Members of California’s Sikh trucking community say a deadly crash involving one of its own, which triggered heated national debates over immigration, is being manipulated to fuel anti-Sikh rhetoric.

On Aug. 12, Harjinder Singh, an India-born truck driver, made a U-turn on the Florida Turnpike that authorities say caused a crash that killed three people. The crash and subsequent investigations stirred arguments between Florida's Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis and California's Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom.

It also sparked online vitriol denigrating members of the monotheistic religion, who often covet high-paying trucking jobs that allow Sikh men to wear beards, uncut hair and turbans as part of their faith.

Bhupinder Kaur, who works for UNITED SIKHS and whose dad owns a gas station, says the response has been "devastating." Kaur said the UN-affiliated organization has been supporting the victims as well as Singh. "His family contacted us and we wanted to ensure that he's getting a fair and just trial and also that his religious freedoms are protected," she said.

Estimates of the U.S. Sikh population range as high as 750,000, with the largest concentration in California. Many work in the trucking industry and related businesses, including restaurants and trucking schools along major routes. The North American Punjabi Trucking Association estimates that Sikhs control about 40% of truck driving in America.

In Florida, Harjinder Singh faces manslaughter and vehicular homicide charges, and is being held without bond. Florida authorities say he entered the U.S. illegally from Mexico in 2018. However, California officials say federal authorities told them he was in the country legally with a work permit when California issued him a driver’s license.

The Trump administration said Singh should have never received a commercial driver’s license because of his immigration status and poor English skills because he failed a proficiency test after the crash. But New Mexico officials released a video of a traffic stop that showed Singh communicating in English with an officer.

DeSantis sent Florida’s lieutenant governor to California to oversee the handover of the truck driver, saying Singh should never have been behind the wheel and calling him a “thug.”

Others in the Sikh trucking industry worry the crash is being manipulated to make them scapegoats in the country's bitter fight over immigration.

Sikhism was founded more than 500 years ago in India’s Punjab region. It is among the world's largest religions with about 25 million followers.

For many years, Sikh migrants from Punjab — once India's breadbasket — have been moving abroad in search of better opportunities. Fragile farm incomes and scarce jobs are drivers of the more recent exodus. The vast Sikh diaspora continues to fuel aspirations, reinforcing the belief that migration, legal or illegal, is the surest path to stability.

In America, young Sikhs still struggle with the discrimination the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks unleashed against their community, ranging from school bullying to racial profiling to hate crimes — especially against men whose beards and turbans can stand out.