A Sikh group has asked Senator John Kerry to correct a statement he made on the campaign trail that they say paints members of the Sikh religion as terrorists.
Speaking in Oklahoma January 31, Kerry said terrorism did not begin with the attacks of September 11, 2001. He gave us examples the tensions in Northern Ireland, the Basque separatist movement in Spain, and the Sikhs in India.
"Among the examples none were mentioned by religion other than the Sikhs," said the Sikh Mediawatch and Resource Task Force in a letter to Senator Kerry.
They said Kerry 'singled out the adherents of the Sikh religion as terrorists'. Kerry, who is now considered the front-runner in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination, made the comment in response to a question about the global terrorist threat.
In the letter, SMART said, "Based on your response, which was broadcast on C-SPAN and other news outlets, all adherents of the Sikh faith can be interpreted as condoning or being associated with terrorism."