In the wake of a tragic event, the dominant population often determines the face of the enemy. A documentary titled Divided we Fall: Americans in the Aftermath, which was screened at Elon University Monday, addresses how Americans identify those affiliated with terrorism and how such stereotypes perpetuate violence in the nation. After the 9/11 terrorist attacks, people in the United States began to associate turban-wearing Americans with religious extremism. They began to typecast them as Muslims, foreigners and people linked to the attacks. But according Valarie Kaur, creator, writer and producer of the film, these individuals failed to look beyond the surface. Kaur's documentary chronicles how the Sikhs, followers of the Sikhism religion, were harassed because they fit the media profile of terrorist: turban-wearers of a different skin color, language and culture. The documentary chronicles Kaur, who grew up in a Sikh household in Clovis, Calif., and her cousin as they make a road trip across the United States interviewing Sikhs that were persecuted after the 9/11 attacks. They interview such people as an elderly Sikh from Richmond Hill, N.Y., who was shot with a paintball gun and beaten with a baseball bat. They also interview Sikhs who were near ground zero during the attack and explain how many of them were scared to leave their homes in fear of being harassed and getting into physical altercations. The film’s footage encompasses 14 United States cities. The murder of Balbir Singh Sodhi, a Sikh gas station owner in Mesa, Ariz., is a central event in the film. Kaur and her cousin meet Sodhi’s family members, including his widow who flew back to India after Sodhi’s brother is gunned down less than a year later. Kaur delves into why Sodhi was killed in retaliation of 9/11. She said federal government terrorist profiling enabled groups such as airlines, private citizens and employers to create a “new racial category,” which in conjunction with media portrayals, lumped together everyone who fit the purported description of a terrorist. Geoffrey Claussen and Amy Allocco, assistant professors of religious studies, presided at the event. Allocco said the documentary had not been shown before at Elon, and has been especially relevant following the August 5 shootings at a Sikh temple in Wisconsin that resulted in seven deaths.
Allocco credited an Elon student who was concerned about the underrepresentation of Sikhs for the screening the film. Meanwhile, Allocco's colleague, a professor of Kaur, informed her of the documentary, further motivating the screening of the piece. “I think it would be a good idea for people to stop associating turbans with terrorists," said senior Alexandra Bard. "I think that’s something everyone can take away from it." The documentary, which was produced in 2006, was shown in the LaRose Digital Theatre. It was sponsored by Religious and Non-Violence Studies.