Above: The image in question used by CNN. Below: A young Sikh-American - Sahib Singh - proudly wears his turban and the Stars and Stripes.
Current Events
Dear Mr. Estenson: An Open Letter to CNN
by A.J. SINGH
To
Mr Kenneth "KC" Estenson
Editor
CNN.com
Dear Mr Estenson:
On Thursday, May 5, 2011, CNN.com ran a story, "A Debate over the Legality of Killing bin Laden".
This is a legitimate debate.
That is, until you look at the image that accompanied the article - A Sikh gentleman reading a Punjabi newspaper (with the terrorist's image on a newspaper in the foreground).
The photo you used is reproduced on this page.
The article is absolutely unconnected to the Sikh community in general and nowhere does it mention anything whatsoever about Sikhs.
I fail to comprehend why an image of a Sikh gentleman was used in the article in question, when AFP/Getty images would have thousands of images of the men actually talked about in the article.
This is not the first time a similar careless and negligent connection has been made through misused images between Sikhs and the bin Laden/Taliban/Al Qaida situation.
Is CNN out to malign the Sikh-American community in some way? Are CNN editors somehow biased against the Sikh community?
As innocuous as it may seem to anyone, the image has maligned the Sikh image throughout the world. Visually, it immediately connects the appearance of a Sikh man to the perpetrators of 9/11. To an untrained eye, it simply implies that all turban wearing people are somehow the cause of 9/11 and should be treated in the same manner as the dreaded terrorist.
I cannot stress enough how wrong this connection is, or that how blatantly this connection strikes against the core of the Sikh religious beliefs and ethics.
Sadly, such negligence and careless journalism on your part is contributing to a backlash against the Sikh-American community - a peace loving community that has time and again stood up against all sorts of evil in the world.
The Sikh tradition started more than 500 years ago when the Sikhs stood up against the tyranny and oppression of the Mughal rulers in India. In modern times, it gained worldwide recognition when the Sikhs aided the Allies in both the World Wars.
Your coverage is highly insulting to Sikh-Americans in particular, but also to the 30 million Sikhs who live around the globe.
The havoc thus caused by your callous connection between bin Laden's crimes and a community which has had nothing whatsoever to do with it all, directly or indirectly, is direct - palpable and measureable.
For example, during the decade since the tragic events of 9/11, the following incidents have taken place:
1 In 2001, Mr. Balbir Singh Sodhi, of Mesa, Arizona, was brutally murdered just after the September 11 attacks because the perpetrator equated the turban wearing Sikh gentleman with the heinous people who carried out the attacks on 9/11.
2 In 2006, an elderly Sikh grandfather, Mr. Iqbal Singh, was stabbed in Santa Clara, California, while he was simply enjoying the company of his 2-year old granddaughter.
3 In March 2011, two Sikh gentlemen, Mr. Surinder Singh and Mr. Gurmej Singh Atwal were fatally wounded in Sacramento, California, while enjoying their daily evening walk. Both succumbed to their gun-shot injuries.
These are but three examples. Dozens of such hate crimes have been reported.
The Sikh turban signifies spirituality, honor, civic responsibility, moral and ethical values, courage and friendship - all shared by the American dream.
CNN is a leader in the media space, and you are the leader at CNN. With leadership comes responsibility. And accountability.
By creating and publishing such errorneous and baseless connections, you demean the good name of your organization by spreading falsehoods.
I would urge you to rectify the wrong immediately, and to put a mechanism in place which would prevent such sub-standard journalism from recurring.
As I conclude, I am reminded of Anderson Cooper's "Keeping them Honest" segment on CNN's own AC360.
I ask of you, Mr. Estenson, "Who is keeping CNN honest?"
Sincerely yours,
A.J. Singh.
May 6, 2011
Conversation about this article
1: Jasneet Kaur (Missouri, U.S.A.), May 06, 2011, 10:33 AM.
Thank you for this forcefully written letter. I couldn't have said it better. Sikhs from around the world should call or write to Mr. Estenson and let him know how disappointed we are in this carelessness on the part of his organization. Thank you, A.J. Singh ji, for taking the trouble of writing this important letter and conveying our collective pain.
2: Ranjit Singh (New York, U.S.A.), May 06, 2011, 10:41 AM.
Does The Sikh Coalition know of this yet another outrage by the CNN? Are they doing anything about it? The Sikh Coalition does excellent work and I think they are the best people to pursue the CNN on this. And I hope they go all the way this time around until they get tangible results.
3: H.S. Vachoa (U.S.A.), May 06, 2011, 11:30 AM.
Is there a link to the story?
4: Chintan Singh (San Jose, California, U.S.A.), May 06, 2011, 11:56 AM.
Very well written letter. Are there numbers at which the Sikh community can call CNN and express their feelings? Can Sikh Coalition or SALDEF setup a template or online petition that the community can sign and send similar letters to CNN to express our frustration with their carelessness?
5: Dupinder Kaur Sidhu (New Jersey, U.S.A.), May 06, 2011, 2:18 PM.
Thank you, A.J. Singh. Very well said.
6: Sumit Agrawal (India), May 06, 2011, 4:56 PM.
Hi, The Sikhs have a reputation as guardians against violence and their might has usually served the needy and the weak. Secondly the turbans of the Taliban et al are distinctly different from those of the Sikhs - the latter are distinguishable from all other turban styles of the world by the fact that Sikh turbans are tied neatly and have distinct structure. Also unique is the way they groom and dress their facial hair; so is the rest of their dress. In the whole of Asia, Sikhs are well regarded as sociable people and fully respectful of other religious faiths. The taliban, on the contrary, have been forceful in exerting their own faith and way of living on free individuals. This is a major and only difference that matters. And there should be no confusion about this. If needed, Sikhs should run an ad campaign and should clearly state that they are no talibans and no supporters of the taliban approach of force and terror against free individuals.
7: Gurinder Singh (San Diego, California, U.S.A.), May 06, 2011, 7:27 PM.
Thanks you, A. J. Singh. I contacted CNN and SALDEF when I saw this. I tried to find the contact for the writer, but could not locate it on the CNN website. Kudos! Our future is safe in the hands of eloquent young Sikhs like you. Singho! Let's not wait for someone else to speak on our behalf. When you see a wrong, try to address it and inform others. Can we set up Facebook/ Twitter pages to keep track of these incidents and have our friends make some noise on their Twitter feeds and Facebook updates. We got to move with the times.
8: Baljit Singh Toor (Escondido, California, U.S.A.), May 06, 2011, 8:53 PM.
CNN doesn't even review the material before publishing. They just always want to be the first one out there. This is WRONG.
9: Ferozpuria (Sydney, Australia), May 07, 2011, 9:16 AM.
Looks like the image has been replaced. Well done, A.J.Singh! However, I fear the damage may have been done as the article was "liked by 12000+ on FB". We simply need more awareness so people are educated about Sikhi and ignorance is stamped out.
10: Varinder Singh Gill (Brampton, Ontario, Canada), May 09, 2011, 9:48 AM.
CNN: Please open your eyes and see the difference! Thanks.
11: Amitoj Singh (New Jersey, U.S.A.), May 09, 2011, 11:29 PM.
CNN calls itself the "Most trusted name in news" ... maybe it should change it's name to the "Biggest BS Name in the News." CNN also did a similar ignorant thing as stated in the article in this situation: http://www.reddit.com/r/pics/comments/h7iyf/almost_10_years_after_911_cnn_still_doesnt_know/
12: Prabhsharan Sidhu (Modesto,California, U.S.A. ), May 16, 2011, 2:22 AM.
I'm glad you guys went to action on image control and were effective in doing so. Personally, I would give the authors/editors of the CNN article the benefit of the doubt and believe the use of a Sikh was not meant to malign. Perhaps we are finally being viewed as one of the many people that make America awesome instead of 'the other.'
13: Harpreet Dhillon (Austin, Texas, U.S.A.), August 15, 2011, 7:21 PM.
A succinct and very well written reply. Hopefully CNN realizes this difference soon.