A 19-year-old man tried to carry out a mass shooting at a Hindu temple in Aurora, Illinois, on Sunday while Democratic Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi and his family were inside.
Alexandros Paporakis, 19, was thwarted in his attempt to open fire on the Sri Venkateswara Swami Balaji Temple thanks to his rifle jamming, Krishnamoorthi said in a statement, citing Cook County prosecutors. Paporakis allegedly told his co-workers about what he did and said he planned to try again.
His co-workers contacted police, who arrested him at his home nearby. Investigators later found a manifesto that Paporakis allegedly wrote titled “Why I Fought: A.K.A. (Aurora Shooter’s Manifesto)” showing support for white supremacist ideas, the Chicago Tribune reported. They also found weapons, hundreds of rifle ammunition rounds, body armor, a patch with a white supremacist picture on it, and tactical equipment.
“I am horrified that a white supremacist attempted to carry out a mass shooting targeting Indian Americans at the Hindu temple in Aurora where my family worships,” Krishnamoorthi said in his statement.
Racism against South Asians has ramped up in recent months, spurred on by right-wing politicians and media. Bo French, the Republican nominee to lead the Texas Railroad Commission, made a racist X post attacking a picture of several South Asian students at a University of Texas football game.
“The problem is now obviously far worse than anyone imagined,” French posted.
The picture quickly became conservative fodder. It was the topic of discussion on a September 26 episode of the right-wing podcast Rufo & Lomez, hosted by right-wing ideologues Christopher Rufo (famous for pushing attacks on critical race theory and DEI) and Jonathan Keeperman. The pair discussed what they called the “Indian Question” and defended French’s post, making the racist claim that the Texas students had not properly “assimilated” into American culture.
Krishnamoorthi criticized the episode in an X post, saying that “Indian Americans are not an ‘Indian Question’ to be solved.”
“Treating any American community as a problem because of their ethnicity is racist, xenophobic, and fundamentally un-American. We are a nation born of ideals, not bloodlines. No race, religion, or ancestry has a greater claim to America than another. Indian Americans are as American as anyone. This country belongs to all of us,” Krishnamoorthi posted.
Meanwhile, Rufo and Keeperman’s ideas are being amplified by their fellow travelers in the Trump administration, who turn a blind eye to incidents like the one in Aurora.