A Sikh Truck Driver’s Deadly US Accident and Republican Democrat Blame Game
Racial attacks on Sikhs in the US rise after three deaths in a highway accident allegedly caused by a truck driven by Harjinder Singh
(Photo: Sikhs gathered to offer prayers and financial support to the families of the three who died in the truck accident. Fort Pierce, Florida. Courtesy: UNITED SIKHS.)
September 7, 2025
In 2024, the Sikhs faced the third most hate crimes among religious groups in the United States, after Jews and Muslims, according to a report released last month by the Federal Bureau of Investigations. At times, Sikh men are mistaken for Muslims because of their religious practice of wearing turbans and growing beards.
In recent weeks though, there has been a rise in hate against them specifically because they are Sikhs, especially truck drivers. “People are throwing water bottles, eggs” at trucks driven by Sikhs, at rest stops in Oklahoma, Arkansas, and other states, Raman Dhillon, founder and CEO of the North American Punjabi Trucking Association, told the Fresnobee.com, a California news site. In one case, the police, who arrived at a truck stop, ordered a Sikh driver to leave instead of taking down his complaint of harassment, Dhillon said.
The recent rise in attacks follows a deadly accident involving a Sikh driver, on a highway in Florida on August 12. Harjinder Singh, driving an 18-wheel tractor trailer truck, allegedly made an illegal turn and a minivan crashed into the truck. Singh, 28, is in prison in Florida awaiting trial on charges of manslaughter and vehicular homicide, related to the deaths of the three occupants of the minivan.
His brother Harmeet Singh, 25, who was a passenger in the truck at the time of the accident, faces charges of vehicular homicide. If found guilty, and after they serve their prison terms, the brothers will be deported since they are in the country illegally, according to the Department of Homeland Security.
There are an estimated 150,000 Sikh truck drivers working in the US, mostly along the West Coast. Their numbers have risen sharply in recent years due to a shortage of drivers. Around the peak, in 2021, there was a shortage of 80,000 drivers, according to the American Truckers Association.
There are around three million truck drivers in the US, including those working for corporations, retailers, trucking companies, and small owners. There are around 13.5 million trucks registered in the US, ranging from small delivery vehicles to nearly three million 18-wheeler trucks, like the one driven by Harjinder, which transport food, clothing, machinery, fuel, and other goods.
The continuing shortage of drivers, especially for long-haul trips, is evident from the high salaries offered by some of the major trucking companies. For instance, Swift pays their top quartile of drivers an average salary of nearly $100,000 a year. The Phoenix-based trucking company also offers health insurance, pension, stock options, free college tuition and other benefits to try and recruit drivers.
(Photo: Harjinder Singh, US Department of Homeland Security.)
“Non-enforcement and radical immigration policies have turned the trucking industry into a lawless frontier, resulting in unqualified foreign drivers improperly acquiring licenses to operate 40-ton vehicles,” Sean P. Duffy, US Transportation Secretary, said in a statement on August 19.
Two days later, Marco Rubio, US Secretary of State, posted on X that, “Effective immediately we are pausing all issuance of worker visas for commercial truck drivers. The increasing number of foreign drivers operating large tractor-trailer trucks on U.S. roads is endangering American lives and undercutting the livelihoods of American truckers.”
Harjinder Singh’s truck accident in Florida revs up a political rivalry between the state’s Republican Governor Ron DeSantis and California Governor Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, “both of whom aspire to higher office,” ABC reported.
Florida officials said Harjinder Singh entered the U.S. illegally from Mexico in 2018. Harjinder "should never have been here. He certainly shouldn’t have gotten a commercial driver’s license from California,” Desantis said.
Singh obtained a Commercial Driver’s License in California, despite having no legal right to be in the US, according to a Department of Homeland Security statement. “Governor Newsom put Americans' lives directly at risk by arming this illegal alien with the ability to operate a 40-ton killing machine on U.S. highways. This reckless policy gave Singh the keys and three innocent people paid with their lives.” Tricia McLaughlin, assistant secretary of the department said in a statement, How many more innocent people must die before Gavin Newsom stops playing games with the safety of the American public?”
In response, Newsom’s press office posted this on X/Twitter, “Hey, genius: the federal government (TRUMP ADMIN) already confirmed that this guy meets federal and state immigration requirements -- YOU issued him a work permit (EAD). As usual, the Trump Administration is either lying or clueless. p.s. @grok , who was President in 2018?”
In May the Transportation department issued guidelines requiring English Language Proficiency assessment of commercial drivers. A department statement said, “President Donald Trump and Secretary Duffy believe that proficiency in English is a commonsense, non-negotiable safety requirement for professional drivers, as they should be able to read and understand traffic signs; communicate with traffic safety officers, border patrol, agricultural checkpoints, and cargo weight-limit station personnel; and provide and receive feedback and directions in English.”
Following his arrest, Harjinder was asked to take the English test by investigators of the US Department of Transportation. “The driver failed the assessment, providing correct responses to just 2 of 12 verbal questions and only accurately identifying 1 of 4 highway traffic signs,” according to a statement issued by the department.
According to the website of the California department of motor vehicles, the state requires applicants for truck driver licenses to first get a Commercial Learner’s Permit. This involves passing a knowledge test, submitting a medical examination report, and verifying identify, including through a US passport, permanent residency card, or a US birth certificate, and submitting proof of residence.
Then, after fifteen days, an applicant can apply for an Entry Level Driver Training license. This requires completing a minimum of 15 hours of behind-the-wheel training,
The applicant can then apply for the Commercial License, which includes a skills test. The test includes vehicle inspection, basic control skills test, and road test as well as a hazardous materials knowledge test. The official handbook In English for the skills test is 208 pages.
Last week, several Sikhs gathered outside the St. Lucie County Jail in Florida, where Harjinder is in custody, at an event organized by UNITED SIKHS, a global humanitarian relief non-profit affiliated with the United Nations. They prayed for the victims of the crash, offered to help cover the cost of funeral arrangements, and condemned anti-Sikh discrimination. Gurvinder Singh, an official of the non-profit said in a statement, “we are committed to providing substantive support, including financial assistance for funeral costs and preparations in addition to us asking the almighty for strength and solace.”
“There are a lot of negative comments online,” Prahb Singh, a truck driver in Riverside, California, told AP News. Singh is a common last name among Sikhs. “People are saying: ‘Take the towel heads off the streets’ said Singh, a U.S. citizen who emigrated from India at age 8. “It was a mistake by a driver, not the whole community.”