Sponsored by:
Senator ANGELA V. MCKNIGHT
District 31 (Hudson)
Senator RENEE C. BURGESS
District 28 (Essex and Union)
Co-Sponsored by:
Senators Stack, Cryan, Moriarty, Ruiz, McKeon, Sarlo, Lagana, Diegnan, B.Smith and Cruz-Perez
SYNOPSIS
Includes Sikhs as protected class in bias intimidation law; appropriates $100,000.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning bias intimidation, amending N.J.S.2C:16-1 and P.L.2017, c.95, supplementing Title 2C of the New Jersey Statutes, and making an appropriation.
Whereas, Sikhism is a monotheistic, pragmatic, non-dharmic ethno-religion that was founded by Guru Nanak in the 15th century in the Punjab region; and
Whereas, Sikhs are commonly identified as wearing turbans, long beards or mustaches (for men), karas (iron bracelets) on their wrists, or kirpans (small daggers), or a combination of these items; though others may be seen without a turban or facial hair; and
Whereas, Anti-Sikh prejudice is a type of bigotry that is characterized by acts of hatred or disparagement towards expressions of Sikhism or perceptions of Sikhism on the basis of actual or perceived origin, shared ancestry, or ethnic characteristics with the religious group; and
Whereas, Anti-Sikh hate is any incident or crime committed against Sikhs, those perceived to be Sikh people, gurdwaras, Sikh organizations, or property owned by Sikhs which is religiously or racially motivated by hostility, hatred, or prejudice against Sikhs; and
Whereas, Cultural and religious illiteracy, coupled with a distinct visible identity in the form of a turban, has led to xenophobic violence against Sikhs since their arrival in this country more than a century ago; and
Whereas, Following the September 11th terrorist attacks in the United States, Sikhs have been frequent targets of anti-Muslim hate and Islamophobia, as Sikhs, who are not Muslims, were erroneously equated with Islamic radicals, extremists, and terrorists; and
Whereas, Confusing Sikhism with radical Islamists and Arabs, treating or considering Sikhs as another form of Muslims, and hostility and fear of Sikhs were then, and still are growing concerns as hatred or severe disparagement towards Sikh persons, their culture, history or heritage remains extremely problematic; and
Whereas, During the COVID-19 pandemic, racist and discriminatory attacks have risen against Asian communities, including Sikhs, a majority of which are attributed to lack of knowledge; and
Whereas, The Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) Director, Christopher A. Wray, noted during a hearing on transnational repression that cases of hate crime are often misunderstood and also chronically under-reported for communities like Sikhs; and
Whereas, On October 16, 2023, the FBI released its annual report of hate crime statistics, which recorded 198 anti-Sikh hate crime incidents; and
Whereas, According to the FBI report, Sikhs remain the second-most targeted group in the nation for religiously-motivated hate crime incidents; and
Whereas, The FBI further noted the exponential rise of hatred, prejudice and bigotry towards the Sikh community through transnational repression, being elevated by organized entities and hate groups continues; and
Whereas, Discrimination, harassment, prejudice, and unequal treatment of Sikh persons or Sikh-majority communities, exclusion of Sikh persons or Sikh-majority communities from major political and social spheres due to their physical attire, and the making of mendacious, dehumanizing, demonizing, or stereotypical allegations about Sikhs, as a collective group, are other forms of Anti-Sikh conduct; and
Whereas, These prejudicial acts may include, but are not limited to conspiracies about Sikh entry into politics, government, or other societal institutions, the myth of Sikh identity having a unique propensity for terrorism, and claims of a demographic threat posed by Sikhs or of a Sikh takeover, and the rhetorical, violent, or physical anti-Sikh manifestations directed against Sikh or non-Sikh individuals, their property, Sikh community institutions, and religious facilities; and
Whereas, New Jersey is home to approximately 100,000 Sikhs, which is one of the largest Sikh populations in the United States; and
Whereas, According to a recent survey most of the Sikh children in New Jersey public schools have not learned or learned very little about Sikhism; and
Whereas, The lack of culture and history curriculum on Sikhism in mainstream courses at New Jersey public schools has perpetuated violence, intolerance, and increased cases of bullying year after year against children who practice this religion; and
Whereas, The lack of Sikhism education in the New Jersey public school system could be related to the increased cases of hate, bullying, discrimination and rise in Islamophobic remarks against Sikhs; and
Whereas, The State of New Jersey has a strong interest in protecting individuals and groups of individuals from hatred, bigotry and discrimination; now, therefore,
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. N.J.S.2C:16-1 is amended to read as follows:
2C:16-1. Bias Intimidation.
a. Bias Intimidation. A person is guilty of the crime of bias intimidation if he commits, attempts to commit, conspires with another to commit, or threatens the immediate commission of an offense specified in chapters 11 through 18 of Title 2C of the New Jersey Statutes; N.J.S.2C:28-4; N.J.S.2C:33-4; N.J.S.2C:39-3; N.J.S.2C:39-4; or N.J.S.2C:39-5,
(1) with a purpose to intimidate an individual or group of individuals because of their membership within a protected class, including but not limited to, race, color, religion, gender, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, [or] ethnicity, or Sikhism; or
(2) knowing that the conduct constituting the offense would cause an individual or group of individuals to be intimidated because of their membership within a protected class, including but not limited to, race, color, religion, gender, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, [or] ethnicity, or Sikhism; or
(3) under circumstances that caused any victim of the underlying offense to be intimidated and the victim, considering the manner in which the offense was committed, reasonably believed either that (a) the offense was committed with a purpose to intimidate the victim or any person or entity in whose welfare the victim is interested because of their membership within a protected class, including but not limited to, race, color, religion, gender, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, [or]