🔗 Share this article

Sikh women across the Midlands are describing a spate of assaults driven by religious bias has instilled widespread fear within their community, compelling some to “change everything” concerning their day-to-day activities.

String of Events Triggers Concern

Two rapes targeting Sikh females, both in their 20s, reported from Walsall and Oldbury, have been reported during the last several weeks. A 32-year-old man faces charges related to a religiously aggravated rape in relation to the reported Walsall incident.

Those incidents, coupled with a brutal assault against two senior Sikh chauffeurs in Wolverhampton, led to a meeting in parliament in late October concerning bias-motivated crimes targeting Sikhs across the Midlands.

Ladies Modifying Habits

A representative associated with a support organization based in the West Midlands explained that women were modifying their daily routines to ensure their security.

“The terror, the total overhaul of daily life, is genuine. I’ve never witnessed this previously,” she remarked. “This is the first time since I’ve set up Sikh Women’s Aid where women have said to us: ‘We are no longer doing the things that we enjoy because we might get harmed doing them.’”

Ladies were “apprehensive” attending workout facilities, or going for walks or runs currently, she mentioned. “They are doing this in groups. They are sharing their location with their friends or a family member.

“A violent incident in Walsall causes anxiety for ladies in Coventry as it’s part of the same region,” she explained. “Undoubtedly, there’s been a change in how females perceive their personal security.”

Community Responses and Precautions

Sikh places of worship across the Midlands are now handing out rape and security alarms to females as a measure for their protection.

In a Walsall temple, a frequent visitor mentioned that the incidents had “altered everything” for the Sikh community there.

Notably, she said she did not feel safe attending worship by herself, and she had told her older mother to exercise caution when opening her front door. “Everyone is a potential victim,” she declared. “Anyone can be attacked day or night.”

A different attendee mentioned she was implementing additional safety measures during her travels to work. “I attempt to park closer to the transit hub,” she noted. “I put paath [prayer] in my headphones but it’s on a very low volume, to the point where I can still hear cars go past, I can still hear surroundings around me.”

Echoes of Past Anxieties

A woman raising three girls remarked: “My daughters and I take walks, but current crime levels make it feel highly dangerous.

“We never previously considered such safety measures,” she said. “I’m perpetually checking my surroundings.”

For an individual raised in the area, the atmosphere echoes the racism older generations faced in the 1970s and 80s.

“This mirrors the 1980s, when our mothers walked near the local hall,” she said. “We used to have the National Front and all the people sat there and they used to spit at them, call them names or set dogs on them. For some reason, I’m going back to that. In my head, I think those times are almost back.”

A public official agreed with this, saying people felt “we’ve regressed to an era … marked by overt racism”.

“Residents fear venturing into public spaces,” she declared. “People are scared to wear the artefacts of their religion; turbans or head coverings.”

Authority Actions and Comforting Words

Municipal authorities had provided extra CCTV near temples to ease public concerns.

Authorities announced they were holding meetings with community leaders, ladies’ associations, and local representatives, along with attending religious sites, to discuss women’s safety.

“The past week has been tough for the public,” a senior officer informed a gurdwara committee. “No one deserves to live in a community feeling afraid.”

Local government stated it was “collaborating closely with law enforcement and the Sikh population, as well as broader groups, to offer aid and comfort”.

A different municipal head stated: “Everyone was stunned by the horrific event in Oldbury.” She added that the council worked with the police as part of a safety partnership to tackle violence against women and girls and hate crime.