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Ten years ago this coming weekend, a Sikh house of worship in Oak Creek, Wis., was attacked by a gunman. It was the worst anti-Sikh mass shooting in U.S. history and, at the time, the worst attack on any house of worship in our country in decades.

As I join others across the country to commemorate the lives lost in Oak Creek and celebrate the resilience of the local Sikh community, I am thankful that we as a society have made progress in the past decade in the fight against hate — but I also recognize how much further we need to go.

Six Sikh worshipers were killed by the gunman who stormed the gurdwara that Sunday morning of Aug. 5, 2012, and a seventh would later die from the wounds he sustained after living with paralysis for years. The Oak Creek community was of course shocked and traumatized by the loss of mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters, and loved ones — but they chose to respond with chardi kala spirit, or the eternal optimism in the face of struggle that is a core tenet of the Sikh faith. They planned service projects to better their city, did interviews to teach the nation about Sikhism, and even successfully lobbied to Congress for anti-Sikh hate to be tracked and cataloged by the FBI.

Awareness about who Sikhs are and what we believe has only increased in the 10 years since Oak Creek; here in Minnesota, there is a serious effort underway to ensure that Sikhism is taught alongside other world religions in schools, and that campaign was supported by our friends in the interfaith community. Unfortunately, anti-Sikh hate — like all forms of violent hate — has continued to rise. From Buffalo to El Paso and Pittsburgh to Atlanta, Americans of different races and religions continued to be targeted by white supremacy.

That's why on this anniversary, I am joining with my fellow Sikhs and other allies to call for urgently needed reforms from our elected officials.

First, Congress must pass the Nonprofit Security Grant Program Improvement Act, which will increase the amount of federal dollars available to gurdwaras, churches, mosques, synagogues and other institutions seeking to make their buildings safer and more prepared for emergencies. Second, it must pass the Justice for Victims of Hate Crimes Act — a tiny fix to the current statute that will make it so the federal government can assist in prosecuting far more hate-crime cases. And finally, Congress must reintroduce and pass the Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act, which is a comprehensive piece of legislation to ensure that multiple government offices are equipped and focused on white supremacist and other identity-related extremists, which our national security organizations already recognize as the leading threat to our country.

After Oak Creek, the Sikh American community was successful in ensuring that the FBI started tracking anti-Sikh hate. This anniversary presents a similar moment for both reflection and action — indeed, it is the only proper way to honor those who were lost not only 10 years ago, but in other targeted acts of mass violence since then.

If we can push for policy changes like these while also supporting educational efforts that make our classrooms and curricula more inclusive of all children, we will create a society that is safer from violent hate.

Randeep S. Arora is a longtime resident of Washington County. He is director of communications and outreach for the Sikh Society of Minnesota in Bloomington, the largest and only Sikh congregation across the state.