NY Sikhs mount $100,000 ad campaign

new delhi: the sikh community in new york is launching a $ 100,000 campaign in the mainstream media to dispel the impression that they are bin laden sympathisers. more than three dozen incidents of attacks against indians, mostly sikhs, have been reported since tuesday. businessman sant chatwal said ads and supplements will be carried in the new york times and other papers from tomorrow "to tell the americans who we are".these attacks have been carried out by hispanic and other groups which don't know anything about the sikhs, he added. his son, hotelier vikram chatwal, said community leaders took camera crews from cnn and other channels to city gurdwaras on friday to tell the americans that the sikh community has nothing to do with bin laden. "we feel as empty as any american without the twin towers." meanwhile, in the continuing attacks on indians, two sikhs were attacked near the richmond culture center on friday. two students were also attacked in queensboro college. "but when the attackers came to know that their victims were neither pro-bin laden nor pakistanis, they apologised," said a sikh leader from richmond. "in the prevailing atmosphere anyone wearing a turban is being presumed to be a bin laden supporter," said baldev grewal, editor of sher-e-punjab newspaper in manhattan. a sikh temple in west sacramento was also targeted in what the police termed "a hate crime". one man was held for vandalism. sensing more trouble in the coming days, the maryland-based sikh media watch and resource task force and other organisations have urged sikhs to avoid going out and always carry cell phones with them "as the anti-immigrant feeling is likely to inflame when the us mounts attacks on the terrorists and their sympathisers." in an interesting twist, us-based pro-khalistan elements, who have been denying any allegiance to india, are putting out statements about their being indians, not arabs, in order to avoid any blacklash, grewal said.