One Month Later: Reflecting on the Sikh Temple Tragedy

One month after the tragic shooting at the Sikh Temple in Oak Creek, Mark Metcalf talks with former white supremist Arno Michaelis, founder of Life After Hate.

Vigil at Cathedral Square Park August 5, 2012 | Photo: Lacy Landre

One month ago today, an armed gunman went into the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin and killed six people. It was soon made known that this mass murderer was a white supremist.

“Things fell into place for me, and if they didn’t, I could have been Wade Page,” says Arno Michaelis, founder of the organization Life After Hate.

Arno Michaelis, executive director of Life After Hate

Even before the description of the shooter was made public, Arno posted a video response to the shooting (embedded below), where he says, “This atrocity that happened today hits home for me because I live in Milwaukee—this is in my backyard—but also because there was a time in my life where I practiced the hate and violence that was the raw material behind this shooting.”

Arno was a guest on this podcast once before, talking about his story of transforming his life to be an advocate for peace and acceptance after living a life of hatred and violence as a self-described “white power skinhead.” Considering his background, Arno has particularly unique insight into the life the Sikh Temple gunman led.

Arno and I reflected on the tragedy that occurred, discussed the remarkable courage and perseverance of the Sikh people, and I asked him about what it is about the “white power” ideology that would lead a person to pick up a weapon, point it at someone, and pull the trigger.

googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-1420576007798-2'); });

Listen now: [audio:https://urbanmilwaukeedial.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/arnomarksikh1.mp3|titles=Backstage with Mark Metcalf – Arno Michaelis, Life After Hate, reflects on the Sikh Temple shooting in Oak Creek]

Click here to listen to Mark Metcalf’s first podcast with Arno Michaelis. To find out more about Michaelis’ organization, visit lifeafterhate.org, Like their Facebook page, and follow them on Twitter at @lifeafterhate.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zECJKbhAPik

Subscribe to these podcasts through iTunes here.

“Backstage with Mark Metcalf” is recorded at the ThirdCoast Digest office in the Shops of Grand Avenue, and is engineered and produced by Dan Shafer.