DoJ’s Harmeet Dhillon Speaks Up For Sikh Truck Drivers

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India-West News Desk

WASHINGTON, DC — Harmeet Dhillon, the Sikh lawyer who serves as Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Justice, has spoken out in defense of Sikh and Indian-origin truck drivers after a wave of online attacks including from within her own political base.

Dhillon, a prominent conservative and longtime MAGA ally, posted a detailed statement on October 27 urging Americans not to scapegoat Sikh truckers in the wake of two recent highway tragedies involving undocumented immigrants driving commercial trucks.

“Unfortunately, in the fog of outrage, some are using these tragedies as an opportunity to attack law-abiding Sikhs and Indian-origin drivers, simply because of who they are,” she wrote on X. “Many of these law-abiding Sikhs and Indian-origin Americans are hard-working and patriotic. Most were born here or immigrated here lawfully.”

Dhillon condemned both the incidents and the wave of misinformation that followed, making it clear that while immigration enforcement is vital, hate and racial targeting are not. “It is illegal under federal law to discriminate against individuals or attack or violently threaten them because of their race, color, religion, or national origin,” she wrote, adding that the Civil Rights Division “will aggressively pursue justice against those engaged in such discrimination.”

Her message carried personal weight. Dhillon, one of the highest-ranking Sikh officials in the country, has been herself a target of abuse from far-right activists online.

When Dhillon recited Ardas, the Sikh prayer, at the Republican National Convention, she was viciously trolled and called a “pagan blasphemer” and told to “get deported.” Dhillon later acknowledged the hate campaign, saying she was “blocking quite a few people” after the attacks.

More recently, she drew attention when she shared a photo of herself with President Donald Trump in the Oval Office, holding hands in front of the Declaration of Independence. Her caption mistakenly referred to the document as the Constitution, prompting another round of mockery online — some of it laced with racist and religious undertones.

Despite the hostility, Dhillon’s October 27 post struck a tone of unity and principle, calling for justice for victims of reckless drivers while defending the Sikh Americans who legally work in the trucking industry.

“These Americans are not responsible for the actions of the two reckless men behind the wheels of those trucks, and they must not shoulder the blame for the tragedies those men caused,” she wrote. “They are our neighbors, our friends, and they provide a legal and vital service.”

“I urge all of you, my fellow Americans, to act with reason,” she wrote. “Innocent and law-abiding citizens and workers of all backgrounds are entitled to the protection of federal law — and we will protect them.”