Hundreds of Sikhs gathered in Union Square last night for a candlelit vigil to remember the victims of Sunday's horrific hate-fueled shooting at a Sikh gurudwara in Oak Creek, Wisconsin. Wearing T-shirts that read "We Are All Sikhs" on the front and, on the back, "America Stands Together," the Sikhs and others gathered in quiet contemplation. Among the victims of the shooting, which left six dead, is the Brooklyn native Lieutenant Brian Murphy, who was shot nine times responding to the scene. Lt. Murphy, who survived and is gradually recovering, was highly praised during last night's memorial.
"They couldn't express enough how much of a hero LT. Brian Murphy is," says photographer Katie Sokoler, who visited the park around 9 p.m. Oak Creek Police Chief John Edwards told reporters yesterday that Murphy "was up walking, up walking. We had him sitting up for a period of time. He's progressing amazingly. We're very, very thankful for that." The vigil was part of a number of events happening simultaneously across the nation. "We’re a law-abiding country," mourner Satjot Sawhney explained in Washington, DC. "You come in with your own beliefs, worship any god you want, but at the end of the day we’re all Americans."
