The Hare Krishna Community (also known as the International Society for Krishna Consciousness) joins hands with other religious and civic leaders in condemning the gun killings of eight FedEx employees in Indianapolis on April 15th. Our prayers go out for the victims as well as their families. 

Four out of the eight victims were of the Sikh community. Approximately 90% of the employees at that facility are of Indian descent with the vast majority being Sikh. This is the worst Sikh massacre in the US after the Oak Creek Gurudwara mass shooting in Wisconsin on August 5, 2012, where seven members of the community were killed.

The victims included grandmothers, mothers, and a father. This news has sent shockwaves, once again, throughout the Sikh community, who are known for their free food distribution globally through the tradition of langar.

ISKCON has enjoyed warm relations with the Sikh community over the decades and stands in solidarity with our Sikh brothers and sisters in this most difficult time.  

President Biden stated, of these shootings that gun violence “pierces the very soul of our nation” and is an “epidemic” in the US.

“A servant of God feels the pain of others.” This is a core principle taught by the saints of the Hare Krishna, or Vaishnava Hindu, tradition. It urges us to see that every living being is our brother or sister; and that the pain of another, is our pain too.

ISKCON of North America joins the voices of millions calling for a serious discussion among political, religious, and social leaders of all stripes to put in place measurable steps to reduce the epidemic of gun violence, mass murder, and racially and religiously motivated hate crimes that are victimizing so many innocent Americans, now on almost a daily basis. 

For more information please contact:

Madan Gopal Das, ISKCON North American Communications Ministry, Co-Director at Madan.gopal@iskcon.org.

Kumari Kunti Dasi, ISKCON North American Communications Ministry, Co-Director at Kumari.kunti@iskcon.org.