🔗 Share this article

Female members of the Sikh community across the Midlands are explaining a wave of assaults driven by religious bias has caused deep-seated anxiety in their circles, pushing certain individuals to “completely alter” about their daily routines.

Recent Incidents Spark Alarm

Two violent attacks against Sikh ladies, each in their twenties, reported from Walsall and Oldbury, have been reported over the past few weeks. A 32-year-old man is now accused related to a faith-based sexual assault linked to the reported Walsall incident.

These events, combined with a brutal assault on two elderly Sikh taxi drivers in Wolverhampton, prompted a meeting in parliament at the end of October concerning bias-motivated crimes targeting Sikhs across the Midlands.

Ladies Modifying Habits

A leader from a domestic abuse charity based in the West Midlands commented that ladies were modifying their regular habits for their own safety.

“The fear, the now complete changing of your day-to-day living, that is real. I have not seen that before,” she noted. “For the first time since establishing Sikh Women’s Aid, women have expressed: ‘We’ve ceased pursuing our passions out of fear for our safety.’”

Females felt “uneasy” visiting fitness centers, or walking or running at present, she said. “They are doing this in groups. They are sharing their location with their friends or a family member.

“An attack in Walsall is going to make women in Coventry feel scared because it’s the Midlands,” she said. “Clearly, there’s a transformation in the manner ladies approach their own protection.”

Public Reactions and Defensive Steps

Sikh temples throughout the Midlands have started providing protective alarms to women in an effort to keep them safe.

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

In particular, she revealed she felt unsafe visiting the temple alone, and she had told her elderly mother to be careful when opening her front door. “All of us are at risk,” she affirmed. “Assaults can occur anytime, day or night.”

Another member stated she was adopting further protective steps when going to work. “I try and find parking nearer to the bus station,” she said. “I listen to paath [prayer] through headphones but keep it quiet enough to detect passing vehicles and ambient noise.”

Generational Fears Resurface

A mother of three expressed: “We stroll together, yet the prevalence of offenses renders the atmosphere threatening.”

“In the past, we didn’t contemplate these defensive actions,” she said. “I’m looking over my shoulder constantly.”

For an individual raised in the area, the atmosphere echoes the discrimination endured by elders back in the 70s and 80s.

“This mirrors the 1980s, when our mothers walked near the local hall,” she recalled. “The National Front members would sit there, spitting, hurling insults, or unleashing dogs. Somehow, I’m reliving that era. Mentally, I feel those days have returned.”

A local councillor echoed this, noting individuals sensed “we’ve returned to a period … characterized by blatant bigotry”.

“Individuals are afraid to leave their homes,” she declared. “People are scared to wear the artefacts of their religion; turbans or head coverings.”

Official Responses and Reassurances

City officials had set up more monitoring systems around gurdwaras to reassure the community.

Police representatives announced they were organizing talks with public figures, ladies’ associations, and community leaders, and going to worship centers, to talk about ladies’ protection.

“It’s been a very difficult week for the community,” a senior officer addressed a gurdwara committee. “No one deserves to live in a community feeling afraid.”

Municipal leadership declared it had been “actively working alongside the police with the Sikh community and our communities more widely to provide support and reassurance”.

Another council leader commented: “The terrible occurrence in Oldbury left us all appalled.” 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.