

langar Langar may refer to: Community eating *Langar (Sikhism) *Langar (Sufism) Places Afghanistan *Langar, Badakhshan, Afghanistan * Langar, Bamyan, Afghanistan * Langar, Faryab, Afghanistan * Langar, Herat, Afghanistan * Langar, Wardak, Afghanist ...

'', a Sikh communal meal, for later in the day. Witnesses suggested that women and children would have been at the temple preparing for the meal at the time of the incident, as children's classes were scheduled to begin at 11:30 a.m. Wade Michael Page was armed with a 9mm Springfield XD(M)

semi-automatic pistol A semi-automatic pistol is a type of repeating single-chamber handgun ( pistol) that automatically cycles its action to insert the subsequent cartridge into the chamber (self-loading), but requires manual actuation of the trigger to actu ...

. Page had legally purchased the gun in Wisconsin. Following emergency calls around 10:25 a.m. CDT, police responded to a shooting at a Sikh gurdwara located in Oak Creek, Wisconsin. On arrival, they engaged the gunman, later identified as Wade Michael Page, who had shot several people at the temple, killing six. Page wounded an officer; after being shot in the stomach by another, he fatally shot himself in the head. Four people were killed inside the temple, and three people, including Page, died outside. Page killed five men and one woman, ranging in age from 39 to 84. Three men were transported to

Froedtert Hospital Froedtert Hospital , located in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, is a teaching hospital and a Level I adult trauma center, one of two such facilities in Wisconsin. Froedtert is the primary teaching affiliate of the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW), where ...

, including one of the responding officers. Initial reports said the gunman had died from being shot by police officers at the scene, but the FBI later clarified that Page, after being shot by an officer, died from a

self-inflicted gunshot wound A suicide method is any means by which a person chooses to end their life. Suicide attempts do not always result in death, and a nonfatal suicide attempt can leave the person with serious physical injuries, long-term health problems, and brai ...

to the head. Authorities released an audio recording of the incident, during which the first responding officer, Lieutenant Brian Murphy, was shot by the gunman. It contained the words "I have someone walking out the driveway towards me. Man with a gun, white t-shirt", followed by the sound of gunfire. In September 2012, authorities released video recordings taken by squad cars during the incident, including the moments when Murphy was shot, and the gunman being shot by another officer. Murphy was shot fifteen times by Page, but survived. The Joint Terrorism Task Force investigated the site, and Oak Creek police chief John Edwards said his force treated the incident as a "

domestic terrorism Domestic terrorism or homegrown terrorism is a form of terrorism in which victims "within a country are targeted by a perpetrator with the same citizenship" as the victims.Gary M. Jackson, ''Predicting Malicious Behavior: Tools and Techniques ...

incident" in "the beginning stages of this investigation". Oak Creek police handed the investigation over to the FBI. They also investigated possible ties to

groups and other racial motivations. The FBI said there was no reason to think anyone else was involved in the attack, and they were not aware of any past threat made against the temple. U.S. Attorney General

Eric Holder Eric Himpton Holder Jr. (born January 21, 1951) is an American lawyer who served as the 82nd Attorney General of the United States from 2009 to 2015. Holder, serving in the administration of President Barack Obama, was the first African Amer ...

described the incident as "an act of terrorism, an act of hatred, a

hate crime A hate crime (also known as a bias-motivated crime or bias crime) is a prejudice-motivated crime which occurs when a perpetrator targets a victim because of their membership (or perceived membership) of a certain social group or racial demograph ...

Victims

The six victims killed included one woman: Paramjit Kaur, 41; and five men: Satwant Singh Kaleka, 65, the founder of the gurdwara; Prakash Singh, 39, a

Granthi A Granthi ( pa, ਗ੍ਰੰਥੀ, ) is a person, female or male, of the Sikh religion who is a ceremonial reader of the Sri Guru Granth Sahib, which is the Holy Book in Sikhism, often read to worshipers at Sikh temples called a Gurdwara. The n ...

; Sita Singh, 41; Ranjit Singh, 49; and Suveg Singh, 84. All of the male victims wore

turban A turban (from Persian دولبند‌, ''dulband''; via Middle French ''turbant'') is a type of headwear based on cloth winding. Featuring many variations, it is worn as customary headwear by people of various cultures. Communities with promin ...

s as part of their Sikh faith. Four of the victims were Indian nationals, while the rest were Americans. Prahash Singh, who was born in India had been a priest at the temple for around seven years, had received his

green card A green card, known officially as a permanent resident card, is an identity document which shows that a person has permanent residency in the United States. ("The term 'lawfully admitted for permanent residence' means the status of having been ...

in early 2012. The injured included a responding officer, Lt. Brian Murphy, who was shot fifteen times at close range, including once in the face and once in the back of the head. He was discharged from the hospital on August 22, 2012. Sikhs for Justice, a New York-based group, pledged a $10,000 award to Murphy. Two Sikh residents of

Yuba City, California Yuba City (Maidu: ''Yubu'') is a city in Northern California and the county seat of Sutter County, California, United States. The population was 70,117 at the 2020 census. Yuba City is the principal city of the Yuba City Metropolitan Statistic ...

donated another $100,000 to Lieutenant Murphy and praised his bravery. Included among the injured was Baba Punjab Singh, a Sikh priest who was shot in the head. He was left partially paralyzed from the wound for more than seven years and died on March 2, 2020.

Perpetrator

Wade Michael Page (November 11, 1971 – August 5, 2012) was an American

living in

. Page was born and grew up in

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the ...

. He served in the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

from April 1992 through October 1998, In the Army, Page had learned to repair the Hawk missile system, before becoming a

psychological operations Psychological warfare (PSYWAR), or the basic aspects of modern psychological operations (PsyOp), have been known by many other names or terms, including Military Information Support Operations (MISO), Psy Ops, political warfare, "Hearts and M ...

specialist. He was demoted and received a general discharge for "patterns of misconduct," including being drunk while on duty and going

absent without leave Desertion is the abandonment of a military duty or post without permission (a pass, liberty or leave) and is done with the intention of not returning. This contrasts with unauthorized absence (UA) or absence without leave (AWOL ), which ...

. After his discharge, Page returned to Colorado, living in the Denver suburb of Littleton from 2000 through 2007. Page worked as a truck driver from 2006 to 2010, but was fired after receiving a citation for impaired driving due to drinking. Page had ties to

and

neo-Nazi Neo-Nazism comprises the post–World War II militant, social, and political movements that seek to revive and reinstate Nazi ideology. Neo-Nazis employ their ideology to promote hatred and racial supremacy (often white supremacy), attack ...

groups, and was reportedly a member of the

Hammerskins The Hammerskins (also known as Hammerskin Nation) are a white supremacist group formed in 1988 in Dallas, Texas. Their primary focus is the production and promotion of white power rock music, and many white power bands have been affiliated with ...

. He entered the

white power music White power music is music that promotes white nationalism. It encompasses various music styles, including rock, country, experimental music and folk.Messner, Beth A., Art Jipson, Paul J. Becker and Bryan Byers. 2007. "The Hardest Hate: A Soc ...

scene in 2000, becoming involved in several neo-Nazi bands. He founded the band End Apathy in 2005 and played in the bands Definite Hate and Blue Eyed Devils, all considered racist white-power bands by the

Southern Poverty Law Center The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit legal advocacy organization specializing in civil rights and public interest litigation. Based in Montgomery, Alabama, it is known for its legal cases against white ...

. Page's former step-mother apologized to the Sikh victims and said she had not been in touch with her stepson for the past twelve years, after divorcing his father. A former friend described him as a "loner" and said he had talked about an "impending racial holy war". According to his neighbors, Page lived alone, rarely left his apartment, and avoided eye contact with them. Page legally purchased the handgun used in the shooting on July 28, 2012, at a gun shop in West Allis, Wisconsin. Page passed the background checks required, and paid cash for the gun, along with three 19-round

magazines A magazine is a periodical publication, generally published on a regular schedule (often weekly or monthly), containing a variety of content. They are generally financed by advertising, purchase price, prepaid subscriptions, or by a combination ...

. The owner of the gun shop said that Page's appearance and demeanor in the shop "raised no eyebrows whatsoever". Following the shooting, photographs of Page appeared in media reports showing him with a range of

tattoo A tattoo is a form of body modification made by inserting tattoo ink, dyes, and/or pigments, either indelible or temporary, into the dermis layer of the skin to form a design. Tattoo artists create these designs using several tattooing ...

s on his arms and upper body, which were said to show his links to white supremacist organizations. Oak Creek Police Chief John Edwards declined to speculate on the motive behind the attack, saying "I don't know why, and I don't know that we'll ever know, because when he died, that died with him what his motive was or what he was thinking."

Reactions

President

offered his condolences, calling the Sikh community "a part of our broader American family," and ordered flags at federal buildings flown at half-staff until August 10 to honor the victims. Obama called for "soul searching" on how to reduce violence. Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker and other officials also issued statements of sympathy for the victims of the shooting and their families. Nancy Powell, the

United States Ambassador to India The United States Ambassador to India is the chief diplomatic representative of United States in India. The U.S. Ambassador's office is situated at the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi. Chiefs of Mission to India U.S. Ambassadors to the Dominion ...

, attended prayers for the victims at

Gurudwara Bangla Sahib Gurudwara Bangla Sahib () is one of the most prominent Sikh gurdwaras, or Sikh house of worship, in Delhi, India, and known for its association with the eighth Sikh Guru, Guru Har Krishan, as well as the holy pond inside its complex, known as t ...

in New Delhi. Indian Prime Minister

said that the attack being at a Sikh temple added to the pain, and stated that India stood in support of all peace-loving Americans who condemned the shooting. Following the incident, there were vigils as well as some protests against the United States by Sikhs in India. On August 9, Indian members of parliament in New Delhi joined ranks in

parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...

to offer condolences to families of the victims.

Jathedar A jathedar ( pa, ਜੱਥੇਦਾਰ) is a leader of high regard chosen to head and ensure discipline within a jatha, a body of Sikhs. The Jathedar of the Akal Takht is the central head of the Sikhs worldwide, who makes all important decisions ...

Giani Gurbachan Singh Gurbachan Singh ( pa, ਗੁਰਬਚਨ ਸਿੰਘ; born 6 April 1948) is a Sikh preacher who has served as the jathedar of the Akal Takht from 2008 to 2018. Early life Gurbachan Singh was born in village Chakk Baja of Muktsar, Punjab, India ...

, the highest-ranking priest within the Sikh faith, called the shooting a "security lapse" by the U.S. government, and recommended that Sikhs in the United States adopt all possible security measures at their temples. Oak Creek Sikh residents said the incident had shocked their community. Many Sikh Americans did not approve of the protests in India against the United States, and strongly condemned the actions, such as flag-burnings, taken by the protesters. U.S.-based Sikh community groups pledged assistance to the victims and their families, and urged Sikh Americans to organize interfaith vigils. They also organized to send an emergency response team to Wisconsin. In some online forums, individuals with far right views expressed support for the gunman and his actions. Many other Americans held candlelight vigils in support of the Sikh community, and dignitaries such as Governor Walker attended. Congressman

Paul Ryan Paul Davis Ryan (born January 29, 1970) is an American former politician who served as the 54th speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 2015 to 2019. A member of the Republican Party, he was the vice presidential nominee i ...

introduced a bill in Congress condemning the tragedy which stated the House "condemns the senseless attack". On September 19, 2012, a Congressional hearing addressed hate crimes in response to the tragedy, before the

Senate Judiciary Committee The United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary, informally the Senate Judiciary Committee, is a standing committee of 22 U.S. senators whose role is to oversee the Department of Justice (DOJ), consider executive and judicial nominations ...

's Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Human Rights convened by Senator

Dick Durbin Richard Joseph Durbin (born November 21, 1944) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the senior United States senator from Illinois, a seat he has held since 1997. A member of the Democratic Party, Durbin has served as the Senate De ...

. In the aftermath of the shooting,

Amar Kaleka Amardeep Singh Kaleka (born 12 July 1978) is an Indian-American film director who won a regional Emmy Award for his direction of the short film '' Jacob's Turn'' in 2010 and another one for Esperanza (2014). Following his father's death in the ...

, the son of Satwant Singh Kaleka, became involved in politics, supporting

gun control Gun control, or firearms regulation, is the set of laws or policies that regulate the manufacture, sale, transfer, possession, modification, or use of firearms by civilians. Most countries have a restrictive firearm guiding policy, with onl ...

and new legislation to reduce

s. Kaleka criticized Obama, who visited the sites of other mass shootings, but not the Sikh Temple. As a member of the Democratic Party, Kaleka ran unsuccessfully in the Democratic primary for the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

in in the 2014 election. Pardeep Kaleka said that the shooting was "a warning of the increasingly public and violent role that white supremacy would play in the next decade." Since 2013, the

Sikh Coalition The Sikh Coalition is a Sikh-American advocacy group that defends Sikh civil rights founded in 2001 with offices in New York City, Washington, D.C., and Fremont, California. The Sikh Coalition, was originally named the Coalition of Sikh Organi ...

has encouraged Sikhs to use the National Day of

Sevā ''Sevā'' (also transcribed as ''sewa''), in Hinduism and Sikhism, is the concept of selfless service that is performed without any expectation of result or award for performing it. Such services can be performed to benefit other human bei ...

to honor the lives of those lost in the shooting. Political scientist Naunihal Singh criticized the media response, pointing out that the shooting received less media attention than other similar shootings. He suggested that this was due to the racial and religious identities of the shooter and victims.

References

External links

*
Photos of 1st Anniversary Gurdwara Diwan at Oak Creek
SikhMuseum.com
"The Nation" Relatives Speak of Those Killed in Temple Shooting"
''Time Magazine'', 7 August 2012
Timeline: Wisconsin Gurdwara Shooting
Sikh 24
Gallery of images from the scene of the shooting
''

BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broadc ...

'', 6 August 2012
"Oak Creek Gurdwara Memorial & Remembrance Materials"
South Asian American Digital Archive (SAADA) * Sethi, Arjun Singh
Sikhs’ inclusiveness is lesson in fighting bigotry
"

Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large na ...

, August 8, 2012. * Sethi, Arjun Singh
Oak Creek: An act of home-grown terrorism
"