Broadening the Circle of Backlash

In the aftermath of the Fort Hood tragedy last week, several Sikh organizations (including the Coalition) sent out a joint email warning Sikhs to be alert of possible backlash against our community. The name of the shooter who killed 13 people on the military base – Nadal Hassan – put Sikhs around the country in immediate danger, given the high risk that we would be mistaken for terrorists and become the targets of hatred and violence because of the way we look.

But one of the first reports of a hate-fuelled beating as a supposed result of the For Hood attacks did not involve a Muslim or a Sikh or an Arab or South Asian. In fact, it was of Rev. Alexios Marakis, a Greek Orthodox priest, in Tampa. When he got lost on his way back from a blessing, the priest stopped a young man to ask for directions. That man turned out to be Lance Cpl. Jasen D. Bruce, a Marine Reservist, who proceeded to beat the priest over the head with a tire iron and chased him for three blocks. The Marine believed the Reverend was “an Arab terrorist” because of his limited English proficiency.

After the Sikh Coalition sent out that email last week, some community members asked why we are seeking to join alliances with
other faith groups to denounce the attacks and stand together against backlash. The reason is simply this. In the atmosphere of fear and hatred, all of us who look or think differently from the mainstream are in danger of becoming targets. We need to work together to stand up in the face of ignorance and hate. The Reverend’s story reminds me of a famous poem about political action that some of you may have heard:

First they came for the communists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a communist;
Then they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a socialist;
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a trade unionist;
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—because I was not a Jew;
Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak out for me.

This is why we must stand together against hatred and backlash wherever we see it occurring in our society, whether it is aimed at a Sikh or a Muslim, a man or a woman, a black or a white.

The Power of the Youth Don’t Stop

Last Thursday, I attended a rally and press conference at City Hall in NYC in support of the Student Safety Act. About 100 fired up students from Desis Rising Up and Moving (DRUM), Make the Road New York, and the Urban Youth Collaborative gathered to speak out about the harassment and abuse that youth of color and immigrant youth face at the hands of school safety agents (who are employed by the NYPD) in NYC public schools.

The message was clear: it is unacceptable for those who are supposed to be keeping students safe in schools to actually be creating repressive and abusive school climates.

The Veto of California’s Kirpan Education Bill – FAQs

As many of you have already heard, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger last week vetoed a proposed law pertaining to Sikhs and Sikh articles of faith, including the kirpan. In the aftermath of the announcement, there has been some confusion about the purpose of the law and the meaning of the Governor’s veto. Below, we have tried to address a few of the main questions we are being asked by community members about the bill and the veto.

Sikh Youth Activists Awarded for Anti-Bullying Work

Last Thursday, Sikh youth who have been taking a stand against bigotry in schools were honored by the Center for the Study of Asian American Health (CSAAH) at the NYU School of Medicine’s annual Asian American Health Conference. The Sikh Coalition youth activists were among many distinguished awardees including government officials, nonprofit leaders, and other youth and community activists who have been working for healthier, more empowered Asian American communities.

Sick and tired of being sick and tired

Today is the 92nd birthday of the late Fannie Lou Hamer, one of the great leaders of the African American civil rights and freedom movement in the United States. Many of the rights we benefit from today are a direct result of the tireless work of this inspiring activist and freedom fighter and others like her. Here is a short video for you to honor her work and her life. Happy Birthday Fannie Lou Hamer!

Getting in touch with our roots (& wings) in Richmond Hill

This past Saturday evening, the Sikh Coalition along with the Guru Gobind Singh Study Circle hosted a screening of teenage filmmaker Angad Singh’s documentary, Roots and Wings, at Gurdwara Baba Makhan Shah Lobana in Richmond Hill, Queens.

Angad Singh (right) with Jagmohan Singh Premi

Angad Singh, a high school sophomore from Atlanta, GA, was in town for the weekend to screen his work-in-progress film about the struggles of Sikh youth in the US at the Sikh Art & Film Foundation’s Children’s Film Festival at Hofstra University. We decided to show the film in Richmond Hill as well to make it more accessible to youth in the community.

Bringing it Home, Out of the Shadows

Yesterday afternoon I joined several faith leaders from diverse communities for a meeting with Congressman Anthony Weiner (D-NY) in his district office in Kew Gardens, Queens to discuss immigration reform. The Sikh Coalition is a part of growing group of organizations around the country bringing a faith-based voice to the immigration debate, and in particular has been active in the New York Interfaith Network on Immigration Reform.

In the meeting with Congressman Weiner, we discussed what it’s going to take to realistically fix this broken immigration system that has deemed the lives of 12 million undocumented immigrants in this country worthless. 12 million people living in the shadows, at risk of being torn apart from their families and loved ones at any moment. This is a statistic we hear a lot, but as Sikhs, what does it really mean to us? How does it hit home? What is our responsibility as Guru-oriented people?

Yesterday it hit home for me.

Counting Every Sikh in Census 2010

Click Here to read the form for Census 2010.

Over the past few weeks, the Coalition has received varied requests for our involvement with Census 2010 efforts across the United States. Next year’s census count promises to be one of the largest mobilizing events of this administration. But the Sikh Coalition has decided not to play an active role in the Census next year for the reason described below.

New Video: From the Classroom to the Capitol

Filmmaker Kevin Lee just finished a new short documentary film entitled From the Classroom to the Capitol: The Sikh Coalition. The film was screened for the first time on August 8, 2009 at the Sikh Coalition’s first ever gala in New York City.

Kevin Lee is a an award-winning, New York-based filmmaker who also directed the films Warrior Saints and Dastaar: Defending Sikh Identity. This new documentary, From the Classroom to the Capitol, includes interviews with community members who have experienced discrimination or hate violence as well as Sikh Coalition staff members and interns who provide a behind the scenes glimpse at the Sikh Civil Rights movement in the United States.

We are grateful for Kevin’s commitment to documenting these stories which are so important to Sikhs in the U.S. and around the world.

Bay Area Sikh Needs Assessment Officially Kicks Off

Sikh children at Fremont Gurdwara Sahib's Summer Camp

By Bhavreet Singh, the Sikh Coalition’s California Community Organizing Intern for Summer 2009.

On August 13^th, the Sikh Coalition’s Bay Area Needs Assessment project in California officially kicked off. After several months of piloting the survey and revising it based on feedback from community members, partner organizations, and social science researchers, the survey is ready to be administered. Nearly fifty children were surveyed last Thursday at the Fremont Gurdwara’s kids’ summer camp. The kids were very responsive, and they took time to properly complete the survey.

The purpose of the Bay Area Needs Assessment is to determine the  major civil rights issues that are most impacting the Bay Area Sikh community by conducting surveys throughout the Bay Area. There are two versions of the same survey: one for children in grade school and another for adults. These surveys are available in English and Punjabi for in-person administration at Gurdwaras and Sikh events. The Sikh Coalition will also administer English versions of the survey online. It is important that Bay Area Sikhs take part in this project because the result of these surveys will be used to create Sikh Coalition’s civil rights agenda for the upcoming years. Without the participation and support of Bay Area Sikhs, the Sikh Coalition cannot effectively do quality and high-impact work to protect Sikhs’ civil rights.

The Sikh Coalition will need Punjabi and English speaking sevadars to help implement the surveys in Bay Area Gurdwaras and at local Sikh events. If any one is interested in doing this seva, please contact Ravneet Kaur at ravneet@sikhcoalition.org.