State Senate President Darrell Steinberg wore a Sikh turban in honor of two Sikhs shot early last month in Elk Grove; one was killed and the other wounded.
A Sikh spokeswoman said that ever since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, some Americans have mistaken those turbans for the ones worn by Osama bin Laden and other Islamic terrorists. Sikhism has no ties to Islam.
Northern California has the largest and oldest Sikh community in the United States, dating back to the late 19th century.
