Stop Arizona from Removing Balbir Singh Sodhi from 9/11 Memorial

According to Arizona Representative John Kavanagh, Balbir Singh Sodhi “was not a 9/11 victim” and does not deserve to be recognized at the state 9/11 memorial. The Arizona legislature has passed a bill removing Mr. Sodhi from the memorial and selling his memorial plaque to a scrap metal dealer. Mr. Kavanagh told the Arizona Republic it was unclear to him that the shooting was directly related to 9/11. 

On September 15, 2001, Mr. Sodhi, a Sikh American gas station owner, was the first hate-crime related murder fatality in the wave of post-9/11 backlash. He was murdered outside of his Chevron gas station in Mesa, Arizona by a man who wanted to ‘kill a Muslim’ in retaliation for the terrorist attacks. He selected Mr. Sodhi simply because he had a beard and wore a turban in accordance with his Sikh faith.

Tell Arizona Governor Jan Brewer to veto this bill, which disrespects the memory of the first fatal hate crime victim in the wake of 9/11.

UPDATE: On April 29, 2011, Governor Brewer vetoed HB 2230 during a meeting with the Sodhi family. SALDEF thanks the community for its immediate response to our Action Alert; the Governor’s office received over 7,500 letters in less than three days asking that she veto HB 2230. This success could not have come without your support!  Read more about the resolution and veto here.