( CNN ) -- Sikhs and their supporters in the United States and India reacted with sorrow , disbelief and anger Sunday to news of a shooting at a temple in Wisconsin that left at least seven people , including the suspected gunman , dead . Here 's some what they said : . -- The Sikh Coalition . The Sikh Coalition , which describes itself as the largest Sikh American civil rights organization in the United States , has started an emergency response . `` The Sikh Coalition 's thoughts and prayers are with the victims of the shooting , the Sikh community of Milwaukee , and the larger community of Wisconsin , which we know will stand with their Sikh neighbors with their support and prayers during this very trying time , '' said Sapreet Kaur , the group 's executive director . `` There have been multiple hate crime shootings within the Sikh community in recent years and the natural impulse of our community is to unfortunately assume the same in this case . Let 's let law enforcement investigate the case and as new facts emerge the dialogue can change . Americans died today in a senseless act of violence and Americans of all faiths should stand in unified support with their Sikh brothers and sisters , '' he added . -- Shiromani Akali Dal , political party in India . India 's Sikh party is planning to hold a demonstration near the American embassy in New Delhi on Monday . `` The U.S. government should act decisively to stop these inhuman attacks , '' said Manjit Singh , a senior member of the Shiromani Akali Dal party . There are around 25 million followers of Sikhism worldwide . Most live in India . -- Kanwardeep Singh Kaleka , Wisconsin temple member . Kaleka , who helped police interview witnesses , decried the attack as a hate crime . Authorities have not classified it as such , saying they are treating the shooting as a `` domestic terrorist-type incident . '' `` It seems like this person has this 9/11 tattoo , obviously has some animosity about those incidents , and ignorantly takes it out on a community that he thinks are responsible -- which is ludicrous in every way . Not only are we Sikh , we 're not Muslim . But Muslims themselves are not responsible as a group for that , '' said Kaleka . Just days after September 11 , 2001 , a Sikh man was gunned down outside an Arizona gas station , apparently because he looked Muslim or Arab . Balbir Singh Sodhi was neither . He was a Sikh , and the first person to be murdered in retaliation for the 9/11 attacks . Those attacks provoked a wave of organizing among Sikhs worried about being mistakenly targeted . -- Surinder Singh , spokesman for the Guru Nanak Mission Society of Atlanta . Singh echoed the idea that Sikhs can be confused for Muslims and Hindus and have been targeted because of that potential . Sikh women are less identifiable than men , who customarily wear beards and turbans . Many American Sikh women dress like other Westerners or wear the salwar kameez , a traditional north Indian garment of a long shirt and loose-fitting pants . The entire Sikh community `` will be kind of scared '' following Sunday 's killings , Singh said . -- The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee . The committee urged members of the Arab , Muslim and South Asian-American communities to exercise `` extreme '' caution at places of worship in the wake of the Wisconsin attack . It also urged those same people to report incidents of harassment , abuse or violence . `` The increase of anti-Muslim rhetoric by certain media personalities , elected officials , and political hopefuls is detrimental to our Country ; and , as already experienced , leads to an increase in hate crimes against Arab , Muslim , and South Asian-Americans , as well as those perceived to be Arab or Muslim , '' the committee said in a statement . `` ADC will continue to stand with the Sikh American community , and other minority groups , in combating discrimination and hate , '' it added . CNN 's Harmeet Singh contributed to this report .
The largest Sikh American civil rights organization in the United States calls for unity . India 's Sikh party plans a protest near the American embassy in New Delhi . Because of their beards and turbans , Sikh men are often mistaken for Hindus or Muslims . The entire Sikh community `` will be kind of scared '' following the attack , says one follower .