65% Canadian Sikhs Are Victims of Hate; Clash in Germany Gurdwara

April

2026

65% of Canadian Sikhs say they’re victims of hate, fueled in part by domestic racism, xenophobia, and transnational repression and disinformation from India, says a report on anti-Sikh Hate released by World Sikh Organization (WSO) Canada. The survey was conducted between Jan–March 2025 and recorded more than 1,600 Canadian Sikhs. 80% of respondents believed that hate and discrimination against Sikhs has increased since 2021 with more than 70% of victims choosing not to report hate incidents to authorities. The WSO says the report is the first comprehensive effort to document and analyze the experiences of Canadian Sikhs facing discrimination by combining survey data with insights from community town halls. The report defines anti-Sikh hate as ‘prejudice or hostility against individuals who are or are perceived to be Sikh based on their appearance, beliefs, or advocacy related to their identity.' The report says 97% of women who wear head coverings reported experiencing hate; 77% of those that don’t wear head coverings also experienced hate; and so did 47% of men who wore visible Sikh articles of faith. Meanwhile, a video of an elderly Sikh man being racially harassed by a young man in Woodstock, Ontario surfaced on 22 Apr. The man shouted, ‘What are you doing in my country? You ain’t from here, get out of my country.’ The footage has triggered widespread condemnation and renewed concern over rising hate incidents in Canada. Parallelly, the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC) has issued a critical special bulletin detailing a sustained campaign of coercion involving 'financially vulnerable, young male, Indian nationals in Canada on study permits who are being used as foot soldiers by gangs for targeted violence' against South Asian diaspora in Canada. The bulletin warns that smaller criminal elements are leveraging the fearsome reputation of these major gangs to maximise the impact of their own extortion demands. Alongside, at least 11 people were injured after a violent clash erupted at a Gurdwara in the Duisburg locality in Moers, Germany on 21 Apr. Around 40 people were involved in the altercation over community donations to the Gurdwara (earlier coverage).