tag:theconversation.com,2011:/us/topics/sikhs-57989/articlesSikhs – The Conversation2023-09-20T18:46:30Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2139562023-09-20T18:46:30Z2023-09-20T18:46:30ZThe fraught history of India and the Khalistan movement<iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100px; border: none; position: relative; z-index: 1;" allowtransparency="" allow="clipboard-read; clipboard-write" src="https://narrations.ad-auris.com/widget/the-conversation-canada/the-fraught-history-of-india-and-the-khalistan-movement" width="100%" height="400"></iframe>
<p>The Indian government has warned its citizens living in Canada to exercise “<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/sep/20/india-warning-citizens-canada-sikh-activist-trudeau">extreme caution</a>” due to a “deteriorating security environment” in the country. </p>
<p>The warning came after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that Canadian police were investigating “credible allegations” of the Indian government’s involvement in the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar.</p>
<p>On June 18, 2023, 46-year-old Nijjar, who migrated to Canada in 1997 and became a Canadian citizen in 2015, was shot dead by two masked gunmen in the parking lot of the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara in Surrey, B.C.</p>
<p>The Indian government has denied any involvement, and as a result of the allegations, <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/09/19/india-expels-canada-diplomat-sikh-assassination/">both countries have expelled diplomats from the other</a>.</p>
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<p>In late 2022, the Canadian government <a href="https://www.canada.ca/en/global-affairs/news/2023/02/minister-joly-to-travel-to-india-to-deepen-indo-pacific-strategy-partnerships.html">spoke of building a stronger partnership</a> on the shared tradition of democracy between the two countries. But now, after a brief interlude of bonhomie, the Indo-Canadian relationship has reverted to a deep chill.</p>
<p>Canada correctly points out that the involvement of any foreign government in the killing of a Canadian citizen on Canadian soil is a violation of its sovereignty. India insists that Canada, particularly Trudeau’s Liberal government, has consistently ignored so-called terrorist activities against India by supporters of the <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/khalistan-explained-canada-india-nijjar-1.6971803">Khalistan movement</a>.</p>
<h2>The Khalistan movement</h2>
<p>The Sikh population in India is estimated to be <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/09/20/canada-india-tensions-sikh-population/">about 22 million</a> (1.7 per cent of the population), the majority of whom reside in the northern state of Punjab. The demand for a separate independent homeland for Sikhs — Khalistan — can be traced back to the 1940s when the <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-south-asia-62467438">British partitioned India</a> and created Pakistan.</p>
<p>The movement was quiet until the 1970s, largely as a result of the <a href="https://powermin.gov.in/sites/default/files/uploads/Punjab_Re_organisation_Act_0.pdf">Indian government dividing Punjab</a> into a Punjabi speaking majority Sikh state (Punjab) and a Hindi-speaking state (Haryana) in 1966.</p>
<p>However, during the 1970s and 1980s, Punjab was engulfed in a violent political mass movement. Demand for a separate independent homeland was driven by the need to protect the Sikh religion and identity from the assimilationist policies of the Indian state, the need to address the rising unemployment in the agricultural community and Sikh youths.</p>
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<p>The violence came to a head in June 1984. Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi ordered the army to <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-23514583">storm the Golden Temple</a> in the city of Amritsar, the most sacred and central pilgrimage site for Sikhs, where the leaders of the Khalistan movement had taken refuge.</p>
<p>After a week of fighting, not only was the temple desecrated, but more than 400 people were killed — including the leaders of the movement — and hundreds more were injured.</p>
<p>The Sikh community was deeply shocked both within and outside India. Just four months later, in October 1984, <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/india/india-rebukes-canada-over-parade-float-showing-assassination-indira-gandhi-2023-06-08/">Gandhi was assassinated</a> by two of her Sikh bodyguards. Her Congress party’s Hindu workers led <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2018/12/17/asia/sajjan-kumar-verdict-intl/index.html">anti-Sikh riots</a> that killed thousands of Sikhs.</p>
<p>For the Sikh diaspora, many of whom left India after the riots, the suffering of their community has remained etched in their memories. </p>
<p>The Indian state has taken little action to convict those behind the violence against the Sikh community or to enter into a truth and reconciliation process with the community.</p>
<h2>Khalistan activists killed</h2>
<p>Nijjar’s murder is the <a href="https://www.firstpost.com/explainers/explained-how-three-khalistani-terrorists-died-suddenly-in-past-two-months-12765982.html">third targeted killing</a> of Khalistan leaders outside India. </p>
<p>In May, Paramjit Singh Panjwar, head of the Khalistan Commando Force, was shot dead by two identified gunmen in Lahore, Pakistan. In June, Avtar Singh Khanda of the U.K.-based Khalistan Liberation force was suspected of death by poisoning.</p>
<p>Nijjar was head of the Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF) as well as an active member of the United States-based group Sikhs for Justice (SFJ); both organizations are pursuing an independent Sikh homeland. Since 2022, SFJ has been <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/khalistan-referendum-surrey-bc-1.6960101">conducting referendums</a> in Canada and elsewhere in support of Khalistan. </p>
<p>In 2016, <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Khalistan-terror-camp-in-Canada-plotting-attacks-in-Punjab-India-to-Trudeau-govt/articleshow/52495693.cms"><em>The Times of India</em> reported</a> that, according to intelligence officials in Punjab, Nijjar had taken over as the “operational head” of the KTF and was forming groups to launch attacks. </p>
<p>It also claimed that Nijjar frequently visited Pakistan and was in contact with Pakistani intelligence. There have also been allegations that Nijjar was <a href="https://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/surrey-man-accused-on-running-terror-camp-near-mission">running a camp near Mission, B.C.,</a> to carry out an attack in Punjab.</p>
<p><a href="https://globalnews.ca/news/2731101/canadian-officials-not-talking-about-b-c-terror-camp-claim/">Mission Mayor Randy Hawes says that report is not credible</a>. Ralph Goodale, then Canada’s public safety minister, <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/extremist-allegations-bc-1.3608111">would not comment</a> at the time when asked if there was any basis to that allegation.</p>
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<p><a href="https://globalnews.ca/news/2736482/b-c-man-accused-of-being-terror-suspect-writes-letter-to-justin-trudeau/">In an open letter to Trudeau</a>, Nijjar pointed out that allegations against him were “factually baseless and fabricated.” He added: </p>
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<p>“Because of my campaign for Sikh rights, it’s my belief that I have become a target of an Indian government media campaign to label my human rights campaign as ‘terrorist activities.’”</p>
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<p>The Nijjar episode is the latest in the ongoing saga between India and Canada over the Khalistan movement. The Indian government claims that Canada’s failure to ban groups like KTF and SFJ compromises India’s sovereignty, territorial integrity and security.</p>
<p>Canada has so far refused to stop the referendums. Meanwhile, India’s current Hindu populist regime remains intolerant of any dissenting voices — especially from minority communities.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/213956/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Reeta Tremblay has received funding from SSHRC. </span></em></p>Hardeep Singh Nijjar is one of three high-profile Sikh political activists to be killed in recent months.Reeta Tremblay, Adjunct and Professor Emerita, University of VictoriaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2139602023-09-20T12:26:26Z2023-09-20T12:26:26ZWhy India fears the Khalistan movement and how Canada became embroiled in diplomatic spat over killing of Sikh separatist<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549211/original/file-20230920-27-ybhlcd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=17%2C51%2C3828%2C2531&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in happier times.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/canadian-prime-minister-justin-trudeau-with-pm-narendra-news-photo/923312238?adppopup=true">Vipin Kumar/Hindustan Times via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>India and Canada have engaged in <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/09/19/india-expels-canada-diplomat-sikh-assassination/">tit-for-tat diplomatic expulsions</a> as part of an escalating row over the <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/canada-india-killing-sikh-activist-hardeep-singh-nijjar-rcna105749#:%7E:text=Nijjar%2C%2045%2C%20was%20shot%20and,Trudeau%20told%20Parliament%20on%20Monday.">killing of a Sikh separatist leader</a> on Canadian soil.</em></p>
<p><em>The expulsions follow claims by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau that there are “<a href="https://abc13.com/canada-investigating-credible-allegations-linked-to-sikh-leaders/13799637/">credible allegations</a>” linking the Indian government of Narendra Modi with the <a href="https://apnews.com/article/canada-india-sikh-trudeau-modi-nijjar-fb390e4a45d167711db4f96681edd0a2#:%7E:text=NEW%20DELHI%20(AP)%20%E2%80%94%20Hardeep,a%20terrorist%20by%20India's%20government.">death of Hardeep Singh Nijjar</a>. Nijjar, a prominent member of the Khalistan movement seeking to create an independent Sikh homeland in the Indian state of Punjab, was shot dead on June 18, 2023, outside a Sikh cultural center in Surrey, British Columbia.</em></p>
<p><em>With tensions between the two countries rising, The Conversation reached out to <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=LVf6UHIAAAAJ&hl=en">Mark Juergensmeyer</a> – an expert on religious violence and Sikh nationalism – at the University of California, Santa Barbara, to bring context to a diplomatic spat few saw coming.</em></p>
<h2>1. What is the Khalistan movement?</h2>
<p>“Khalistan” means “the land of the pure,” though in this context the term “khalsa” refers broadly to the religious community of Sikhs, and the term “Khalistan” implies that <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/what-is-khalistan-movement-why-is-it-fuelling-india-canada-rift-2023-09-19/">they should have their own nation</a>. The likely location for this nation would be in Punjab state in northern India where <a href="https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/religionglobalsociety/2023/01/rethinking-religion-and-nationalism-the-case-of-the-sikhs/">18 million Sikhs live</a>. A further 8 million Sikhs <a href="https://doi.org/10.4000/osb.5894">live elsewhere in India and abroad</a>, mainly in the U.K., the U.S. and Canada. </p>
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<p>The idea for an independent land for Sikhs goes back to pre-partition India, when the concept of a separate land for Muslims in India was being considered.</p>
<p>Some Sikhs at that time thought that if Muslims could have “Pakistan” – the state that <a href="https://storyofpakistan.com/the-birth-of-pakistan-2/">emerged through partition in 1947</a> – then there should also be a “Sikhistan,” or “Khalistan.” That idea was rejected by the Indian government, and instead the Sikhs <a href="https://punjab.global.ucsb.edu/sites/secure.lsit.ucsb.edu.gisp.d7_sp/files/sitefiles/journals/volume19/no2/Sandhu.pdf">became a part of the state of Punjab</a>. At that time the boundaries of the Punjab were drawn in such a way that the Sikhs were not in the majority. </p>
<p>But Sikhs persisted, in part because one of the central tenets of the faith is “<a href="https://sikhri.org/articles/miri-piri">miri-piri</a>” – the idea that religious and political leadership are merged. In their 500-year history, Sikhs <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/abs/sikhs-of-the-punjab/sikh-empire-17991849/F392B4CF5D691DA781A20C00CCF5DC2A">have had their own kingdom</a>, have fought against Moghul rule and constituted the <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chandigarh/gallant-and-patriotic-how-sikhs-shaped-armed-forces/articleshow/99028321.cms?from=mdr">backbone of the army</a> under India’s colonial and independent rule. </p>
<p>In the 1960s, the idea of a <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-66852291">separate homeland for Sikhs</a> reemerged and formed part of the demand for redrawing the boundaries of Punjab state so that Sikhs would be in the majority. The protests were successful, and the Indian government created <a href="https://www.thesikhencyclopedia.com/historical-events-in-sikh-history/the-modern-history-of-sikhs-1947-present/punjabi-suba-movement/">Punjabi Suba</a>, a state whose boundaries included speakers of the Punjabi language used by most Sikhs. They now compose <a href="https://religionunplugged.com/news/2022/3/11/how-sikhs-became-a-new-target-of-indias-right-wing-and-voted-out-the-bjp">58% of the population</a> of the revised Punjab. </p>
<p>The notion of a “Khalistan” separate from India resurfaced in a dramatic way in the <a href="https://time.com/3545867/india-1984-sikh-genocide-anniversary/">large-scale militant uprising</a> that erupted in the Punjab in the 1980s. Many of those Sikhs who joined the militant movement did so because they wanted an independent Sikh nation, not just a Sikh-majority Indian state. </p>
<h2>2. Why is the Indian government especially concerned about it now?</h2>
<p>The Sikh uprising in the 1980s was a violent encounter <a href="https://time.com/3545867/india-1984-sikh-genocide-anniversary/">between the Indian armed police and militant young Sikhs</a>, many of whom still harbored a yearning for a separate state in Punjab. </p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549219/original/file-20230920-29-o3pv4f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Several men, wearing yellow or blue turbans and flowing white shirts, standing inside a building, while holding guns." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549219/original/file-20230920-29-o3pv4f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549219/original/file-20230920-29-o3pv4f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=843&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549219/original/file-20230920-29-o3pv4f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=843&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549219/original/file-20230920-29-o3pv4f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=843&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549219/original/file-20230920-29-o3pv4f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1060&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549219/original/file-20230920-29-o3pv4f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1060&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549219/original/file-20230920-29-o3pv4f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1060&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Sikh leader Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, seated center, with his followers in Amritsar, on April 17, 1984.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/IndiaJarnailBhindranwale/ac229078c41d41359643bf9de67da2cb/photo?Query=operation%20bluestar&mediaType=photo&sortBy=&dateRange=Anytime&totalCount=1050&currentItemNo=2&vs=true">AP Photo/Sondeep Shanker</a></span>
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<p>Thousands of lives were lost on both sides in <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2014/10/29/india-no-justice-1984-anti-sikh-bloodshed">violent encounters between the Sikh militants and security forces</a>. The conflict came to a head in 1984 when Prime Minister Indira Gandhi <a href="https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-history/operation-bluestar-history-explained-8648026/">launched Operation Blue Star</a> to liberate the Sikh’s Golden Temple from militants in the pilgrimage center of Amritsar and capture or kill the figurehead of the Khalistan movement, Sant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale. He was killed in the attack, and Sikhs around the world were incensed that their sacred place was violated by police action. Indira Gandhi was <a href="https://warwick.ac.uk/newsandevents/features/indira-gandhi-assassination/">assassinated in retaliation</a> by Sikh members of her own bodyguard. </p>
<p>In recent years, several firebrand Sikh activists in India have reasserted the idea of Khalistan, and the Indian government <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2023/03/22/india/india-separatist-khalistan-movement-explainer-intl-hnk/index.html">fears a return</a> of the violence and militancy of the 1980s. The government of Narendra Modi <a href="https://sundayguardianlive.com/news/pm-modi-seeks-action-against-khalistan-network-in-the-west">wants to nip the movement</a> in the bud before it gets too large and extreme.</p>
<h2>3. What is the connection between the Khalistan movement and Canada?</h2>
<p>After the Sikh uprising was <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/1996/09/16/world/a-decade-after-massacre-some-sikhs-find-justice.html">crushed in the early 1990s</a>, many Sikh activists fled India and went to Canada, where they were welcomed by a large Sikh community – many of whom had been sympathetic to the Khalistan idea. A sizable expatriate community of Sikhs has been <a href="https://link.springer.com/referenceworkentry/10.1007/978-0-387-29904-4_110">growing in the country since the early 20th century</a>, especially in British Columbia and Ontario.</p>
<p>Sikhs have been attracted to Canada not only because of its economic opportunities but also because of the freedom to develop their own ideas of Sikh community. Though support for Khalistan is <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2023/03/22/india/india-separatist-khalistan-movement-explainer-intl-hnk/index.html">illegal in India</a>, in <a href="https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-history/history-khalistan-in-canada-explained-8946517/">Canada Sikh activists</a> are able to speak freely and organize for the cause.</p>
<p>Though Khalistan would be in India, the Canadian movement in favor of it helps to cement the diaspora Sikh identity and give the Canadian activists a sense of connection to the Indian homeland. </p>
<h2>4. Has the Canadian government been sympathetic to the Khalistan movement?</h2>
<p>The diaspora community of Sikhs <a href="https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/221026/dq221026b-eng.htm">constitutes 2.1% of Canada’s population</a> – a higher percentage of the total population than in India. They make up a significant voting block in the country and carry political clout. In fact, there are more Sikhs in Canada’s cabinet than in India’s.</p>
<p>Although Trudeau has assured the Indian government that any acts of violence will be punished, he also has reassured Canadians that he respects free speech and the rights of Sikhs to speak and organize freely as long as they do not violate Canadian laws. </p>
<h2>5. What is the broader context of Canada-India relations?</h2>
<p>The Bharata Janata Party, or BJP, of India’s Prime Minister Modi tends to support Hindu nationalism.</p>
<p>Recently, the Modi government <a href="https://www.economist.com/the-economist-explains/2023/09/15/will-india-change-its-name-to-bharat">used “Bharat” rather than “India</a>” when referring to the country while hosting the G20 conference, attended by President Joe Biden, among other world dignitaries. “Bharat” is the preference of Hindu nationalists. This privileging, along with an increase in hate crimes, has led to an environment of fear and distrust among minorities, including Sikhs and Muslims, in India.</p>
<p>Considering the high percentage of Sikhs in Canada’s population, Trudeau understandably wants to assert the rights of Sikhs and show disapproval of the drift toward Hindu nationalism in India.</p>
<p>And this isn’t the only time that Trudeau and Modi have clashed over the issue. In 2018, Trudeau was condemned in India for his <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/trudeau-india-atwal-controversy-1.4546502">friendship with Jaspal Singh Atwal</a>, a Khalistani supporter in Canada who was convicted of attempting to assassinate the chief minister of Punjab. </p>
<p>Yet both countries have reasons to try to move on from the current diplomatic contretemps. India and Canada have close trading ties and common strategic concerns with <a href="https://theconversation.com/justin-trudeaus-india-accusation-complicates-western-efforts-to-rein-in-china-213922">relationship to China</a>. It is likely that, in time, both sides will find ways to cool down the tensions from this difficult incident.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/213960/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Mark Juergensmeyer does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau spoke of ‘credible allegations’ of Indian involvement in a Sikh leader’s death.Mark Juergensmeyer, Professor of Sociology and Global Studies, University of California, Santa BarbaraLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2138602023-09-20T04:01:00Z2023-09-20T04:01:00ZExplainer: what is the Khalistan movement sparking a diplomatic feud between India and Canada?<p>The diplomatic fallout continues to worsen over Monday’s shocking <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/sep/19/trudeau-india-expulsions-canada-sikh-leader-killed">accusation</a> by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau that India was behind the assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a prominent Sikh leader and Canadian citizen, outside a Sikh temple in Canada earlier this year.</p>
<p>Trudeau said Tuesday after the Canadian government expelled a senior member of India’s foreign intelligence agency:</p>
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<p>India – and the government of India – needs to take this matter with the utmost seriousness.</p>
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<p>India strongly <a href="https://www.mea.gov.in/press-releases.htm?dtl/37125/India_rejects_allegations_by_Canada">rejected</a> the allegations and <a href="https://apnews.com/article/canada-india-sikh-diplomat-trudeau-modi-3c5572d9027769ea6adbd047ec6f462a">expelled</a> one of Canada’s top diplomats in retaliation, adding further tension to an already strained relationship.</p>
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<h2>What is the Khalistan movement?</h2>
<p>Nijjar had been a designated “<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/19/world/canada/who-is-hardeep-singh-nijjar-india.html">terrorist</a>” by the Indian government in 2020 for his leadership role in a movement advocating for a separate Sikh state to be carved out of the Indian state of Punjab called Khalistan (the land of the Khalsa). </p>
<p>The history of the Khalistan movement is complex. It is, in its most simplistic form, a demand for a distinct homeland for the Sikhs. It was most active in the 1980s as a result of widespread dissatisfaction with the economic, social and political conditions for Sikhs in post-independence India.</p>
<p>The partition of Punjab between Pakistan and India in 1947 created fear and disaffection in the Sikh community. They suddenly found themselves divided between a Muslim-majority Pakistan and a predominantly Hindu India. In 1966, Punjab was divided again, this time on <a href="https://www.indiacode.nic.in/bitstream/123456789/1645/1/196631.pdf">linguistic lines</a>, as a new Hindi-speaking state of Haryana was carved out of the region. </p>
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<a href="https://theconversation.com/is-a-sikh-separatist-movement-seeing-a-resurgence-four-decades-after-sparking-terror-in-india-204533">Is a Sikh separatist movement seeing a resurgence four decades after sparking terror in India?</a>
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<p>Punjab’s Sikh community was also impacted by India’s <a href="https://frontline.thehindu.com/the-nation/india-at-75-epochal-moments-1966-green-revolution-begins/article65730524.ece">Green Revolution</a>, an initiative in the late 1960s to improve agricultural production. While this benefited Punjab economically, it created resentment among Sikhs due to the inequitable distribution of wealth, the lack of non-agricultural development and the central government’s monopoly over agricultural policy. </p>
<p>Another issue contributing to the Sikhs’ sense of injustice was the diversion of water from the Sutlej River that flowed through Punjab to the neighbouring states of Haryana and Rajasthan.</p>
<p>All this resentment was given a voice in the late 1970s by the Sikh preacher Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, who claimed the government was discriminating against Sikhs and intentionally undermining Sikh identity. Bhindranwale soon became a prominent political leader in Punjab, ultimately taking up residence in the Golden Temple complex in the city of Amritsar, one of the Sikhs’ holiest sites. He established something of a parallel government there, fortified with weapons.</p>
<p>To dispel Bhindranwale and the militants from the Golden Temple, the Indian army launched <a href="https://www.thestatesman.com/features/operation-bluestar-military-operation-changed-politics-india-1503077818.html">Operation Bluestar</a> in June 1984. The operation further angered the Sikh population, including the large diaspora around the world, for the desecration of the holy site. </p>
<p>The resentment only worsened when more than 2,700 Sikhs (as per government estimates) were <a href="https://time.com/3545867/india-1984-sikh-genocide-anniversary/">killed</a> in New Delhi by rampaging mobs after the assassination of then-Prime Minister Indira Gandhi by her Sikh bodyguards in November 1984. Within Punjab, this was a period of violence and draconian <a href="https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/kps-gill-the-supercop-who-fought-punjab-insurgency-in-1980s-2339267-2023-02-24">policing</a> measures used to suppress the separatist movement.</p>
<p>Farmer <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-59566157">protests</a> in New Delhi in 2020–21, led predominantly by Sikhs from Punjab, brought the issue of Khalistan back into the public eye. Supporters in Punjab began advocating for the potential revival of the movement. <a href="https://indianexpress.com/article/india/khalistan-farmers-protest-supreme-court-7143649/">Government actors</a> also cited this possibility as a way to <a href="https://www.outlookindia.com/website/story/india-news-how-to-divide-farmers-use-khalistan-maoist-and-tukde-tukde-gang/367191">delegitimise</a> the protests. </p>
<p>The Indian government has also <a href="https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/khalistan-supporters-getting-funding-from-pakistan-other-countries-bhagwant-mann/article66556761.ece">claimed</a> for years that Pakistan has provided support to exiled Khalistani groups to promote disharmony in India. </p>
<p>Then, earlier this year, <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/4/23/amritpal-singh-who-is-he-and-why-was-he-arrested">Amritpal Singh</a> – a self-styled Sikh preacher – was arrested after reviving calls for an independent Sikh homeland in Punjab. This stirred fears of renewed violence and reignited debates on a very <a href="https://scroll.in/article/1046289/why-are-sikhs-abroad-more-pro-khalistan-than-community-members-living-in-india">polarising</a> issue.</p>
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<h2>‘O Canada’</h2>
<p>The Khalistan movement has always had a transnational character. The Indian army’s operation in Amritsar and the anti-Sikh violence in 1984 created an enduring memory for many Sikhs that has transcended India’s borders. </p>
<p>The Khalistan movement found supporters among the large and scattered Sikh diaspora, predominantly in Canada, the UK and Australia. Canada is home to the largest Sikh population outside Punjab, comprising more than 2% of the country’s <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-66852291">population</a>. It also has significant <a href="https://theprint.in/theprint-essential/sikhs-so-powerful-in-canada-its-not-about-numbers/314036/">political representation</a>.</p>
<p>Canadian-based Sikh organisations were blamed for the 1985 bombing of an <a href="https://www.publicsafety.gc.ca/cnt/ntnl-scrt/cntr-trrrsm/r-nd-flght-182/index-en.aspx">Air India flight</a> from Toronto to London, which killed 329 people onboard. One man acquitted in the attack was <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-62175291">shot dead</a> last year in the same Canadian town where Nijjar was gunned down in June.</p>
<p>The Indian government has repeatedly claimed the Khalistan movement remains active with the <a href="https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/khalistan-outfits-chief-nijjar-was-wanted-by-the-nia-and-punjab-police-in-multiple-cases/article67323323.ece">support</a> of militants continuing to operate in Canada. New Delhi has repeatedly accused Ottawa of <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/sep/19/trudeau-india-expulsions-canada-sikh-leader-killed">giving safe haven</a> to “Khalistani terrorists and extremists”.</p>
<p>The Indian government was further outraged in 2019 when the Trudeau government <a href="https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-politics/khalistan-shadow-on-india-canada-ties-8947270/">removed</a> mentions of Khalistan and “Sikh extremism” from a public report on terror threats to Canada.</p>
<p>And in recent years, New Delhi has been dismayed by <a href="https://www.punjabreferendumcommission.org/">public referendums</a> on the creation of an independent Khalistan state, which have been held intermittently in <a href="https://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/indian-pm-rebukes-canada-on-sikh-independence-as-vote-held-in-surrey">Canada</a>, <a href="https://tribune.com.pk/story/2337912/another-round-of-khalistan-referendum-held-in-uk-cities">the UK</a>, <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-06-10/tensions-over-khalistan-separatist-movement-boil-over-in-sydney/102463024">Australia</a> and other countries.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1700966214401745069"}"></div></p>
<p>Owing to these issues, India-Canada ties have been on a rapid decline. In recent days, New Delhi <a href="https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/india-paused-trade-talks-with-canada-over-khalistan-row-after-trudeau-g20-visit-101695100180423.html">paused talks</a> on a landmark free-trade agreement between the countries over Ottawa’s perceived support for separatist groups in Canada. This followed a <a href="https://apnews.com/article/canada-india-sikh-diplomat-trudeau-modi-3c5572d9027769ea6adbd047ec6f462a">frosty exchange</a> between Trudeau and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the G20 summit in New Delhi.</p>
<p>India has largely <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/09/09/do-we-give-india-free-pass-human-rights">avoided criticism</a> for its own dwindling record on human rights as it has grown closer to the US, Australia and other countries in the Indo-Pacific region in recent years. Whether this changes following Canada’s accusations, however, remains to be seen. </p>
<p>Australia said it was “<a href="https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/australia-deeply-concerned-as-india-rejects-canadas-allegations-on-sikh-activists-murder/a269c5i9i">deeply concerned</a>” by the allegations of India’s involvement in Nijjar’s killing. A UK government spokesperson also called the allegations “<a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/britain-says-continue-trade-talks-with-india-despite-canada-allegations-2023-09-19/">serious</a>” but said the two countries would continue negotiating their own trade deal. </p>
<p>There are likely to be more public and diplomatic ramifications of this incident in the months to come.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/who-are-the-sikhs-and-what-are-their-beliefs-97237">Who are the Sikhs and what are their beliefs?</a>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/213860/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Stuti Bhatnagar does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>India has long accused Canada of giving safe haven to separatists seeking a Sikh homeland in Punjab state – an accusation the Trudeau government denies.Stuti Bhatnagar, Research Fellow (Asian Security), Australian National UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2045332023-05-11T20:08:14Z2023-05-11T20:08:14ZIs a Sikh separatist movement seeing a resurgence four decades after sparking terror in India?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/525543/original/file-20230511-12732-3yz7wq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=115%2C12%2C3996%2C2621&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Prabhjot Gill/AP</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>It is not surprising that recent acts of vandalism by suspected Sikh separatists in Australia and North America have generated a sense of déjà vu. </p>
<p>In March, groups of separatists <a href="https://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/amritpal-crackdown-khalistan-supporters-attack-indian-consulate-in-san-francisco-101679315531952.html">vandalised the Indian consulate</a> in San Francisco. Another group of separatists blocked the entrance to the Indian consulate in Brisbane, forcing it to <a href="https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/chandigarh-news/khalistan-supporters-force-indian-consulate-in-brisbane-s-to-close-down-101678889968284.html">close</a> temporarily. This followed attacks on three Hindu temples in Australia, allegedly by supporters of a group called Sikhs for Justice. </p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/525544/original/file-20230511-22-jukz0b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/525544/original/file-20230511-22-jukz0b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/525544/original/file-20230511-22-jukz0b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/525544/original/file-20230511-22-jukz0b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/525544/original/file-20230511-22-jukz0b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/525544/original/file-20230511-22-jukz0b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/525544/original/file-20230511-22-jukz0b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Graffiti on the Indian consulate in San Francisco last month.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Jeff Chiu/AP</span></span>
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<p>Tensions are also <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/04/16/india-punjab-sikh-khalistan-amritpal-singh/">rising in India</a> over the same Sikh separatist movement, with sporadic bouts of violence and the <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-65063620">recent arrest</a> of a firebrand preacher and independence leader, Amritpal Singh, under India’s National Security Act.</p>
<p>Elsewhere, the alleged military chief of a Sikh separatist group, Paramjit Singh Panjwar, was <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/khalistan-outfit-chief-shot-dead-in-lahore/articleshow/100044077.cms?from=mdr">gunned down</a> in Lahore, Pakistan, last week. There was no immediate claim of responsibility. </p>
<p>The separatists demand the creation of a Sikh state, “Khalistan,” in the north of India. In various cartographic fantasies, this new state would include the Indian capital of New Delhi and Lahore, which which was the capital of the great Sikh leader, Ranjit Singh, in the early 19th century.</p>
<p>Are these recent acts marking the revival of a full-blown Sikh separatist movement like the one India saw in the 1980s? </p>
<p>Nearly four decades ago, the demand for a separate homeland for Sikhs generated widespread terror, particularly in the Indian state of Punjab. It radicalised sections of the overseas Indian diaspora, as well. </p>
<h2>A violent history</h2>
<p>There was some degree of disaffection within the Sikh community following the split of Punjab between Pakistan and India in the partition of 1947. In later years, Sikhs demanded certain things from the Indian government (for instance, better water-sharing rights and greater linguistic protection). Some also expressed a deeper and more forceful assertion of their religious identity. </p>
<p>This latent sense of alienation and insecurity was hijacked in the 1980s by militant groups backed by Pakistan, especially those sworn to the leadership of the controversial Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, whose followers <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/theguardian/1984/jun/07/fromthearchive">occupied the Akal Takht in the Golden Temple Complex</a> in 1984 – the most important religious site for Sikhs. </p>
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<img alt="Picture of a group of men walking inside a Sikh temple carrying swords" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/523594/original/file-20230501-16-j5x0c8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/523594/original/file-20230501-16-j5x0c8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/523594/original/file-20230501-16-j5x0c8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/523594/original/file-20230501-16-j5x0c8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/523594/original/file-20230501-16-j5x0c8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/523594/original/file-20230501-16-j5x0c8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/523594/original/file-20230501-16-j5x0c8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Sikh separatists shout pro-Khalistan slogans and brandish swords after a memorial in 2019 for those killed during Operation Blue Star in 1984.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Raminder Pal Singh</span></span>
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<p>Then-Prime Minister Indira Gandhi ordered the Indian Army to flush out the terrorists, killing many civilians as well. In the aftermath, <a href="https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/the-prime-minister-of-india-is-assassinated">Gandhi was assassinated</a> by her personal Sikh security guards.</p>
<p>Less than a year later, an Air India plane flying from Montreal to Mumbai was <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/air-india-bombing-timeline-1.6520841">blown up in mid air</a>, killing more than 300 passengers. After serving two decades behind bars, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/feb/15/canada-air-india-bombing-inderjit-singh-reyat-freed">Inderjit Singh Reyat</a> - the only person convicted - was released in February 2017 by Canadian authorities.</p>
<p>However, by the early 1990s, a combination of policies by the government – both carrots and sticks – and the inherent pragmatism of the Sikhs had restored peace in Punjab.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/uk-role-in-1984-temple-raid-will-affect-british-sikh-identity-22190">UK role in 1984 temple raid will affect British Sikh identity</a>
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<h2>Sikhs in contemporary society</h2>
<p>The current acts of violence and vandalism do not have the potency to be sustainable, nor do they have much support within India or the Sikh diaspora. </p>
<p>There are more than <a href="https://theconversation.com/who-are-the-sikhs-and-what-are-their-beliefs-97237">30 million Sikhs worldwide</a>, with the majority in the Indian state of Punjab. </p>
<p>Punjab remains a symbol of India’s growth story. And within India, the Sikhs are seen as a remarkable community: hardworking, resilient and mostly without a strong caste-based social hierarchy. They have traditionally thrived in the security forces and as agriculturalists. </p>
<p>Sikhism was founded in the 15th century, and is based on the spiritual teachings of <a href="https://singhstation.net/2014/11/top-10-key-lessons-teachings-from-guru-nanak-dev-ji-life/">Guru Nanak</a>. The last of ten gurus to follow him, Gobind Singh, organised the Sikhs into a martial fighting force, the Khalsa. </p>
<p>Today, their teachings are collected in the holy book, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guru_Granth_Sahib">Granth Sahib</a>, which serves as the life guide for Sikhs.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/who-are-the-sikhs-and-what-are-their-beliefs-97237">Who are the Sikhs and what are their beliefs?</a>
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<p>The Sikhs have carved out a niche identity abroad as mostly loyal, reliable and law-abiding citizens who have done well, even in times of great adversity. Their temples, called gurdwaras, are open to all faiths and the <a href="https://food52.com/blog/27152-the-sikh-history-of-karah-prasad">karah prasad</a>, a simple lunch of sweet pudding, is offered to visitors irrespective of their views or standing. </p>
<p>US President Joe Biden recently nominated a Sikh, <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/business-65474459">Ajay Banga</a>, as the president of the World Bank.</p>
<h2>Could the violence of the 1980s be repeated?</h2>
<p>There are some similarities between the Punjab of today and that of the 1980s. But this is only at the superficial level. </p>
<p>For one, the problems today are identifiable and manageable. These include unemployment and a lack of opportunities for young people, widespread substance abuse, discontent among farmers over controversial laws that have since been rescinded, and a lack of forward-thinking leadership. </p>
<p>For another, there is only support at the fringes for the separatists, both within Punjab and in the diaspora. </p>
<p>Admittedly, the decline of the traditional political parties in Punjab (Congress and the Akali Dal) has created a power vacuum. This space has been occupied by the upstart Aam Aadmi Party (the Ordinary Man’s Party), which is currently governing Punjab, and groups like Waris Punjab De (Heirs to the Real Punjab), led by the firebrand, <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/4/23/amritpal-singh-who-is-he-and-why-was-he-arrested">Amritpal Singh</a>. </p>
<p>Singh returned to Punjab in 2022 after years of working in Dubai as an ostensible social reformer. He campaigned against drug use and for puritanical Sikihism – but also advocated for a separate Sikh state of Khalistan. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1655286401104052226"}"></div></p>
<p>With increasing radicalisation, the situation could potentially worsen in the state. The political vacuum needs to be filled with legitimate, well-organised, politically sound voices. This is even more crucial after the <a href="https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/punjab/parkash-singh-badal-end-of-an-era-500884">recent death</a> of Prakash Singh Badal, a five-time chief minister of Punjab, who had been a voice of sanity and statesmanship. </p>
<p>The Indian government and key stakeholders in Punjab seem well aware of the dangers of letting the situation worsen once again. There is a deep consciousness they must not let history repeat itself.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/204533/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The current acts of violence and vandalism do not have the potency to be sustainable, nor do they have much support within India or the Sikh diaspora.Amitabh Mattoo, Honorary Professor of International Relations, The University of MelbourneTarun Agarwal, Ph.D. candidate at Diplomacy and Disarmament Division of Centre for International Politics, Organisation and Disarmament, School of International Studies., Jawaharlal Nehru University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2027812023-04-14T11:03:00Z2023-04-14T11:03:00ZWe asked Sikh men in Britain what the turban means to them – here’s what they told us<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/517915/original/file-20230328-962-ckpnai.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5540%2C2421&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Sikh men wearing the dastaar/turban in temple.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/panoramic-sikh-people-back-their-colory-1583135275">Enselme Arthur/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The <em>dastaar</em> – most commonly referred to as a turban – is perhaps Sikhism’s most visible expression of identity.</p>
<p>As part of our ongoing research, we talked to 13 British Sikh men to learn about their identity, religious practice and their experiences of wearing the turban in the UK. They told us that they hoped the recent visibility of the turban in fashion collections, police uniform and advertising campaigns would help to dilute the stigma surrounding the turban.</p>
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<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/BADpcHjCScg?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">The Royal Navy’s campaign focusing on a Sikh recruit.</span></figcaption>
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<p>In recent years, several projects have sought to promote Sikhism positively in an effort to reclaim narratives around the turban. In the UK, the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IRTNo39d32U">Sikh Project</a> art exhibition, fashion blogs such as <a href="https://singhstreetstyle.co.uk/">Singh Street Style</a> and YouTube creators tying the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDxYnEGEiiw">turban on camera</a> have contributed to this. </p>
<p>Other noteworthy cases include the 2022 <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BADpcHjCScg">recruitment campaign</a> for the Royal Navy, which exposed the traumas and stigmas associated with keeping hair and wearing a turban for a young Sikh man in Britain.</p>
<p>The Sikh code of discipline – the <em>Rehat Maryada</em> – states that Sikh men must cover their heads. While most Sikhs in the UK and around the world <a href="https://britishsikhreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/BSR_2013_FINAL.pdf">do not wear the turban</a>, it remains the most recognisable article of faith for adult Sikh men and women.</p>
<p>There has been a Sikh presence in Britain for <a href="https://britishsikhreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/BSR_2013_FINAL.pdf">almost 160 years</a>, but Sikh migration to the UK mostly started in the 1950s. </p>
<p>People (mostly men) from the Punjab region of India – and later from east Africa – responded to Britain’s call to the Commonwealth to participate in its postwar reconstruction efforts. Sikh migrants <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/sikhism/history/britishsikhism.shtml">mostly found</a> work in industries like foundries and textiles.</p>
<p>According to the 2021 census, there are about <a href="https://britishsikhreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Sikhs-in-Census-2021-Summary.pdf">524,000 Sikhs</a> (0.9% of the population) in England and Wales and around <a href="https://www.scotlandscensus.gov.uk/census-results/at-a-glance/religion/">10,000 in Scotland</a> (0.2% of the Scottish population). This population has <a href="https://britishsikhreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/BSR-Report-2022.pdf">higher than average</a> levels of education and employment in professional and managerial occupations.</p>
<p>The first Sikh migrants to Britain faced significant discrimination in securing employment and many had to forgo their identities, resulting in the removal of all outward religious symbols including turban, hair and beard. Having to abandon the <em>dastaar</em> and cutting their hair were not benign acts:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>It hurts. It really hurts. Why should you lose your identity to gain economic advantage? There was a pressure to change my appearance. Punjabis came to this country, they were misled in a way and told: ‘come on, let’s get your hair cut’ […] When you are born as something, and you cut your hair, deep down it hits you. It hits you all the time. – Gurtej, 68</p>
</blockquote>
<p>More recently, British society has positively responded to inclusion of Sikh ways of life, with the <a href="https://assets.college.police.uk/s3fs-public/2021-02/sikh-articles-of-faith-in-the-workplace.pdf">acceptance of the turban</a> in police and military uniforms. But there have also been real <a href="https://link.springer.com/referenceworkentry/10.1007/978-0-387-29904-4_111">challenges and struggles</a> along the way. </p>
<p>Most notably, stigmas and discrimination around the turban were exacerbated following the 9/11 <a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/September-11-attacks">World Trade Center</a> terrorist attacks in 2001. </p>
<p>Alongside Muslims, turban-wearing Sikhs have <a href="https://www.sikhcoalition.org/documents/pdf/go-home-terrorist.pdf">borne the brunt</a> of the <a href="https://www.hatecrimescotland.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/Islamaphobia-Anti-Muslim-Hate-Crime-a-London-Case-Study-EMRC-2010.pdf">subsequent rise</a> in hate crimes, anti-Islamic sentiment, discrimination and racial profiling worldwide.</p>
<p>The Sikh men we spoke to for our as yet unpublished research, explained how wearing the turban signalled their observance to Sikhism and the life choices this entails, such as the protection of and service to others:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>For me, what the turban signifies is a unique identity. To stand out in a crowd of millions is an act of real courage. […] if you need me, I am here for help. If you need food and shelter, this turbaned Sikh will give you food and shelter. It’s about courage, human rights, equality, it’s about commitment, discipline, it’s about compassion. Jagpal, 47</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The <em>dastaar</em> holds both practical and spiritual significance:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Apart from the practical use of covering my long hair … the other reason for the turban is to protect the spiritual centre on top of the head so that it doesn’t get damaged in any way. When I meditate with my turban on my head, I feel happy and very good, the turban concentrates those happy feelings. Jagpal</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Big brands have recently begun featuring turban-wearing models including Louis Vuitton, H&M, The Gap, Burberry and more controversially, <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/gucci-s-indy-turban-criticized-cultural-appropriation-n1005971">Gucci</a> at the 2019 Milan Fashion Week. </p>
<p>Some of our interviewees hoped that this visibility would help dilute the stigma surrounding the turban:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Whatever medium takes [the turban] away from terrorism, is a great thing. I don’t really care if it’s a catwalk, or young dapper Sikhs wearing designer clothing … I think anything that separates the turban from Bin Laden and those images all over the media after 9/11 and takes the turban into the realm of a Sikh perspective [is] great. Jagpal</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Kuldeep, 27, who runs a successful fashion blog, spoke of his desire to feature his difference and break stereotypes. However, other interviewees expressed discomfort regarding the new found popularity of the <em>dastaar</em> in marketing campaigns and its commodification as a fashion item.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1128876558108614658"}"></div></p>
<p>The striking visual of a fully observant Sikh keeping hair (<em>kesh</em>) and wearing the <em>dastaar</em> is part of its appeal for marketeers who seek to signal their inclusive values. Interviewees generally implied, however, that simply prioritising the visual aspects of the turban would come at the expense of its symbolic and spiritual dimension.</p>
<p>There is a genuine concern that those representations created for mainstream marketplace consumption may strip the <em>dastaar</em> of its metaphysical and symbolic value and turn it into a commercial commodity, the next cool must-have “cultural” accessory to be consumed by the masses.</p>
<p>As many interviewees explained, to them, the <em>dastaar</em> is so much more. It is not only a symbol of faith and a life of service, but also an embodiment of its long heritage and sacrifice borne by the Sikh community.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/202781/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The Sikh men we spoke to explained how wearing the turban signalled their observance to Sikhism and the life choices this entails, such as the protection of and service to others.Mona Moufahim, Senior Lecturer in Marketing, University of StirlingAnoop Bhogal-Nair, Senior Lecturer in Marketing and Consumption, De Montfort UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1919922022-10-18T18:42:30Z2022-10-18T18:42:30ZDiwali: A celebration of the goddess Lakshmi, and her promise of prosperity and good fortune<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/490398/original/file-20221018-7213-c797sk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C5%2C4000%2C2988&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The worship of the goddess Lakshmi on Diwali is said to bring prosperity.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/hand-of-a-woman-purchasing-goddess-lakshmi-small-royalty-free-image/1350553084?phrase=HIndu%2Blakshmi%2Bgoddess%2B">Aman Verma/ iStock / Getty Images Plus </a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Diwali, a popular festival for Hindus, Jains, Buddhists and Sikhs, is celebrated on the Amavasya, or new moon day, of the month of Kartik in the traditional Indian lunar calendar, which typically occurs in late October or early November. </p>
<p>Devotees across around the world will bring festivities into their homes by lighting earthen lamps called diyas, setting off fireworks, displaying colored electric lights and exchanging gifts. In northern India, this date also marks the beginning of the new year. </p>
<p>The day is specially dedicated to the worship of Lakshmi, the Hindu goddess of prosperity and good fortune. </p>
<h2>Who is Lakshmi?</h2>
<p>In modern images, Lakshmi is typically depicted wearing either a red or a green sari. The upper two of her four hands are holding lotus flowers, while her lower right hand is upraised in the “do not be afraid” gesture, or abhaya mudra.</p>
<p>Her lower left hand is pointed downward with her palm facing out and golden coins are falling from it. She sits or stands upon a large red lotus flower. Often, there are two elephants behind her with their trunks upraised. As poet <a href="https://www.patricia-monaghan.com/">Patricia Monaghan</a> writes, sometimes these elephants “shower her with water from belly-round urns.” </p>
<p>Lakshmi is believed to be the consort of <a href="http://rajhisco.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Raj-HISCO-Vol-35.pdf#page=152">Vishnu</a>, who is the preserver of the cosmic order, or dharma. As Vishnu’s shakti, or power, Lakshmi is his equal and an integral part of his being. </p>
<p>In the Srivaishnava tradition of Hinduism, Lakshmi and Vishnu make up a single deity, <a href="https://books.google.com/books/about/Devi.html?id=EyAoAQAAIAAJ">known as Lakshmi Narayana</a>. Also known as Shri, Lakshmi is believed to <a href="https://doi.org/10.2307/2058203">mediate between her human devotees and Vishnu</a>. </p>
<h2>Origins of Lakshmi</h2>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="An idol of the Hindu goddess Lakshmi that shows her with four hands." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/490395/original/file-20221018-16-vwt47t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=6%2C85%2C4385%2C2732&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/490395/original/file-20221018-16-vwt47t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=417&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/490395/original/file-20221018-16-vwt47t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=417&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/490395/original/file-20221018-16-vwt47t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=417&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/490395/original/file-20221018-16-vwt47t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=524&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/490395/original/file-20221018-16-vwt47t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=524&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/490395/original/file-20221018-16-vwt47t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=524&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Devotees all over the world pray to the goddess Lakshmi on Diwali.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://doi.org/10.1080/00086495.1976.11829270">RapidEye/Collection E+ via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>According to the sources I have studied as a <a href="https://www.etown.edu/depts/religious-studies/faculty.aspx">scholar of Hindu, Jain and Buddhist traditions</a>, Shri in fact seems to be the earliest name given to this goddess in Hindu texts. This word originally means splendor and it refers to all that is auspicious: all the good and beautiful things in life. The name Lakshmi, on the other hand, refers to a sign, imprint or manifestation of Shri. These two words seem to refer to two distinct goddesses in the earliest Hindu literature, the Vedas.</p>
<p>By the first century, however, which is the period of the writing of the “Puranas,” or the ancient lore of the Hindu deities, these two deities appear to have merged into a single goddess, <a href="https://www.worldcat.org/title/history-of-ancient-and-early-medieval-india-from-the-stone-age-to-the-12th-century/oclc/1077247251">known as Shri, Lakshmi or Shri Lakshmi</a>. </p>
<p>There are many stories of Lakshmi’s origins. In the most popular of these, from the fifth century Vishnu Purana, she emerges from the ocean when the Devas and Asuras, the gods and the anti-gods, <a href="https://www.google.com/books/edition/Classical_Hindu_Mythology/re7CR2jKn3QC?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=Laksmi">churn it to acquire amrita</a>, the elixir of immortality. In another source – the Garuda Purana, a ninth-century text – <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/00086495.1976.11829270">she is said to be the daughter</a> of the Vedic sage Bhrigu and his wife, Khyati. </p>
<p>Those who wish for prosperity in the new year say special prayers to Lakshmi and light diyas in their homes so the goddess will visit and bless them.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/191992/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jeffery D. Long does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Shri is the earliest name given to the goddess Lakshmi in Hindu texts. The word originally meant splendor and refers to all that is auspicious.Jeffery D. Long, Professor of Religion and Asian Studies, Elizabethtown CollegeLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1899112022-09-26T11:11:13Z2022-09-26T11:11:13ZDomestic abuse and mental health remain taboo subjects for many Sikhs – with deadly consequences<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/485621/original/file-20220920-18-h5o4s7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">shutterstock</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/italy-rome-april-2018indian-sikh-girl-1344242780">Nicola Palmieri</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The suicide of Mandeep Kaur caught the attention of people around the world. Kaur, a woman of Sikh heritage from Utter Pradesh in northern India and living in the US, <a href="https://news.abplive.com/news/india/mandeep-kaur-suicide-case-brother-appeals-help-us-bring-back-her-body-or-give-us-visa-1547583">posted a video</a> on social media that later went viral, in which she claimed to have been abused by her husband for years (he denies the allegations).</p>
<p>However the outpouring of online sympathy for this woman belies how the issues of domestic violence and abuse and mental health are perceived in Sikh communities, notably in the diaspora. As our literature review in the UK <a href="https://research.gold.ac.uk/id/eprint/28481/1/ejmh_2019_1_Kaur-Aujla_et_al_179_189.pdf">has highlighted</a>, there is a great deal of shame attached to women of Sikh heritage experiencing domestic abuse and subsequent <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31171045/">mental health problems</a>.</p>
<p>As a result, these issues are <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/figure/10.1080/19438192.2013.722383?scroll=top&needAccess=true">rarely properly acknowledged</a> as even being a Sikh healthcare issue and the women affected very often don’t get the help they need. This was particularly the case during <a href="https://www.transformingsociety.co.uk/2021/01/26/domestic-violence-in-lockdown-the-needs-of-black-and-minoritised-communities-during-the-pandemic/">the pandemic</a>. You can even see this is in the way such incidents of domestic abuse that do receive publicity are <a href="https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/research/perspective/sikh-census.aspx">often categorised</a> informally as relating to broader groups such as Punjabis or even South Asians in general rather than <a href="https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Self-silencing-among-Punjabi-women%3A-the-interplay-Bhadra/8a99c8ad52b96338406a36b37490e334d900d1ab">Sikhs specifically</a>.</p>
<p>Research has <a href="https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/_/1dFBDwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&pg=PA172&dq=pande+suicides+in+southall">long identified</a> that suicide among women of Sikh heritage in the UK is connected to the particular problem of <a href="https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-1-4939-2266-6_25">domestic abuse and violence</a>. There are also other cultural factors that <a href="https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/_/1dFBDwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&pg=PA172&dq=pande+suicides+in+southall">have been linked</a> to this deeply entrenched issue. </p>
<p>These include the financial demands placed on newlywed women through the practice of paying a dowry and persistent patriarchal attitudes that lead to tolerance of abuse and violence by parents of men. Unfulfilling expectations from marriage and lack of understanding and support from the household and community can also be problems.</p>
<h2>Cultural barriers</h2>
<p>At the same time, Sikhs often face cultural barriers to accessing mental health services. <a href="https://repository.uel.ac.uk/download/f1bf93df46de3136cb3e0d8209739fffa543636bdacb319b5370a6a39ff38930/5379827/u1331813%2520thesis.pdf">Research has shown</a> some Sikhs may perceive themselves as warriors who should be able to overcome and psychological distress by themselves, not as sufferers of mental ill health. </p>
<p>Sikhs living in western countries may also feel medical services don’t <a href="https://www.womensaid.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/FINAL-Reframing-the-links.pdf">understand their culture</a>. And they can fear that reporting domestic abuse could be followed by breaches in confidentiality that would expose their issues to the rest of the community.</p>
<p>Discussing mental health issues publicly is <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/02759527.2008.11932581">often considered</a> to bring <em>behzti</em> (dishonour) to the family. <a href="https://library-archives.canada.ca/eng/services/services-libraries/theses/Pages/item.aspx?idNumber=1032907520">Research shows</a> that first generation immigrants and older generations demonstrate a particular lack of understanding of their children’s mental health needs in this respect.</p>
<figure class="align-Temples should be a place of support for women of Sikh heritage ">
<img alt="Women wearing white head covering plays keyboard and sings inside temple" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/485623/original/file-20220920-11487-2euzzm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/485623/original/file-20220920-11487-2euzzm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/485623/original/file-20220920-11487-2euzzm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/485623/original/file-20220920-11487-2euzzm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/485623/original/file-20220920-11487-2euzzm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/485623/original/file-20220920-11487-2euzzm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/485623/original/file-20220920-11487-2euzzm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">shutterstock.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/dubaiuaemarch112019-panjabi-indian-lady-singing-songs-1350279728">Abie Davies/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>One solution to this problem might be for mental health services to recruit more Sikh staff who have the cultural knowledge to deal with the community-specific issues, particularly those <a href="http://repository.cityu.edu/bitstream/handle/20.500.11803/1626/SavneetSinghCapstone.pdf?sequence=3&isAllowed=y">created by stigma</a>. Medical providers can also work with local temples to <a href="https://shabd.co.uk/">reach out</a> and offer such services.</p>
<p>But we <a href="https://www.sikhsanjog.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/Sikh-Women-Speak-Report-PDF3375.pdf">shouldn’t assume</a> that every Sikh woman wants a Sikh therapist, or even a South Asian therapist. In fact, fear of exposure might actually mean Sikh women would rather speak to someone outside of their tight-knit community. What is essential is that women are given the choice, can speak to therapists in their own language and are reassured that services are confidential.</p>
<p>Such solutions can only go so far, however. Only by recognising that there is an issue with domestic abuse and subsequent mental health issues that needs to be addressed can the Sikh community work closer with healthcare providers to prevent women <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0886109920916038">becoming victims again</a></p>
<p><a href="https://shadesofnoir.org.uk/journals/content/when-a-panjabi-sister-set-fire-to-her-husband">Religious places</a> should be a key point of support for Sikh women, and there are now <a href="https://sikhguarding.co.uk">religious Sikh organisations</a> working to ensure women stay safe in these spaces. If temples and accredited psychological providers working together in an environment free of shame and denial can become the norm, then women of Sikh heritage are more likely to receive the support they need earlier. And perhaps cases like that of Mandeep Kaur will become less common.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/189911/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Harjinder Kaur-Aujla is affiliated with UCU Union as Branch President. Co-founder of Shabd, UK. She would like to express gratitude to: Dr Christopher Wagstaff and Dr Tarsem Cooner (University of Birmingham) for overall academic mentorship.
Members from Sikh Academic and Researcher Network, (SARN) for empowering and self-less service; Sikh Scientists for religious insights and external mentorship; Professor Farzana Shain and Dr Kate Lillie initial formulation and PhD advice;
Stephen Harris (The Conversation) for his patience and editing advice.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Christopher Wagstaff and Kate Lillie do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The recent suicide of Mandeep Kaur highlights how women of Sikh heritage can face shame and stigma.Harjinder Kaur-Aujla, Lecturer in Mental Health, University of BirminghamChristopher Wagstaff, Senior Lecturer, School of Nursing and Midwifery, University of BirminghamKate Lillie, Lecturer in Adult Nursing, Keele UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1873402022-08-12T12:16:11Z2022-08-12T12:16:11Z5 books and films that tell the story of the trauma of the Partition of India and its aftermath<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478780/original/file-20220811-4172-96iiux.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=14%2C4%2C3126%2C1881&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Muslim refugees sit on the roof of an overcrowded coach railway train near New Delhi, trying to leave India after the 1947 Partition.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/PakistanRememberingPartition/a5d0f116750b4ce0801e3867886119c8/photo?Query=india%20partition&mediaType=photo&sortBy=&dateRange=Anytime&totalCount=148&currentItemNo=24">AP Photo</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>Editor’s note: At midnight on Aug. 14, 1947, India achieved independence from British colonial rule and Pakistan was created as a separate homeland for Muslims. More than 200 years of British rule had come to an end – a painful process in which some <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/06/29/the-great-divide-books-dalrymple">15 million people were displaced</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-a-british-royals-monumental-errors-made-indias-partition-more-painful-81657">another million or more killed</a>. The trauma of the Partition is seared in the collective memory of the two countries to this day.</em> </p>
<p><em>For the 75th anniversary of this momentous day, The Conversation asked scholars from the U.S., Canada, France, U.K. and Australia to provide a list of the best Partition films, literature or art. Here are some recommendations:</em></p>
<h2>1. ‘My Name is Radha: The Essential Manto’</h2>
<ul>
<li>Recommended by professor Madhur Anand, University of Guelph, Ontario, Canada</li>
</ul>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478702/original/file-20220811-27-5abx08.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="book cover with title" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478702/original/file-20220811-27-5abx08.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478702/original/file-20220811-27-5abx08.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=911&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478702/original/file-20220811-27-5abx08.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=911&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478702/original/file-20220811-27-5abx08.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=911&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478702/original/file-20220811-27-5abx08.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1145&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478702/original/file-20220811-27-5abx08.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1145&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478702/original/file-20220811-27-5abx08.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1145&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Book cover for ‘My Name is Radha’ by Saadat Hasan Manto.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Penguin</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Partition in South Asia refers to that horrific year when an arbitrary red line was drawn across a map by British colonial rulers – namely, the last viceroy, Louis Mountbatten, and Cyril Radcliffe, a barrister from England who was given five weeks to draw the line that severed India and created Pakistan. The violence of that crooked line has traumatized an uncountable number of people. I know some of this history through the lives of my own parents. </p>
<p>While writing <a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.ca/books/602590/this-red-line-goes-straight-to-your-heart-by-madhur-anand/9780771007774">my memoir based in part on the Partition and my parents’ childhood</a>, I hunted for nonfiction books and memoirs written by witnesses, but when I found little, I turned to fiction and poetry. One of the most influential books for me was Saadat Hasan Manto’s “<a href="https://penguin.co.in/book/my-name-is-radha-the-essential-manto/">My Name is Radha</a>,” a collection of translated short stories. </p>
<p>A former journalist and screenwriter, Manto was one among the millions who were displaced: Manto moved to Pakistan and wrote fiction about the lives of marginalized people. He wrote about Partition from the perspective of insane asylum residents and prostitutes and, in so doing, powerfully illustrated the unimaginable horrors and absurdities of Partition. He was tried in India for obscenity in his writing, but never convicted. He said, “With my stories, I only expose the truth.”</p>
<h2>2. ‘Midnight’s Children’</h2>
<ul>
<li>Recommended by professor Geetha Ganapathy-Dore, “Université Sorbonne Paris Nord” </li>
</ul>
<p>Salman Rushdie’s “<a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/158932/midnights-children-by-salman-rushdie/">Midnight’s Children</a>,” which won the Booker Prize in 1981, the “Booker of Bookers” in 1993 and was judged “Best of the Bookers” in 2008, has not aged one bit. Translated into over 24 languages, the book was adapted for the stage by British directors Simon Reade and Tim Supple in 2003. In 2012, filmmaker Deepa Mehta brought out a cinematic version of it. </p>
<figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="Cover of Salman Rushdie's book" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478704/original/file-20220811-19-mv38ak.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478704/original/file-20220811-19-mv38ak.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=934&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478704/original/file-20220811-19-mv38ak.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=934&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478704/original/file-20220811-19-mv38ak.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=934&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478704/original/file-20220811-19-mv38ak.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1174&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478704/original/file-20220811-19-mv38ak.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1174&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478704/original/file-20220811-19-mv38ak.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1174&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">‘Midnight’s Children’</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Penguin</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>It is a must read on the multiplicity of India: There are as many dreams of India as there are people in this dramatically diverse land – plus the “moth-eaten” Pakistan, as founder Muhammad Ali Jinnah described it, with a divided Punjab and Bengal.</p>
<p>History, in this novel, is inseparable from story, as its protagonist Saleem Sinai was born on the same day as the nation. The twin hero of “Midnight’s Children,” Shiva, though he shares his name with one of Hinduism’s most important deities, is ironically the son of a Muslim couple. Yet this embodies the hybrid nature of identity in the subcontinent, which is almost always multicultural. The epic narrative also incorporates the history of Pakistan and Bangladesh, which was carved out of Pakistan in 1971. </p>
<p>Writing back to the empire, asserting its independence in “chutnified” Indian English, this masterpiece of <a href="https://www.britannica.com/art/magic-realism">magic realism</a> borrows the device of the storytelling scribe from the “<a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Mahabharata">Mahabharata</a>,” an ancient Indian epic.</p>
<p>“Midnight’s Children” thus remains an incontrovertible narrative on decolonization and the birth of new nation states.</p>
<h2>3. ‘Train to Pakistan’</h2>
<ul>
<li>Recommended by professor Amitabh Mattoo, University of Melbourne, Australia </li>
</ul>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478799/original/file-20220811-17-rw1vqt.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A book cover showing a burning train" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478799/original/file-20220811-17-rw1vqt.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478799/original/file-20220811-17-rw1vqt.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=903&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478799/original/file-20220811-17-rw1vqt.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=903&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478799/original/file-20220811-17-rw1vqt.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=903&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478799/original/file-20220811-17-rw1vqt.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1134&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478799/original/file-20220811-17-rw1vqt.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1134&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478799/original/file-20220811-17-rw1vqt.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1134&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">‘Train to Pakistan’</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Train_to_Pakistan">Abe Books</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Khushwant Singh’s <a href="https://books.google.com/books/about/Train_to_Pakistan.html?id=naLu3tkS-RwC">“Train to Pakistan”</a> is one of the most moving accounts of the Partition of India and the way local communities, which had lived peacefully for generations, were torn apart by the forces of <a href="https://byjus.com/free-ias-prep/communalism-in-post-independent-india/">communalism</a>. As the Partition plan is announced in the summer of 1947, millions of Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs flee across the new border between India and Pakistan. Mass violence ensues.</p>
<p>“Train to Pakistan” is set in what at first seems like an island of hope: the imaginary village of Manmo Majra, on the border of India and Pakistan, inhabited primarily by Sikhs and Muslims. In the viciousness of the violence, this small village’s traditional social structure and relative harmony is destroyed to a point where all sense of humanity is lost. There is still hope, however, in the resilience of love.</p>
<p>One day, a train arrives from Pakistan, “a ghost train” full of corpses of Hindus and Sikhs. The Sikhs are provoked to retaliate, with a plan to murder en masse Muslims leaving the village on a train traveling back to Pakistan. But a local outlaw, Jugga – a Sikh – sacrifices his life to save the train. He does so because be believes his Muslim lover, Nooran, is traveling on it. </p>
<h2>4. ‘Earth’</h2>
<ul>
<li>Recommended by professor Ajay Verghese, Middlebury College, U.S.</li>
</ul>
<p>Deepa Mehta’s 1998 film “<a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0150433/">Earth</a>” is a chilling story about the horrors of the Partition. Based on Bapsi Sidhwa’s novel “<a href="https://milkweed.org/book/cracking-india">Cracking India</a>,” the film revolves around three friends in colonial Lahore, in present-day Pakistan: Shanta, a Hindu nanny to a young Parsi girl named Lenny, and two Muslim suitors, Hassan and Dil. The film portrays how their carefree friendship is upended by the violent division of India, slowly turning them against each other and finally into enemies solely on account of their religion. </p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="A man and woman flying a kite." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478703/original/file-20220811-21-caczya.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478703/original/file-20220811-21-caczya.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=315&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478703/original/file-20220811-21-caczya.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=315&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478703/original/file-20220811-21-caczya.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=315&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478703/original/file-20220811-21-caczya.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=396&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478703/original/file-20220811-21-caczya.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=396&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478703/original/file-20220811-21-caczya.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=396&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A scene from the film ‘Earth’ by Deepa Mehta.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Earth/Jhamu Sugandh</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Several aspects of the movie provide viewers with a unique window into the ground-level realities of the Partition, which included, as one grisly scene shows, an entire train car of slaughtered Muslims arriving to Lahore. The narrative is presented via the recollections of a young girl who lived through the event. Lenny is also from a wealthy Parsi family, a minority religion in India and one that is not normally featured in Partition discussions. Her family’s naïve attempt to stay neutral during the conflict when the mob comes reflects the reality of times when not just Hindus and Muslims but every religious group was involved in some act of violence. It was almost impossible to stay neutral.</p>
<p>Finally, the film powerfully centers the narrative around Shanta. She’s last seen when she is abducted and taken away by a Muslim mob, and viewers never learn of her ultimate fate. Shanta’s story is a reminder that Partition was not just about religion or land, but also about widespread, underreported sexual violence against women. </p>
<h2>5. ‘The Long Goodbye’ (album)</h2>
<ul>
<li>Recommended by professor Uditi Sen, University of Nottingham, U.K. </li>
</ul>
<p>Riz Ahmed’s album “<a href="https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/riz-ahmed-the-long-goodbye/">The Long Goodbye</a>” is a commentary on contemporary race relations in Britain. It explores British-Asian belonging in the context of rising racism and xenophobia, using the metaphor of a breakup. It takes a deeper look at the lyrical complaints of the dumped partner, whose pain and anger mirror the emotions of contemporary British Asian and Muslim communities – shot through with a historical awareness of the British empire and the Partition of India. </p>
<p>In the song “The Breakup (Shikwa),” “Brittney baby” is the partner who took the money (“my stash was a quarter of the cash in the world”) and labor (“my people built the west”, “fought for you in the war”), and yet seeks to disown “the new kids” (the South Asian diaspora in the U.K.). It’s impossible to separate what Ahmed says of the now from the then as he evokes the history of the equally impossible Partition of India. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/A2tGEVwUuKw?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>Ahmed raps that during the Partition, Britain “carved a scar down my middle just to leave me stretched out.” It’s left a bloody legacy of conflict: “My Kashmir jumper still stained red” and “the bleeding never ends man.” </p>
<p>He highlights how seemingly overnight, Muslims in India and Hindus in Pakistan became foreigners in their own home. Ahmed notes in the song “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1DmabQguml4&ab_channel=RizAhmed">Where You From</a>” that this racist question takes on a deeper meaning for British Pakistani Muslims, whose ancestors survived the Partition’s <a href="https://thediplomat.com/2019/08/what-really-caused-the-violence-of-partition/">displacement</a>: “My ancestor’s Indian but India was not for us.” </p>
<p>Ahmed uses the Partition to lay bare the violence inherent in racist ideas of national belonging. “The Long Goodbye” dares listeners to learn from the past and imagine a form of belonging that celebrates being from “everywhere and nowhere.”</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/187340/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Madhur Anand received funding from the Ontario Arts Council for This Red Line Goes Straight to Your Heart.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ajay Verghese has received funding from The Fulbright Program and the American Institute of Indian Studies. He has consulted with the Pew Research Center and the Foreign Service Institute of the US Department of State. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Geetha Ganapathy-Doré has organised several scientific events with the non profit organisation SARI (a research association about the Indian world) which she coordinates. She also recently presented work at the international summit ont 'Gender, Governance and Sustainable Development” organised at the University of Pondichery with support from the Indian Ministry of Development and Human Resources. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Amitabh Mattoo and Uditi Sen do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>On the 75th anniversary of India’s partition, scholars from the US, Canada, France, UK and Australia write about their favorite book or film that best explains the trauma of a violent division.Madhur Anand, Professor & Director, Global Ecological Change & Sustainability Laboratory, University of GuelphAjay Verghese, Assistant Professor of Political Science, MiddleburyAmitabh Mattoo, Honorary Professor of International Relations, The University of MelbourneGeetha Ganapathy-Doré, Maîtresse de conférences HDR en anglais, Université Sorbonne Paris NordUditi Sen, Assistant Professor the history of modern and contemporary India, University of NottinghamLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1879592022-08-10T12:27:41Z2022-08-10T12:27:41ZAmerican Sikhs are targets of bigotry, often due to cultural ignorance<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478344/original/file-20220809-15464-qsfa3v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=8%2C0%2C5499%2C3536&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A candlelight vigil in Oak Creek for the victims of a mass shooting at the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin in August 2012.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/SikhTemple-Shooting/7cb40719da8c4c9bb2219192e64a18b7/photo?Query=sikhs%20united%20states&mediaType=photo&sortBy=&dateRange=Anytime&totalCount=735&currentItemNo=61">AP Photo/Tom Lynn, File</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Ten years ago, <a href="https://www.npr.org/2022/08/05/1115931555/remembering-the-oak-creek-killings-a-harbinger-of-white-supremacist-violence">a white supremacist opened fire</a> on a Sikh congregation in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, killing six people and injuring several others before taking his own life. An eighth person, <a href="https://www.wpr.org/priest-paralyzed-2012-sikh-temple-shooting-dies">Baba Punjab Singh, was left partially paralyzed and died from his wounds</a> a few years later.</p>
<p>At the time, it was among the deadliest mass shootings in a place of worship since the <a href="https://www.jfklibrary.org/learn/education/teachers/curricular-resources/high-school-curricular-resources/the-sixteenth-street-baptist-church-the-response-from-the-white-house">16th Street Baptist Church bombing</a> by the Ku Klux Klan in 1963. It was also the most lethal assault on Sikh Americans since they began migrating to the U.S. more than a century ago.</p>
<p>I recall journalists covering the massacre not knowing much about the Sikh community. One anchor referred to the gurdwara as a mosque and referred to the murdered as Muslims. Another reporter described the gurdwara as a Hindu temple. A third described the Sikh religion as a sect of Islam, using the term “sheikhs” rather than “Sikhs.” </p>
<p>Scholars and government officials estimate the Sikh American population to <a href="http://pluralism.org/religions/sikhism/sikhism-in-america/the-sikh-community-today/">number around 500,000</a>. Cultural ignorance has often made them targets of bigotry. </p>
<p>As the author of “<a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/623324/the-light-we-give-by-simran-jeet-singh/">The Light We Give: How Sikh Wisdom Can Transform Your Life</a>” and as a practicing Sikh myself, I have studied the prejudices and barriers that many Sikhs in America face. I also experienced racial slurs from a young age.</p>
<p>The bottom line is there is little understanding in the U.S. of who exactly the Sikhs are and what they believe. So here’s a primer. </p>
<h2>Founder of Sikhism</h2>
<p>To start at the beginning, the founder of the Sikh tradition, Guru Nanak, was born in 1469 in the Punjab region of South Asia, which is currently split between Pakistan and the northwestern area of India. A majority of the global Sikh population <a href="https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203982600">still resides in Punjab on the Indian side of the border</a>.</p>
<p>From a young age, Guru Nanak was disillusioned by the social inequities and religious hypocrisies he observed around him. He believed that <a href="https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315014449">a single divine force</a> created the entire world and resided within it. In his belief, God was not separate from the world and watching from a distance, but fully present in every aspect of creation. </p>
<p>He therefore asserted that all people <a href="http://www.iuscanada.com/journal/archives/2011/j1312p42.pdf">are equally divine</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/jaarel/lfj002">deserve to be treated</a> as such.</p>
<p>To promote this vision of divine oneness and social equality, <a href="https://www.bl.uk/sacred-texts/articles/origins-and-development-of-sikh-faith-the-gurus">Guru Nanak created institutions and religious practices</a>. He established community centers and places of worship, wrote his own scriptural compositions and appointed successors, known as gurus, who would carry forward his vision. </p>
<p>The Sikh view thus rejects all social distinctions that produce inequities, including gender, race, religion and caste, the predominant structure for social hierarchy in South Asia. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478348/original/file-20220809-16002-mtzcdn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Men and women seated on the floor in two rows, being served food." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478348/original/file-20220809-16002-mtzcdn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478348/original/file-20220809-16002-mtzcdn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478348/original/file-20220809-16002-mtzcdn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478348/original/file-20220809-16002-mtzcdn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478348/original/file-20220809-16002-mtzcdn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478348/original/file-20220809-16002-mtzcdn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478348/original/file-20220809-16002-mtzcdn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A community kitchen run by the Sikhs to provide free meals irrespective of caste, faith or religion, in the Golden Temple in Punjab, India.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/shankaronline/38938496121">shankar s.</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Serving the world is a natural expression of Sikh prayer and worship. <a href="https://therevealer.org/why-sikhs-serve/">Sikhs call this prayerful service “seva</a>,” and it is a core part of their practice.</p>
<h2>The Sikh identity</h2>
<p>In the Sikh tradition, a truly religious person is one who cultivates the spiritual self while also serving the communities around them – or a <a href="https://www.pbs.org/wnet/religionandethics/2005/06/03/june-3-2005-sikh-saint-soldier/12270/">saint-soldier</a>. The saint-soldier ideal applies to women and men alike.</p>
<p>In this spirit, Sikh women and men maintain <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=TJb_i97CG70C&pg=PT149&dq=sikh+identity+articles+of+faith&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiXx4TZtszcAhWm44MKHU-ICfQQ6AEIQTAE#v=onepage&q=sikh%20identity%20articles%20of%20faith&f=false">five articles of faith, popularly known as the five Ks</a>. Those are: kes (long, uncut hair), kara (steel bracelet), kanga (wooden comb), kirpan (small sword) and kachera (soldier-shorts). Sikh philosophy teaches that all Sikhs are responsible for standing up against injustice, and that doing so is an act of service and love.</p>
<p>Although little historical evidence exists to explain why these particular articles were chosen, the five Ks continue to provide the community with a collective identity, binding together individuals on the basis of a shared belief and practice. As I understand, Sikhs cherish these articles of faith as gifts from their gurus.</p>
<p>Turbans are an important part of the Sikh identity. Both women and men may wear turbans. Like the articles of faith, Sikhs regard their turban as a gift given by their beloved guru, and its meaning is deeply personal. In South Asian culture, wearing a turban typically indicated one’s social status – kings and rulers once wore turbans. The <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/17448720500132557">Sikh gurus adopted the turban</a>, in part, to remind Sikhs that all humans are sovereign, royal and ultimately equal.</p>
<h2>Sikhs in America</h2>
<p>Today, there are <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=7QEjPVyd9YMC&pg=PA275&lpg=PA275&dq=sikhs+30+million&source=bl&ots=urtHXKjCPx&sig=nyZTGrreOK6owh5EmmPA16YVD8A&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj_8Lbk9M7cAhXis1kKHWCPB-UQ6AEwFXoECAIQAQ#v=onepage&q=sikhs%2030%20million&f=false">approximately 30 million Sikhs worldwide</a>, making Sikhism the world’s fifth-largest religion. </p>
<p>After British colonizers in India seized power in Punjab in 1849, where a majority of the Sikh community was based, <a href="http://booksandjournals.brillonline.com/content/books/9789004257238">Sikhs began migrating to various regions controlled by the British Empire</a>, including Southeast Asia, East Africa and the United Kingdom itself. Based on what was available to them, Sikhs played various roles in these communities, including military service, agricultural work and railway construction.</p>
<p><a href="https://pioneeringpunjabis.ucdavis.edu/eras/1899-1922/">The first Sikh community entered the United States</a> via the West Coast during the 1890s. They began experiencing discrimination immediately upon their arrival. For instance, <a href="http://depts.washington.edu/civilr/bham_intro.htm">the first race riot in the U.S. targeting Sikhs</a> took place in Bellingham, Washington, in 1907. Angry mobs of white men <a href="http://depts.washington.edu/civilr/bham_history.htm">rounded up Sikh laborers</a>, beat them up and forced them to leave town.</p>
<p>The discrimination continued over the years. For instance, after my father moved from Punjab to the United States, around the time of the <a href="https://www.history.com/topics/middle-east/iran-hostage-crisis">Iran hostage crisis in 1979</a>, racial slurs like “Ayatollah” and “raghead” were hurled at him. <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2013/09/15/world/meast/iran-hostage-crisis-fast-facts/index.html">Fifty-two American diplomats and citizens had been taken captive in Iran</a>, and tension between the two countries was high. Sikhs had nothing to do with it, but they faced a racist backlash as their appearance corresponded with how Americans viewed their new enemies in Iran. Our family faced a similar racist backlash when the U.S. engaged in the Gulf War during the early 1990s. </p>
<p>The racist attacks spiked again after 9/11, particularly because Americans did not know about the Sikh religion and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/17448727.2013.822138">conflated the unique Sikh appearance with popular stereotypes</a> of what terrorists look like.</p>
<p>The <a href="http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-trump-sikhs-20170509-htmlstory.html">rates of violence against Sikhs surged</a> after the election of President Donald Trump. The Sikh Coalition estimated in 2018 that Americans Sikhs were being targeted in hate crimes <a href="https://www.sikhcoalition.org/blog/2018/new-wave-hate-crimes-demands-vigilance/">about once a week</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478350/original/file-20220809-16002-u88r0x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A colorful tableau with a horse and men and women in bright attire standing on it." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478350/original/file-20220809-16002-u88r0x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478350/original/file-20220809-16002-u88r0x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478350/original/file-20220809-16002-u88r0x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478350/original/file-20220809-16002-u88r0x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478350/original/file-20220809-16002-u88r0x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478350/original/file-20220809-16002-u88r0x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/478350/original/file-20220809-16002-u88r0x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A Sikh American parade in Pasadena, California.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/RoseParade/3dbb167c0ea74c9ba4f269f4b8aeaa0b/photo?Query=A%20Sikh%20American%20Journey%20parade%20in%20Pasadena,%20Calif&mediaType=photo&sortBy=&dateRange=Anytime&totalCount=4&currentItemNo=2">AP Photo/Michael Owen Baker</a></span>
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<p>As a practicing Sikh, I can affirm that Sikhs’ <a href="http://digitalrepository.unm.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1296&context=law_facultyscholarship">commitment to the tenets of their faith</a>, including love, service and justice, keeps them resilient in the face of violence. For these reasons, many Sikh Americans, including those affected by the massacre in Wisconsin, I believe, will continue to proudly maintain their unique Sikh identity. </p>
<p><em>This is an updated version of an article <a href="https://theconversation.com/who-are-the-sikhs-and-what-are-their-beliefs-97237">first published</a> on Aug. 9, 2018.</em></p>
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<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Simran Jeet Singh is affiliated with the Aspen Institute</span></em></p>On the 10th anniversary of the Oak Creek massacre, a Sikh scholar writes that there is little understanding of the Sikh faith in the U.S.Simran Jeet Singh, Visiting Lecturer, Union Theological SeminaryLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1804702022-04-27T12:19:32Z2022-04-27T12:19:32ZCaste doesn’t just exist in India or in Hinduism – it is pervasive across many religions in South Asia and the diaspora<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/459541/original/file-20220425-12-7muqn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=53%2C22%2C2941%2C2025&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Nuns from a group of Dalit Christians, or India's lowest caste who converted to Christianity, protest in New Delhi.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/IndiaCasteProtest/249f166d16ba461b8f6e2eb43a73b52c/photo?Query=india%20caste&mediaType=photo&sortBy=&dateRange=Anytime&totalCount=966&currentItemNo=57">AP Photo/Gurinder Osan</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The California State University system, America’s largest public higher education system, recently added caste, a birth-based social hierarchy system, to its <a href="https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2022-01-20/csu-adds-caste-to-its-anti-discrimination-policy">anti-discrimination policy</a>, allowing students, staff and faculty across its 23 campuses to report caste bias and discrimination. </p>
<p>CSU’s move has drawn a sharp response from some in the Indian diaspora: About <a href="https://www.hinduamerican.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Faculty-Staff-Petition-Oppose-Addition-Caste-Faculty-Contract-PUBLIC.pdf">80 faculty members of Indian heritage</a>, as well as the <a href="https://www.hinduamerican.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/HAF-Letter-Cal-State-Board-of-Trustees-2022-0120.pdf">Hindu American Foundation</a>, a Washington, D.C.-based advocacy group, have opposed the decision, claiming that it is potentially stigmatizing for persons of Hindu or Indian heritage. They have also threatened a lawsuit against CSU if this decision is not revoked. </p>
<p>The caste system is often conflated in <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-35650616">Western media</a> with Hindu religion and India alone. However, as <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/14742837.2016.1152173">social</a> <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/padr.12309">scientists</a> specializing in South Asian Studies, we know that the caste system is neither exclusive to Hindu religion nor is it endemic to India. </p>
<h2>Caste in South Asia</h2>
<p>While the <a href="https://press.princeton.edu/books/paperback/9780691088952/castes-of-mind">caste system originated in Hindu scriptures, it crystallized during British colonial rule</a> and has stratified society in every South Asian religious community. In addition to India, it is present in <a href="https://ssrn.com/abstract=1875415">Pakistan</a>, <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/25764189">Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka</a>, the <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/24365026?seq=1">Maldives</a> and <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3295446">Bhutan</a>.</p>
<p>Social, economic and political status in this pernicious system is tied to traditional occupations fixed by birth. Brahmins, for example, who are assigned priestly work, are at the top, and Dalits, relegated to the bottom, are forced into occupations that are considered abject in South Asia, such as cleaning streets and toilets, or working in the tanning industry. Caste-based rules of marriage maintain these boundaries firmly. </p>
<p>Caste organizes social life not only among Hindus but also in Muslim, Christian, Sikh and Buddhist communities in the region. It is an intergenerational system based on birth into a caste group. Caste identities stay even generations after someone converts out of Hinduism and into any of these faiths.</p>
<p>Among <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Christian-caste">South Asian Christians</a>, Anglo-Indians are at the top of the hierarchy. This small community includes individuals of mixed descent from Indian and British parents. Those who converted to Christianity, even generations ago, from middle level Hindu castes come next, followed by those from Indigenous backgrounds. <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2021/07/12/8-key-findings-about-christians-in-india/">Those who converted to Christianity from Dalit castes</a> are placed at the bottom. </p>
<p><a href="https://books.google.com/books/about/Caste_and_Social_Stratification_Among_Mu.html?id=8dGFAAAAIAAJ">Muslims across the region</a> are organized with the minority Ashraf communities at the top. The Ashraf community claims noble status as the “original” Muslims in South Asia, due to their descent from Central Asian, Iranian and Arab ethnic groups. The middle in this social hierarchy is comprised of Ajlaf, considered to be “low-born” communities that converted from Hindu artisanal castes. The group at the bottom includes converts from Dalit communities who are identified with the demeaning term Arzal, which means vile or vulgar. </p>
<p>In the <a href="https://www.epw.in/journal/2003/26/special-articles/scheduled-castes-sikh-community.html">Sikh</a> community, the powerful land-owning caste, Jat-Sikhs, are at the top, followed by converts from Hindu trading communities in the middle and converts from lower caste Hindu communities, Mazhabi Sikhs, at the bottom. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/459542/original/file-20220425-2721-nf6eea.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Sikh men wearing colorful turbans and women with their heads covered gathered together in New Delhi, India." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/459542/original/file-20220425-2721-nf6eea.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/459542/original/file-20220425-2721-nf6eea.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=390&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/459542/original/file-20220425-2721-nf6eea.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=390&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/459542/original/file-20220425-2721-nf6eea.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=390&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/459542/original/file-20220425-2721-nf6eea.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=490&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/459542/original/file-20220425-2721-nf6eea.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=490&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/459542/original/file-20220425-2721-nf6eea.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=490&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Dalit Sikhs gather for a protest in New Delhi.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/IndiaDalitProtest/87814b9fc16e412aa1933d416f10d360/photo?Query=hindus%20caste&mediaType=photo&sortBy=&dateRange=Anytime&totalCount=191&currentItemNo=12">AP Photo/ R S Iyer</a></span>
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<p>While Buddhism in India is close to being casteless, its dominant versions in Sri Lanka and Nepal have <a href="https://journals.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/index.php/jiabs/article/view/8676">caste-based hierarchies</a>.</p>
<h2>Caste carries over after conversion</h2>
<p>While many of the so-called lower caste groups converted to escape their persecution in Hinduism, their new religions did not treat them as fully equal.</p>
<p>South Asian Christians, Muslims, Sikhs and Buddhists with Dalit family histories continue to face <a href="https://www.minorityaffairs.gov.in/sites/default/files/sachar_comm.pdf">prejudice</a> from their new co-religionists. They are excluded from or <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/4412102?seq=1">experience segregation</a> at shared places of worship <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-south-asia-11229170">and sites of burial or cremation</a> across all these regions.</p>
<p>Social scientists have shown that strict caste-based rules continue to regulate social organization and everyday interactions. Intercaste marriages are rare: In India alone, they have remained at about <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0021909619829896">5% of all marriages over the past several decades</a>. When they take place, the couples risk <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-47823588">violence</a>.</p>
<p>While urbanization and education have normalized everyday interactions across caste groups in shared urban spaces, entertaining lower caste individuals in upper caste households is still taboo in many families. A 2014 <a href="https://www.ncaer.org/news_details.php?nID=91">survey</a> found one in every four Indians to be practicing untouchability, a dehumanizing practice in which people from Dalit castes are not to be touched or allowed to come in contact with upper caste individuals. Untouchability was prohibited in India in 1950 when its egalitarian constitution came into force. However, home ownership is <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0956247818812330">segregated</a> by caste, and religion and caste discrimination is <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/24482557">pervasive in the rental market</a> where residential associations use flimsy procedural excuses for keeping lower caste individuals out. </p>
<p>Lower castes are expected to defer to the higher status of upper castes, refrain from expressing themselves in shared spaces and avoid displaying material affluence. They risk being punished by <a href="https://indianexpress.com/article/india/social-boycott-of-dalit-families-odisha-rights-panel-takes-cognizance-seeks-report-from-officials-6569912/">socioeconomic boycotts</a>, which could include ostracizing the Dalits or keeping them out of employment. It may even include <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/02/21/india-dalits-wedding-horse/">assault</a> or <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2020/jun/13/nepal-to-investigate-dalit-killings-following-arranged-marriage-dispute">murder</a>. In Pakistan, <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2020/12/15/it-is-time-to-talk-about-caste-in-pakistan-and-pakistani-diaspora">anti-blasphemy laws are used as a pretext for caste violence against Dalits</a>, many of whom have <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-35910331">converted to Christianity</a>. </p>
<h2>Caste and life outcomes</h2>
<p>Studies show that caste-based identity is a major determinant of overall <a href="https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2109226119">success</a> in South Asia. Upper caste individuals have better literacy and greater representation in <a href="https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1293431.pdf">higher education</a>. They are <a href="http://piketty.pse.ens.fr/files/Bharti2018.pdf">wealthier</a> and dominate <a href="https://www.epw.in/journal/2007/41/caste-and-economic-discrimination-special-issues/legacy-social-exclusion.html">private sector employment</a>, as well as <a href="https://www.epw.in/journal/2013/06/special-articles/caste-and-entrepreneurship-india.html">entrepreneurship</a>. </p>
<p>While <a href="https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/bitstream/handle/10986/9038/WDR2006_0012.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y">affirmative action programs</a> initiated by the British and continued in independent India have made improvements in the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0010414021989755">educational levels of lower caste groups</a>, employment opportunities for them have been limited.</p>
<p>Studies also demonstrate how caste identity affects <a href="https://gsdrc.org/document-library/discrimination-and-childrens-nutritional-status-in-india/">nutrition and health</a> through purchasing power and <a href="https://dhsprogram.com/pubs/pdf/FA117/FA117.pdf">access to health services</a>.</p>
<p>Most socioeconomic <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/2394481118808107">elites in South Asia</a>, regardless of religion, are affiliated with upper caste groups, and the vast majority of the poor come from lower caste groups. </p>
<h2>Caste in the diaspora</h2>
<p>Scholars have documented similar discriminatory practices in the diaspora in the <a href="https://www.epw.in/journal/2002/31/commentary/punjabis-england.html">U.K.</a>, <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-02-11/caste-system-of-india-and-south-asia-in-australia-dalit-rights/13135622">Australia</a>, <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/indian-caste-system-in-canada-called-a-disease-worse-than-racism-1.3090441">Canada</a> and the <a href="https://www.epw.in/journal/2015/37/notes/caste-among-indian-diaspora-africa.html">African continent</a>. </p>
<p>Caste has started getting recognition as a discriminatory category, especially in the U.S., in recent years. A 2016 <a href="https://www.equalitylabs.org/castesurvey">survey, “Caste in the USA”</a>, the first formal documentation of caste discrimination within the U.S. diaspora, found that caste discrimination was pervasive across workplaces, educational institutions, places of worship and even in romantic partnerships. </p>
<p>In 2020, the state of California <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-cisco-lawsuit/california-accuses-cisco-of-job-discrimination-based-on-indian-employees-caste-idUSKBN2423YE">sued</a> Cisco Systems, a technology company in the Silicon Valley, on a complaint against caste-based discrimination. <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/harvard-adds-caste-bias-protections-graduate-student-workers-rcna7279">Harvard University</a>, <a href="https://www.colby.edu/admission/nondiscrimination-policy/">Colby College</a>, <a href="https://www.usnews.com/news/us/articles/2021-11-18/uc-davis-adds-caste-to-its-anti-discrimination-policy">UC Davis</a> and <a href="https://www.brandeis.edu/president/letters/2019-12-17-adding-caste-to-our-nondiscrimination-harassment-policy.html">Brandeis University</a> have recognized caste as a protected status and have included it in their nondiscrimination policies. </p>
<p>These developments in the U.S. have put the spotlight again on this centuries-old system that denies equality to large populations on the basis of an oppressive and rigid hierarchical system. It is up to the American diaspora how they commit to engage with it, as they themselves strive for equality and fairness in their new multicultural society. </p>
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<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Several US universities now recognize caste as part of nondiscrimination policies. Two scholars of South Asian studies explain how caste-based violence isn’t limited to Hinduism, or to India.Aseem Hasnain, Associate Professor of Sociology, Bridgewater State UniversityAbhilasha Srivastava, Assistant Professor of Economics, California State University, San BernardinoLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1800952022-04-13T17:52:45Z2022-04-13T17:52:45ZWhat is the Sikh festival of Baisakhi and why is it so sacred?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/457716/original/file-20220412-9671-77520m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=119%2C31%2C5179%2C3500&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Sikh men and women during a prayer service during the Baisakhi festival.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/baisakhi-festival-novellara-emilia-romagna-italy-news-photo/1318818123?adppopup=true">Giovanni Mereghetti/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Sikhs all over the world celebrate the festival of Baisakhi, a holiday with a special religious significance, observed each year on April 13 or 14. In 2022, Baisakhi falls on April 14.</p>
<p>As a <a href="https://www.memphis.edu/sociology/people/faculty_and_staff/simranjit-khalsa.php">sociologist of religion</a> studying Sikhs in the West and as someone who was raised Sikh, I know that Baisakhi is one of Sikhism’s most widely celebrated holidays. I remember attending celebratory Baisakhi processions in Amritsar in northern India where large crowds gathered, many wearing traditional Sikh clothing, and danced and <a href="https://thebridge.in/featured/gatka-traditional-martial-arts-introduced-sikhs-recognised-sport/?infinitescroll=1">practiced Sikh martial arts</a>.</p>
<p>Originally a spring harvest festival celebrated in the northern Indian state of Punjab, the festival gained religious significance for Sikhs when Guru Gobind Singh – the 10th and final living guru for Sikhs – created the Khalsa in 1699. </p>
<h2>What is the Khalsa?</h2>
<p>Sikhs see the creation of the Khalsa, which is <a href="https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/sikhism-9780857719621/">commonly translated as “pure,”</a> as creating a distinctive Sikh identity.</p>
<p>Guru Gobind Singh established the Khalsa with the intention that Sikhs who joined the order be set apart from those around them. Sikhs initiated as members of the Khalsa are known as “amritdhari” Sikhs. Sikhs who have not been “initiated” are known as “sahejdhari” Sikhs. The precise size of each group is not known, but <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/25608364">amritdhari Sikhs are a significant minority</a>.</p>
<p>Sikhs are initiated into this order through the “amrit pahul.” It is a rite that involves drinking a nectar called <a href="https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/sikhism-9780857719621/">amrit</a>, prepared using a mixture of sugar and water that has been stirred with a double-edged sword. The initiates read from the Guru Granth Sahib, the Sikh scripture that is seen as the embodiment of the guru, recite a formal prayer, and agree to adhere to guidelines for behavior and practice. </p>
<p>All those initiated wear symbols with religious significance, <a href="https://theconversation.com/who-are-the-sikhs-and-what-are-their-beliefs-97237">known as the five K’s</a>: kesh (uncut hair), kanga (wooden comb), kachera (cotton undershorts), kirpan (a steel blade), and kara (a steel bracelet). Each has its own symbolic meaning. The kirpan, for example, symbolizes one’s commitment to protect the defenseless and defend their faith. The five K’s also set the Khalsa apart from all others, serving as an outward expression of commitment to the Sikh faith. </p>
<p>Amritdhari Sikhs are all expected to wear the five K’s. Although sahejdhari Sikhs may wear some or all of the five K’s, <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/25608364">most Sikhs today do not expect them to do so</a>.</p>
<h2>Baisakhi celebrations</h2>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Men in red turbans and white shirts with red jackets performing the bhangra dance." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/457718/original/file-20220412-58861-5ga2p5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/457718/original/file-20220412-58861-5ga2p5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=351&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/457718/original/file-20220412-58861-5ga2p5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=351&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/457718/original/file-20220412-58861-5ga2p5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=351&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/457718/original/file-20220412-58861-5ga2p5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=441&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/457718/original/file-20220412-58861-5ga2p5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=441&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/457718/original/file-20220412-58861-5ga2p5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=441&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Sikh men performing the bhangra dance on the occasion of the Baisakhi festival.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/artists-perform-the-bhangra-a-punjabi-folk-dance-near-india-news-photo/520246752?adppopup=true">Photo by Nitin Kanotra/Hindustan Times via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Although <a href="https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/C/bo3640357.html">scholars debate when exactly a separate Sikh identity was formed</a>, for many Sikhs today Baisakhi is seen as formative turning point in the Sikh faith.</p>
<p>Sikhs mark the occasion by going to Gurdwara, a Sikh place of worship, for a service, followed by a procession. There is singing, <a href="http://oro.open.ac.uk/2682/">bhangra dancing</a> and Sikh martial arts called gatka. In addition, for Sikhs in the diaspora, such public celebrations are also an opportunity to <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/buddhists-hindus-and-sikhs-in-america-9780195333114?cc=us&lang=en&">help the non-Sikh public better understand Sikh beliefs and practice</a>.</p>
<p>Sikhs see Sikhism as a tradition that has been <a href="https://sunypress.edu/Books/T/The-Birth-of-the-Khalsa">fundamentally concerned with equality</a> from its outset. They believe in equality among men and women and reject caste distinctions. </p>
<p>With the creation of the Khalsa, Guru Gobind Singh called for men initiated into the Khalsa to discard their last names and take the last name Singh and women to take the last name Kaur as a rejection of caste. This is because in India, <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-35650616">last names are indicators of caste</a>. When Sikhs communicate to non-Sikhs about their faith, they often <a href="https://www.sikhnet.com/pages/who-are-sikhs-what-is-sikhism">emphasize this egalitarian vision of Sikhism</a>. </p>
<p>Sikhs have been living in the <a href="https://doi.org/10.7758/RSF.2018.4.5.04">U.S. since the late 1800s</a>. Today, the Sikh population in the U.S. is <a href="https://pluralism.org/the-sikh-community-today">estimated at around 500,000</a>. However, they are a group that most Americans know little about. Sikhs in the U.S. are often <a href="https://doi.org/10.13169/islastudj.4.1.0037">subject to Islamophobia</a> and have been <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/06/us/shooting-reported-at-temple-in-wisconsin.html">targets of violent attacks</a>, in large part because they are commonly mistaken for Muslims.</p>
<p>A resolution was <a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-resolution/1007/all-info">introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives</a> on March 28, 2022, that, if passed, would make April 14 National Sikh Day. </p>
<p>Establishing a National Sikh Day would have a symbolic meaning for Sikhs who have faced <a href="https://www.propublica.org/article/sikhs-in-america-hate-crime-victims-and-bias">discrimination in the U.S</a>, and it would acknowledge their contributions to American society. </p>
<p>[<em>3 media outlets, 1 religion newsletter.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/this-week-in-religion-76/?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=religion-3-in-1">Get stories from The Conversation, AP and RNS.</a>]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/180095/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Simranjit Steel does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Originally a spring harvest festival, Baisakhi acquired religious significance after the10th Sikh guru created the Khalsa, a distinctive Sikh identity, on this day.Simranjit Steel, Assistant Professor of Sociology, University of MemphisLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1732762021-12-16T09:01:58Z2021-12-16T09:01:58ZPresents from a princess: the mission to deliver 2.6 million Christmas gifts to soldiers and sailors on the 1914 frontline<blockquote>
<p>I want you all now to help me send a Christmas present from the whole nation to every sailor afloat and every soldier at the front… Please will you help me?
<strong>HRH Princess Mary, October 15, 1914</strong></p>
<p>This is a lovely gift, and I am sending it home that you may keep it safe, for I would not part with it for anything in the world. <strong>Driver W Powell, Army Service Corps, February, 1915</strong></p>
</blockquote>
<p>Anybody with a passing interest in the first world war will have heard of the “<a href="https://www.iwm.org.uk/history/look-inside-the-princess-mary-gift-fund-1914-box">Princess Mary tin</a>” – a gift from a 17-year-old princess for sailors battling fierce seas and soldiers mired in winter trenches in 1914. Among the backdrop of the unofficial truces that were held up and down the line on Christmas Day 1914, this simple gift has assumed almost mythical proportions. It is a potent symbol of a moment of peace in a deepening war. </p>
<p>From India to Canada, Australia to the UK, these neat little brass boxes bearing the profile of the young princess can be found in drawers and cupboards across the world. Some contain memories and mementos of war which have been cherished for over 100 years.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A brass box." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436661/original/file-20211209-17-1ai58m7.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436661/original/file-20211209-17-1ai58m7.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=395&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436661/original/file-20211209-17-1ai58m7.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=395&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436661/original/file-20211209-17-1ai58m7.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=395&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436661/original/file-20211209-17-1ai58m7.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=496&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436661/original/file-20211209-17-1ai58m7.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=496&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436661/original/file-20211209-17-1ai58m7.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=496&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The brass gift box bearing Princess Mary’s profile.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Peter Doyle</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Mohammed Babavali’s box is a proud legacy which he will pass on to his children. The tin, awarded to his great-grandfather for his service in <a href="https://www.visitflanders.com/en/themes/flanders_fields/">Flanders Fields</a>, was one of the few family heirlooms salvaged by his father after a cyclone hit their village in western India in 1977. Though the tin is empty, for Babavali it is “<a href="https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Vijayawada/this-tin-is-filled-with-memories/article8567585.ece">filled with memories</a>”.</p>
<p>This is a common reaction. Yet all too often these memories have faded, becoming fuzzy tales at the end of even fuzzier internet searches. The truth behind this unparalleled and hugely expensive charity campaign has never been fully told. Until now.</p>
<p>I examined all the available evidence and worked with archivists at the princess’s former home, Harewood House, the Imperial War Museum and other notable repositories and archives. <a href="https://www.unicornpublishing.org/page/detail/For-Every-Sailor-Afloat/?K=9781913491536">My research</a> has uncovered the true motivations behind the scheme as well as revealing some surprising and previously unknown facts.</p>
<p>I discovered how the executive committee that delivered the gift was not just made up of powerful men – it included senior women, who materially influenced its outcome.</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/288776/original/file-20190820-170910-8bv1s7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/288776/original/file-20190820-170910-8bv1s7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/288776/original/file-20190820-170910-8bv1s7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/288776/original/file-20190820-170910-8bv1s7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/288776/original/file-20190820-170910-8bv1s7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/288776/original/file-20190820-170910-8bv1s7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/288776/original/file-20190820-170910-8bv1s7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><strong><em>This story is part of Conversation Insights</em></strong>
<br><em>The Insights team generates <a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/topics/insights-series-71218">long-form journalism</a> and is working with academics from different backgrounds who have been engaged in projects to tackle societal and scientific challenges.</em> </p>
<hr>
<p>I also found that although the scheme was designed to supply 500,000 gifts, in actual fact, the success of the fundraising meant it was extended – amounting to 2.6 million gifts worldwide, to be presented to all those in the “King’s uniform” on Christmas Day 1914. But assembling the gifts was a huge undertaking, and distributing them became a massive burden on the army. </p>
<p>To understand the story, we must first understand the time – and the young princess at its centre.</p>
<h2>‘The first modern princess’</h2>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="Portrait of young lady from 1900s." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436685/original/file-20211209-21-vah1b1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436685/original/file-20211209-21-vah1b1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=938&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436685/original/file-20211209-21-vah1b1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=938&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436685/original/file-20211209-21-vah1b1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=938&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436685/original/file-20211209-21-vah1b1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1179&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436685/original/file-20211209-21-vah1b1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1179&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436685/original/file-20211209-21-vah1b1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1179&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Princess Mary, a 17-year-old who made a difference.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Library of Congress</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>When the world was in the grip of 1914’s “Great War”, Princess Mary was just 17. The only daughter of King George V and Queen Mary, she was bright, well educated and capable of holding her own among her brothers. But Mary was not one to play upon her fresh, natural demeanour. With no time for stuffy formality, the princess dedicated herself to war work and ultimately became interested in giving a Christmas gift to all those fighting. </p>
<p>Elisabeth Basford’s recent <a href="https://www.tatler.com/article/princess-mary-first-modern-princess-biography-elisabeth-basford">biography</a> of Mary (the first for a century) has cast new light on this reticent, shy but dedicated young woman. Basford rebranded her as the “first modern princess” and my own findings have backed this up.</p>
<p>This remarkable story began with a simple appeal to the nation. On October 16, 1914, the press announced an idea embodied in a simple letter: a letter full of genuine pathos; a letter penned by the young princess herself. In it, with youthful sentiment, Princess Mary announced her Christmas gift for all those sailors and soldiers serving in the theatres of war. She wrote: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>For many weeks we have all been greatly concerned for the welfare of the sailors and soldiers who are so gallantly fighting battles by sea and land… I want you all now to help me to send a Christmas present from the whole nation to every sailor afloat and early soldier at the front…. Could there be anything more likely to hearten them in their struggle than a present received straight from home on Christmas Day?</p>
</blockquote>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="A newspaper cutting" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436646/original/file-20211209-138695-18kzt4e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436646/original/file-20211209-138695-18kzt4e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=1730&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436646/original/file-20211209-138695-18kzt4e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=1730&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436646/original/file-20211209-138695-18kzt4e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=1730&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436646/original/file-20211209-138695-18kzt4e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=2173&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436646/original/file-20211209-138695-18kzt4e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=2173&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436646/original/file-20211209-138695-18kzt4e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=2173&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Princess Mary’s direct appeal to the nation which appeared in all major newspapers on October 16, 1914.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The effect of the letter was electric – achieving half of the required funds by the end of the month – but what was the motivation behind it? </p>
<h2>The first meeting</h2>
<p>Emerging from the princess’s sparse prose (recorded in her personal diary, now preserved at <a href="https://harewood.org/">Harewood House)</a>) is the revelation that the gift’s origins lay in a pivotal meeting at Buckingham Palace on October 8, 1914. The meeting – with <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_of_Teck">Queen Mary</a>, the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_VIII">Prince of Wales</a> (otherwise known as Prince Edward: the man who would become Edward VIII and later abdicate the throne) and the prince’s treasurer, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Peacock">Walter Peacock</a> – was held to “arrange a fund” to “send pipes and tobacco to the sailors and soldiers”. Such a matter-of-fact diary entry for what would become such a huge undertaking. </p>
<p>As revealed by historian Peter Grant in <a href="https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/mono/10.4324/9781315890210/philanthropy-voluntary-action-first-world-war-peter-grant">his study</a> of charitable schemes in the war, Queen Mary had, from the outset, promoted her eldest son as head of the National Relief Fund – a charity set up in August 1914 to support families and ex-servicemen made destitute by war. It was highly successful. There can be no question that the Queen was steering her children to take their place in the war and finding a role for her daughter was equally significant.</p>
<p>But why a Christmas gift? In 1899, in the first year of <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/victorians/boer_wars_01.shtml">the Boer War</a>, Queen Victoria had set about providing a uniquely personal present to the soldiers then fighting in South Africa. The Queen’s gift – of chocolate in a specially commissioned tin – was set to become one of the most treasured artefacts of the war, and had a positive impact on Mary. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A chocolate tin." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436751/original/file-20211209-21-1lcfbfz.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436751/original/file-20211209-21-1lcfbfz.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=439&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436751/original/file-20211209-21-1lcfbfz.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=439&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436751/original/file-20211209-21-1lcfbfz.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=439&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436751/original/file-20211209-21-1lcfbfz.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=552&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436751/original/file-20211209-21-1lcfbfz.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=552&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436751/original/file-20211209-21-1lcfbfz.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=552&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Queen Victoria’s Chocolate Tin, framed and glazed for posterity.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Peter Doyle</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>While the Queen paid for this gift herself, there was no possibility that Mary could fund her own version, and a call to the public was needed, taking the scheme from a purely personal royal act, to a national campaign during a traumatic year of <a href="https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/620/62043/1914-1918/9780718197957.html">war</a> which had seen defeats on the battlefields and losses on the high seas. But the parallels with Queen Victoria’s morale-boosting gift of chocolate to the troops could not be clearer. </p>
<p>The appeal was launched on October 14 – just six days after Mary’s initial meeting and barely two months before Christmas. Its General Committee was composed of 38 prominent citizens (13 of them women) while delivery of the gift was managed through a smaller executive committee. Established at the Ritz Hotel, in London’s Mayfair, nine influential people determined the future direction of the fund. </p>
<p>This meeting was chaired by the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victor_Cavendish,_9th_Duke_of_Devonshire">Duke of Devonshire</a> and attended by principal officers Walter Peacock, publisher and advertising executive <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hedley_Le_Bas">Hedley Le Bas</a>, and the secretary <a href="https://harewood.org/about/blog/notes/a-christmas-legacy-continues/">Rowland Berkeley</a>. The other members listed on the committee papers were: H.V. Higgins, Capt Foley Lambert RN, General S.S. Long, Lady Florence Jellicoe and The Hon. W. Lawson. </p>
<p>The initial number of recipients was estimated to be about 145,000 sailors and 350,000 soldiers, meaning that at least 495,000 gifts would be needed. But the gift fund would eventually assemble around 11 million objects, gathered together to make up the 2.6 million gifts that were distributed worldwide by the end of the war.</p>
<h2>A global campaign</h2>
<p>Funding this huge undertaking required advanced techniques, and Le Bas was the person to do it. According to <a href="https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/EUM0000000004710/full/html">research</a> by historian Nicholas Hiley, Le Bas convinced the British government in 1914 “of the advantage to be gained from domestic propaganda” and created the “Your Country Needs You” recruitment campaign that built Kitchener’s army.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Newspaper cutting" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436752/original/file-20211209-15-1uhf8lw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436752/original/file-20211209-15-1uhf8lw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=726&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436752/original/file-20211209-15-1uhf8lw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=726&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436752/original/file-20211209-15-1uhf8lw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=726&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436752/original/file-20211209-15-1uhf8lw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=913&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436752/original/file-20211209-15-1uhf8lw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=913&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436752/original/file-20211209-15-1uhf8lw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=913&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Sir Hedley Le Bas masterminded the ‘Your Country Needs You’ recruiting campaign, widely carried in the press.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Peter Doyle</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Not surprisingly, Le Bas took a significant part in the gift fund, deploying the princess’s touching letter to great effect. Applications for money were made through a direct appeal to prominent citizens, landed gentry and relevant highly placed groups. </p>
<p>And with its emphasis on Christmas and the youth of the Princess, it was expected that the fund would have a special resonance with young people, who – according to an article in the Montrose Standard on October 30 – “knew the enjoyment of home, and who appreciated the happiness of Christmas gifts”. School children were especially targeted as providers of “coppers” by local fundraisers and schools ultimately raised more than £6,000 for the fund. </p>
<p>Throughout October and November, money flooded in from all sections of society. And public generosity was not restricted to Great Britain, but came from across the Empire, particularly Canada. In Winnipeg, Manitoba, locals “gave a patriotic tea”, the proceeds of which went to the fund. As reported in the local newspaper, the Winnipeg Tribune, on December 4:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>The reception room and the dining room were aglow with red, white and blue lights. The tea table was centred with a battleship, around which were smaller ships, with tiny soldiers and flags surrounding them.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Aided by Le Bas’s advertising acumen, the weekly rise in donations soon went beyond the expectations of the executive committee. By the end of November, the chairman announced that as “the public are responding so generously Princess Mary’s fund for sending Christmas gifts to all sailors afloat and all soldiers on the front that her Royal Highness has decided to extend it sending a present to all the British, colonial, and Indian troops serving outside the British Isles”.</p>
<p>This decision would have major ramifications. </p>
<h2>An enormous task</h2>
<p>It was now down to the executive committee to actually deliver. They had to create a suitable gift which could be made and distributed in time – a task that was frankly quite enormous. Its centrepiece was the intricately designed brass box reflecting the Edwardian taste in design. Central to the box was a representation of the princess herself, depicted in profile, and surrounded by a laurel wreath. The design was heralded in the press, a gift worthy of those serving at sea, or at the front. Yet there were challenges in rendering this in brass.</p>
<p>On November 17, the executive committee was informed that the secretary, Rowland Berkeley, had entered into contracts with three prominent box manufacturers. Each was contracted to produce 166,000 brass boxes at a net cost of just over six pence each. This amounted to (at this early stage) 498,000 boxes at a cost of just over £12,968. But the box manufacturers’ usual business was making boxes out of tin-plate. Finding a supply of brass would be an entirely different matter and the manufacturers could not foresee how hard it was going to be to source the brass they needed.</p>
<p>That’s because brass was a significant alloy used in a variety of munitions, with its primary components of copper and zinc also essential for that most vital process. With a shortage of shells on the horizon, there was little to be spared for endeavours peripheral to winning the war. </p>
<p>Given the insecurity of brass supply, Berkeley set out to obtain a reserve of brass to be controlled directly by the gift fund – an experiment that proved to be a failure. More brass would be needed and if that brass could not be sourced from home foundries then it would have to be sought elsewhere, particularly in America. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Black and white image of an old ocean liner." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436662/original/file-20211209-23-1xh0lgg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436662/original/file-20211209-23-1xh0lgg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=386&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436662/original/file-20211209-23-1xh0lgg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=386&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436662/original/file-20211209-23-1xh0lgg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=386&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436662/original/file-20211209-23-1xh0lgg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=484&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436662/original/file-20211209-23-1xh0lgg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=484&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436662/original/file-20211209-23-1xh0lgg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=484&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">RMS Lusitania, which was torpedoed on May 7, 1915.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Library of Congress</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This would be a difficult proposition, as later in the war, supplies set aside for the gift boxes would be “sent to the bottom of the Irish Sea”, part of the cargo of the ill-fated liner <a href="http://www.lusitania.net">Lusitania</a>, which was torpedoed with great loss of life on May 7, 1915.</p>
<h2>What was in the box?</h2>
<p>On November 26, the Manchester Evening News reported on the gift’s progress. “The present consists of an embossed brass box, tinder lighter, a pipe, cigarettes and tobacco, with various alternatives for non-smokers, together with a Christmas card,” the report states.</p>
<p>The story continues, saying 500,000 boxes have been ordered and are now being made in “four important centres of industry” in Great Britain. Three manufacturers were supplying the tinder lighters; tobacco was being supplied by three other firms; cigarettes by two, and pipes seven. The covers for the packets of cigarettes and tobacco were being printed by a London firm. The orders for the Christmas cards and the cardboard boxes for packing the present were also placed in London.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Contents of a gift tin." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436156/original/file-20211207-19-s0t5p1.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436156/original/file-20211207-19-s0t5p1.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436156/original/file-20211207-19-s0t5p1.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436156/original/file-20211207-19-s0t5p1.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436156/original/file-20211207-19-s0t5p1.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436156/original/file-20211207-19-s0t5p1.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436156/original/file-20211207-19-s0t5p1.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The contents of the standard gift for smokers.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Peter Doyle</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>One of the first issues was the tinder lighter. Supplied by the high-end silversmiths, Aspreys, it would founder on the basis that the “ceric stones” needed to ignite the lighter would have to be sourced from Austria – an enemy state. </p>
<p>In a hurry, off-the-shelf replacements were sought by Berkeley. But for one member of the executive committee, dedicated to upholding the status of her husband’s navy, this was not good enough. Lady Jellicoe (who was married to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Jellicoe,_1st_Earl_Jellicoe">Lord John Jellicoe</a>, Admiral of the Fleet) insisted that naval personnel should receive a specially commissioned “bullet pencil case”, consisting of a bullet cartridge and a silver pencil holder. And this would not be the last time that Lady Jellicoe made her presence felt in the committee.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Image of a bullet lighter." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436912/original/file-20211210-188518-1fhi3t6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436912/original/file-20211210-188518-1fhi3t6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=103&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436912/original/file-20211210-188518-1fhi3t6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=103&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436912/original/file-20211210-188518-1fhi3t6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=103&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436912/original/file-20211210-188518-1fhi3t6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=130&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436912/original/file-20211210-188518-1fhi3t6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=130&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436912/original/file-20211210-188518-1fhi3t6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=130&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The silver bullet pencil, as depicted in the Illustrated War News, April 1915.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Illustrated War News, 1915.</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Non-smokers</h2>
<p>So the navy got special treatment, but it may come as a surprise to learn just how much thought went into catering for non-smokers, too. At the time, <a href="https://encyclopedia.1914-1918-online.net/article/smoking_and_cigarette_consumption?version=1.0">96% of soldiers</a> smoked so the choice of sending pipes and tobacco made sense. But one matter that had clearly influenced the executive committee was the fact that for Sikhs, “the smoking of tobacco was strictly forbidden”. </p>
<p>With this in mind, and in order to ensure that the needs of the Indian Corps were met, the executive committee consulted widely with experts who knew India and the Indian soldier best. As early as October 15, the committee determined that the Indian Corps should have “sweet-meats instead of tobacco and cigarettes”. In the end, four different variants of the gift were devised and distributed to Indian troops.</p>
<p>This effort gained more poignancy in 2014 when just north of the Belgian city of Ypres – where in 1915 during the Second Battle of Ypres, British forces lost 59,000 men – a short section of trench in a piece of formerly devastated landscape <a href="https://oar.onroerenderfgoed.be/publicaties/ROEV/846/ROEV0846-001.pdf">was found</a> by a small team of archaeologists. Alongside the detritus of war were the sad remains of men – men who had fought and fallen in these battlefields; men whose names were recorded on memorials to the missing, but whose graves were no more, lost for a century.</p>
<p>Identifying fallen soldiers recovered from the battlefields of Flanders is notoriously difficult, as identifying marks and tags are easily lost with time. Both of these men found in 2014 wore uniforms of the British Army, but details of their equipment, and the fact that one at least carried distinctive Indian “One Anna” coins, dated 1914, in his pocket, indicate that they were probably Indian. </p>
<p>Both soldiers were most likely killed during the <a href="https://www.iwm.org.uk/history/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-second-battle-of-ypres">Second Battle of Ypres</a> in April 1915 and both carried the revered gift from the princess in their breast pockets. It is hoped that this may provide some measure of identification for these men.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Rusted and old brass box" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436680/original/file-20211209-21-z45cok.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436680/original/file-20211209-21-z45cok.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=412&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436680/original/file-20211209-21-z45cok.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=412&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436680/original/file-20211209-21-z45cok.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=412&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436680/original/file-20211209-21-z45cok.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=518&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436680/original/file-20211209-21-z45cok.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=518&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436680/original/file-20211209-21-z45cok.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=518&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Gift box recovered from with a soldier whose body had been lost in the field of Flanders.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Franky Wyffles/Flemish Heritage Agency</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But there were other minority groups and the minutes of the executive committee indicate that there was a vocal pressure group that reacted unfavourably to announcements of tobacco. </p>
<p>Perhaps associated with religious abstinence that was at the root of Victorian–Edwardian anti-smoking campaigns, this lobby influenced the committee such that it decided unanimously that “non-smokers should receive boxes of sweets, or chocolates, instead of pipes, tinder lighters, and tobacco”. Eventually it was decided that a box containing “acid tablets” (citrus sweets) and a handsome pack of writing materials would be distributed to non-smokers, at a proportion of two such gifts to 56 standard ones.</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="A tin box with sweets." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436677/original/file-20211209-68670-1n0sz1b.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436677/original/file-20211209-68670-1n0sz1b.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436677/original/file-20211209-68670-1n0sz1b.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436677/original/file-20211209-68670-1n0sz1b.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436677/original/file-20211209-68670-1n0sz1b.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436677/original/file-20211209-68670-1n0sz1b.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436677/original/file-20211209-68670-1n0sz1b.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The gift for non-smokers, including writing case, brass box and ‘acid tablets’.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Peter Doyle</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Forgotten nurses</h2>
<p>But while non-smokers’ needs were considered, there were other potential recipients deserving of a dedicated gift, too. The British Army in Flanders, the British Expeditionary Force – and the Indian army that fought alongside it – did not solely consist of male soldiers. There were also female nurses, members of the Army Medical Service, who served close to the front alongside the doctors and orderlies of the Royal Army Medical Corps. Surely their efforts and sacrifices should also have been recognised? </p>
<p>Surprisingly, despite their dedication to duty, the first mention of gifts for nurses was at the executive committee on October 27 – some two weeks after the launch of the fund. Evidently, nurses had not been considered from the outset – a surprising oversight. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Old photo of WW1 field hospital." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436682/original/file-20211209-17-1p1olcn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436682/original/file-20211209-17-1p1olcn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=370&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436682/original/file-20211209-17-1p1olcn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=370&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436682/original/file-20211209-17-1p1olcn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=370&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436682/original/file-20211209-17-1p1olcn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=464&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436682/original/file-20211209-17-1p1olcn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=464&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436682/original/file-20211209-17-1p1olcn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=464&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Christmas in a Stationary Hospital with nurses and soldiers in attendance.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But <a href="https://www.unicornpublishing.org/page/detail/For-Every-Sailor-Afloat/?K=9781913491536">my research</a> suggests that this was indeed the case, with the nurses seemingly an afterthought. Their gift was only confirmed on November 24 at a meeting that announced the increased income of the gift fund. The 1,500 nurses eligible received only the box and chocolate. It was well received but it seems to be such a small gift for such gallant conduct. One nurse, serving on an ambulance train at Ypres, described the conditions that surrounded the issue of the gift.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Saw my lambs off the train before breakfast. One man in the Warwicks had twelve years’ service, a wife and two children, but ‘when Kitchener wanted more men’ he re-joined. This week he got an explosive bullet through his arm, smashing it to rags above the elbow… We had Princess Mary’s nice brass box this morning…<strong>Sister Kate Luard, Queen Alexandra’s Imperial Military Nursing Service</strong></p>
</blockquote>
<h2>To the end</h2>
<p>With Christmas 1914 over, the vast majority of the gifts had been delivered to the men in France and Flanders, and though men of the Royal Navy on far stations would have to wait, they had every expectation they would receive their gift in due time. </p>
<p>That the box and its contents were well received by their recipients cannot be in doubt. Some would even have occasion to thank the princess for saving their lives.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>I have had a very lucky escape from being wounded. I was walking behind another fellow when a bullet came straight through his leg, and I felt it strike me. I looked and found it had gone through my overcoat and pocket, and the Princess Mary box was dented, and I found the bullet in my pocket. It had struck it sideways somehow, and it had turned it. <strong>Private Harry Towers, Lincolnshire Regiment</strong></p>
</blockquote>
<p>But the decision of the committee to extend the gift to every man in the King’s uniform on Christmas Day meant that an additional two million brass boxes would have to be produced, together with contents that were now reduced to the “bullet pencil cases” that had been first devised by Lady Jellicoe.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Postcard from WW1 frontline." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436684/original/file-20211209-19-1lppybc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436684/original/file-20211209-19-1lppybc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=387&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436684/original/file-20211209-19-1lppybc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=387&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436684/original/file-20211209-19-1lppybc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=387&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436684/original/file-20211209-19-1lppybc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=487&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436684/original/file-20211209-19-1lppybc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=487&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/436684/original/file-20211209-19-1lppybc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=487&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Postcard from ‘Fred’ sent home to Kent in December 1914: ‘This is some of our happy party.’</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Peter Doyle</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Fully dependent on the supply of brass, these gifts, sent across the Empire, would start arriving in 1915 to be distributed in parades and at depots, often, with extra poignancy, to the families of soldiers who had lost their lives in the war. One Australian wrote to local newspaper The Broadford Courier on December 21, 1917, in order to acknowledge just how important the gift was to them. </p>
<blockquote>
<p>A very nice Xmas box has just come into the possession of Mr and Mrs. R. Ross of this town. In the Xmas of 1914 Princess Mary presented each soldier of the AIF abroad with a present, and it fell to the lot of their son Peter (killed in action at Gallipoli) to be one of the many to receive a gift. It is a very handsome box, artistically finished in many designs, a cartridge turned into a pencil case, and a Xmas card. Needless to say, Mr. and Mrs. Ross highly prize Princess Mary’s gift which… is now become one of their treasured possessions to be kept in memory of the brave sacrifice of their son.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Distribution of the gift would not cease until 1920, when the burden of responsibility fell to Army Depots. The huge effort that had been expended in delivering the gift over six years took its toll, and there was never any chance that this moment of hope would be repeated in the years that came after. There was just too much at stake, too many other deserving funds, too great a need for materials to prosecute the war.</p>
<p>Nevertheless, it was not forgotten. In 2014 – 100 years later – the famous London firm of Fortnum & Mason contrived to supply its own <a href="https://collection.nam.ac.uk/detail.php?acc=2015-02-15-2">commemorative gift</a> in the spirit of the Princess Mary Tin to all service personnel on deployment at Christmas. </p>
<p>And so, over 100 years later, this modest gift has left a legacy of care and respect for those who serve and are separated from their families and loved ones at Christmas. All those years ago, a 17-year-old princess understood that – and decided to make a difference. She achieved her aim, and the act, and her kindness, has never been forgotten.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/313478/original/file-20200204-41481-1n8vco4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/313478/original/file-20200204-41481-1n8vco4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=112&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/313478/original/file-20200204-41481-1n8vco4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=112&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/313478/original/file-20200204-41481-1n8vco4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=112&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/313478/original/file-20200204-41481-1n8vco4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=140&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/313478/original/file-20200204-41481-1n8vco4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=140&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/313478/original/file-20200204-41481-1n8vco4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=140&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><em>For you: more from our <a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/topics/insights-series-71218?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=TCUKengagement&utm_content=InsightsUK">Insights series</a>:</em></p>
<ul>
<li><p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/witchtok-the-rise-of-the-occult-on-social-media-has-eerie-parallels-with-the-16th-century-168322?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=TCUKengagement&utm_content=InsightsUK">WitchTok: the rise of the occult on social media has eerie parallels with the 16th century</a></em></p></li>
<li><p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/the-prestige-the-real-life-warring-victorian-magicians-who-inspired-the-film-165707?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=TCUKengagement&utm_content=InsightsUK">The Prestige: the real-life warring Victorian magicians who inspired the film</a></em></p></li>
<li><p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/we-have-nothing-left-the-catastrophic-consequences-of-criminalising-livelihoods-in-west-africa-157454?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=TCUKengagement&utm_content=InsightsUK">‘We have nothing left’ – the catastrophic consequences of criminalising livelihoods in west Africa</a></em></p></li>
</ul>
<p><em>To hear about new Insights articles, join the hundreds of thousands of people who value The Conversation’s evidence-based news. <a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/newsletters/the-daily-newsletter-2?utm_source=TCUK&utm_medium=linkback&utm_campaign=TCUKengagement&utm_content=InsightsUK"><strong>Subscribe to our newsletter</strong></a>.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/173276/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Peter Doyle is Secretary of the All Party Parliamentary War Heritage Group</span></em></p>The story of how a teenage princess launched one of the first global charity campaigns.Peter Doyle, Professor and Head of the Research Office, London South Bank UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1550182021-08-30T21:09:16Z2021-08-30T21:09:16ZUnderstanding Islam – a brief introduction to its past and present in the United States<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/416131/original/file-20210813-19-1l8mj4i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5455%2C3645&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Historians believe Muslims first arrived in the U.S. in the 17th century</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/TrumpAmericanMuslims/6f451048e3b942d58fe4a1355fa74c94/photo?Query=American%20AND%20muslims&mediaType=photo&sortBy=&dateRange=Anytime&totalCount=3749&currentItemNo=6">Julie Jacobson/AP Photo</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>For people who would like to learn more about Islam, The Conversation is publishing <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/topics/understanding-islam-108919">a series of articles</a>, available on our website or as <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/understanding-islam-79">six emails delivered every other day</a>, written by Senior Religion and Ethics Editor Kalpana Jain. Over the past few years she has commissioned dozens of articles on Islam written by academics. These articles draw from that archive and have been checked for accuracy by religion scholars.</em></p>
<p></p><hr> <p></p>
<p>For much of my childhood in India, the sound of the adhan – the Muslim call to prayer broadcast from the minaret of a mosque – was what I heard upon waking each morning.</p>
<p>In the shared religious life of my small hometown, we celebrated the festivals of Eid with our Muslim neighbors and they joined us at the time of Diwali, a holiday primarily celebrated by Hindus, Sikhs and Jains. Religious education happened quite informally in these day-to-day interactions.</p>
<p>In my new home in the United States, I learned not many Americans have the opportunity for such daily interactions. A <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2017/07/U.S.-MUSLIMS-FULL-REPORT.pdf">2017 Pew study</a> found that <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/10/08/in-the-u-s-and-western-europe-people-say-they-accept-muslims-but-opinions-are-divided-on-islam/%22">less than half of the American population</a> personally knows someone who is a Muslim.</p>
<iframe title="Muslims around the world" aria-label="Map" id="datawrapper-chart-lIAo1" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/lIAo1/9/" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" style="border: none;" width="100%" height="413"></iframe>
<p>This unfamiliarity can often lead to Islam being viewed as a foreign religion – and can even lead to <a href="https://www.ispu.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/ISPU-Infographics_1_WEB.pdf?x46312">Islamophobia</a>. </p>
<p>Former President Donald Trump <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2016/03/09/politics/donald-trump-islam-hates-us/index.html">said in a March 2016 media interview</a>, “Islam hates us.” This comment and others by the former president, scholars found, <a href="https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3149103">quickly led to an increase in hate crimes</a> against Muslims. Trump also signed an executive order <a href="https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2017/02/01/2017-02281/protecting-the-nation-from-foreign-terrorist-entry-into-the-united-states">banning nationals from seven Muslim-majority nations</a>, <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-islam-hatecrime/u-s-anti-muslim-hate-crimes-rose-15-percent-in-2017-advocacy-group-idUSKBN1HU240">further stoking anti-Muslim sentiments</a>. The ban was <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/01/20/proclamation-ending-discriminatory-bans-on-entry-to-the-united-states/">overturned by President Joe Biden</a> within the first few hours of his taking office. </p>
<p>As an editor of the religion and ethics desk at The Conversation, I have tried to improve the understanding Islam and its long history in the United States, with the help of articles from our scholars.</p>
<p>For example, historian <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/denise-a-spellberg-212270">Denise A. Spellberg</a> of the University of Texas at Austin wrote a piece exploring how <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-jeffersons-vision-of-american-islam-matters-today-78155">Muslims first arrived in large numbers to North America as enslaved people during the 17th century</a>. Muslims constituted as much as 30% of the enslaved West African population of British America, though that number is hard to verify. Nonetheless, their presence in the U.S. was so notable that Thomas Jefferson bought a Quran as a 22-year-old law student in Williamsburg, Virginia, 11 years before he drafted the Declaration of Independence. For Jefferson, Muslims were very much part of the United States. </p>
<p>In that same spirit of acceptance and discovery, The Conversation brings you a series of six articles that will explain Islam and its diversity and try to clear common misconceptions.</p>
<p>We will explore the history of American Muslims and gain a deeper understanding of their faith. </p>
<p><em>This article was reviewed for accuracy by <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/ken-chitwood-160245">Ken Chitwood</a>, a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Berlin Graduate School of Muslim Cultures & Societies at Freie Universität Berlin. He is also a journalist-fellow at the University of Southern California’s Center for Religion and Civic Culture.</em></p>
<p><strong>In the next issue: <a href="https://theconversation.com/understanding-islam-knowing-your-muslim-neighbor-155023">What do Muslims believe and how do they pray?</a>?</strong></p>
<p></p><hr><p></p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/418525/original/file-20210830-33-yznmc8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/418525/original/file-20210830-33-yznmc8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/418525/original/file-20210830-33-yznmc8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/418525/original/file-20210830-33-yznmc8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/418525/original/file-20210830-33-yznmc8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/418525/original/file-20210830-33-yznmc8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/418525/original/file-20210830-33-yznmc8.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><em>You can read all six articles in this <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/topics/understanding-islam-108919">Understanding Islam series on TheConversation.com</a>, or we can deliver them straight to your inbox if you <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/understanding-islam-79">sign up for our email newsletter course</a>.</em></p>
<p></p><hr><p></p>
<h2>Articles from The Conversation in this edition:</h2>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://theconversation.com/why-jeffersons-vision-of-american-islam-matters-today-78155">Why Jefferson’s vision of American Islam matters today</a></li>
</ul>
<h2>Further Reading and Resources:</h2>
<ul>
<li><p><a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/why-thomas-jefferson-owned-qur-1-180967997/">Why Thomas Jefferson Owned a Qur'an</a></p></li>
<li><p><a href="https://bridge.georgetown.edu/">Bridge</a>, a Georgetown University initiative, conducts research on Islamophobia and provides valuable research-based information.</p></li>
</ul><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/155018/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
Fewer than half of Americans report knowing someone who is Muslim. Here we explain Islam, its diversity and its long history in the United States.Kalpana Jain, Senior Religion + Ethics Editor/ Director of the Global Religion Journalism InitiativeLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1614132021-05-26T05:05:27Z2021-05-26T05:05:27ZA religious symbol, not a knife: at the heart of the NSW kirpan ban is a battle to define secularism<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/402775/original/file-20210526-15-1ok9mcg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/hari_singh/3137107044/in/photolist-5MduCu-5MdvXo-5M9gyF-FqB2H-5Mdv83-JmHFS-pjNtUv-5MdsSu-5M9dtB-86XE2a-4nhNcB-cowFeq-9VNGkA-Kguwc-Kguwg-5MdgQu-5M92wK-24pF4uS-hTnXuY-5M91Wt-jvgZLj-5M91wD-3F6Vpe-3BCsvA-WANX2C-9VNGm5-HvwfL-Xmi6aa-Hvwgf-Hvwg3-HvwfE-eaCEDV-SQtvdU-86XDFr-86XE9Z-86XDyp-HvwfG-HvwfJ-86XEiv-Ho3ayV-25dCPTX-22gH2oj-WgyNP5-CFkbMt-4n12Rq-pa1C3-ZYqYUg-s1J4WG-pvuGb3-871QfU">Hari Singh/Flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The New South Wales government has put a <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/ignorance-and-xenophobia-nsw-school-dagger-ban-sparks-international-furore-20210521-p57txy.html">temporary ban</a> on Sikh students carrying a kirpan in public schools. The kirpan is a <a href="https://www.worldsikh.org/what_is_the_kirpan">ceremonial dagger</a> baptised Sikhs carry to symbolise their duty to stand up against injustice.</p>
<p>The ban was put in place after a 14-year-old boy used a kirpan to stab a 16-year-old at a high school in Sydney.</p>
<p>NSW Premier <a href="https://7news.com.au/news/religion-and-belief/its-dangerous-sikh-community-divided-after-government-bans-religious-knives-in-schools-following-sydney-stabbing-c-2871116">Gladys Berejiklian said</a> “students shouldn’t be allowed to take knives to school under any circumstances”. </p>
<p>But framing the controversy as whether or not students should be allowed to take knives to school oversimplifies a complex issue.</p>
<p>This issue is not just about knives in schools. It is also about what it means to be a secular school in a multicultural and multi-faith Australia. </p>
<h2>Denied the ability to practise their faith</h2>
<p>There is a long history of controversy over wearing religious symbols in Australian schools, both religious and secular.</p>
<p>In 2017 the family of a Sikh boy <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-07-24/sikh-family-challenge-christian-schools-turban-ban/8737716">launched legal action</a> against his school after the Christian college banned the boy from wearing a patka (a turban worn by children). The Victorian Civil Administrative Tribunal later <a href="https://singhstation.net/2017/09/sidhak-singh-wins-school-patka-ban-case-against-christian-school/">ruled the school breached</a> the Equal Opportunity Act.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/school-uniform-policies-need-to-accommodate-students-cultural-practices-81548">School uniform policies need to accommodate students' cultural practices</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>In 2018 the Secular Party of Australia brought a <a href="https://lawandreligionaustralia.blog/2018/09/04/does-the-secular-society-know-better-than-a-childs-parents/">case against the Victorian education department</a> alleging the department had discriminated against a child by permitting her to wear “religious style clothing that covered her body, leaving only her face and hands exposed”. The case failed.</p>
<p>And in 2019 a Western Australian Catholic high school <a href="https://thewest.com.au/news/wa/aranmore-catholic-college-drama-hindu-student-kicked-out-of-school-for-a-nose-piercing-ng-b881097548z">banned a Hindu girl from attending</a> class after she had her nose pierced for cultural and religious reasons. After <a href="https://www.sbs.com.au/language/english/hindu-girl-with-nose-stud-returns-to-her-catholic-school-after-being-barred-for-six-weeks">six weeks and many meetings</a>, the school appeared to back down and allow the student back to class.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/402751/original/file-20210526-19-140l56q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A boy wearing a patka." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/402751/original/file-20210526-19-140l56q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/402751/original/file-20210526-19-140l56q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=480&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/402751/original/file-20210526-19-140l56q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=480&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/402751/original/file-20210526-19-140l56q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=480&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/402751/original/file-20210526-19-140l56q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=603&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/402751/original/file-20210526-19-140l56q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=603&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/402751/original/file-20210526-19-140l56q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=603&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A patka is like a turban, worn by Sikh children.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d7/Sikh_Boy_wearing_Patka.jpg">Wikimedia Commons</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>While some of these cases occurred in private and specifically religious schools, they all raise the same issue — to what extent do we accommodate the religious beliefs and practices of minority groups in our community?</p>
<p>In NSW, section <a href="http://classic.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/nsw/consol_act/soa1988189/s11c.html">11C of the Summary Offences Act 1988</a> makes it an offence to carry a knife in a public place or school. The act provides a number of exceptions such as for the preparation of food, or for recreation or sport. Carrying a knife for “genuine religious purposes” is also an exception. </p>
<p>This exception is <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/religious-knives-banned-from-government-schools-while-urgent-review-under-way-20210518-p57ssr.html">currently under review</a> by the NSW government. In the meantime, a temporary ban has been put in place. As a result Sikh school children are being denied the ability to fully practise their faith. </p>
<h2>What is a secular country?</h2>
<p>Controversies like the kirpan ban often occur due to a <a href="https://www.law.uwa.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0008/3443372/7.-Children-in-Schools.pdf">fundamental disagreement</a> about what a secular education looks like. Western secular democracies have taken two different approaches.</p>
<p>Australia’s government school system is secular. This does not mean it is, nor should be, religion free. Instead <a href="https://theconversation.com/is-australia-a-secular-country-it-depends-what-you-mean-38222">Australian secular education</a> means a space where religion is one of many options. Countries that conform to this version of secularism are religiously plural.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/is-australia-a-secular-country-it-depends-what-you-mean-38222">Is Australia a secular country? It depends what you mean</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>In France, secular education means it is religion free. Since 2004 all religious symbols have been <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_law_on_secularity_and_conspicuous_religious_symbols_in_schools#:%7E:text=The%20French%20law%20on%20secularity,operated)%20primary%20and%20secondary%20schools.">banned from state schools</a>. The aim is to create a religiously neutral environment that supports state secularism. </p>
<p>Canada, South Africa and the United Kingdom <a href="https://www.routledge.com/State-and-Religion-The-Australian-Story/Barker/p/book/9780367586812">have adopted a similar approach</a> as Australia. In these countries, secularism means to permit, or even encourage, the expression of multiple faiths in schools to various degrees. The aim is to create a multicultural environment.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/402750/original/file-20210526-23-kxdrsp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A man wearing a kirpan." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/402750/original/file-20210526-23-kxdrsp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/402750/original/file-20210526-23-kxdrsp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=475&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/402750/original/file-20210526-23-kxdrsp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=475&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/402750/original/file-20210526-23-kxdrsp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=475&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/402750/original/file-20210526-23-kxdrsp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=596&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/402750/original/file-20210526-23-kxdrsp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=596&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/402750/original/file-20210526-23-kxdrsp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=596&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The kirpan is fundamentally a religious symbol.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/tony_tea/17073483936/in/photolist-JmHFS-pjNtUv-5MdsSu-86XE2a-5M9dtB-4nhNcB-9VNGkA-Kguwc-Kguwg-5MdgQu-5M92wK-24pF4uS-hTnXuY-5M91Wt-jvgZLj-5M91wD-3F6Vpe-3BCsvA-WANX2C-9VNGm5-HvwfL-Xmi6aa-Hvwgf-Hvwg3-86XDFr-86XE9Z-HvwfE-eaCEDV-SQtvdU-cowFeq-871QfU-86XDyp-HvwfG-5z27Tq-HvwfJ-871QEC-86XDTV-bBH2RU-86XEiv-Ho3ayV-86XDK8-25dCPTX-22gH2oj-WgyNP5-CFkbMt-4n12Rq-pa1C3-ZYqYUg-s1J4WG-pvuGb3">Tony Tarry/Flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The kirpan is fundamentally a <a href="https://www.worldsikh.org/what_is_the_kirpan">religious symbol</a>. It is one of five markers of faith worn by baptised Sikhs, including kesh (unshorn hair symbolising respect for God’s will). Wearing the <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/17448727.2013.774709#:%7E:text=Notes,exception%3A%20it%20is%20not%20optional%20%E2%80%A6">kirpan is not optional</a> for baptised Sikhs.</p>
<p>The kirpan is similar to the hijab worn by some Muslim women, the kippah worn by Jewish men or the cross or crucifix worn by some Christians. </p>
<p>As the <a href="https://scc-csc.lexum.com/scc-csc/scc-csc/en/item/15/index.do">Supreme Court of Canada</a> put it, describing the kirpan as a knife is “indicative of a simplistic view of freedom of religion”.</p>
<p>Banning the kirpan because it resembles a knife heads Australia down a path of religion-free schools. This would be inconsistent with <a href="https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/about-us/our-portfolios/multicultural-affairs/about-multicultural-affairs/our-policy-history">Australia’s commitment</a> to multiculturalism.</p>
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<p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/should-school-uniforms-be-compulsory-we-asked-five-experts-121935">Should school uniforms be compulsory? We asked five experts</a>
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</em>
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<h2>There are other options besides a ban</h2>
<p>Instead of an outright ban, the NSW government and Australian schools more generally need to find ways to safely accommodate this important religious symbol. This does not mean there should be no restrictions. </p>
<p>In 2006 the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multani_v_Commission_scolaire_Marguerite%E2%80%91Bourgeoys#:%7E:text=256%2C%202006%20SCC%206%20is,Charter%20of%20Rights%20and%20Freedoms.">Supreme Court of Canada</a> found that a school had discriminated against a Sikh boy when it banned him from wearing his kirpan. A fundamental part of the court’s decision was there were alternatives available to the school.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/402752/original/file-20210526-23-9yjdrk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A cross around the neck." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/402752/original/file-20210526-23-9yjdrk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/402752/original/file-20210526-23-9yjdrk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=820&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/402752/original/file-20210526-23-9yjdrk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=820&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/402752/original/file-20210526-23-9yjdrk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=820&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/402752/original/file-20210526-23-9yjdrk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1031&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/402752/original/file-20210526-23-9yjdrk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1031&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/402752/original/file-20210526-23-9yjdrk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1031&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The kirpan is like the cross worn by some Christians.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/cross-christ-savior-chain-around-his-141968644">Shutterstock</a></span>
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</figure>
<p>The student was prepared to accept restrictions on how he wore his kirpan to ensure it could not be used as a weapon. The restrictions included wearing it enclosed in a wooden sheath sewn inside a cloth envelope, which must itself be attached to a shoulder strap worn under the student’s clothing. </p>
<p>Similar restrictions could be implemented in Australia. </p>
<p>The current debate about the kirpan in schools is an opportunity to educate both school children and the wider public about Australia’s secular multicultural society. As the <a href="http://www.saflii.org/za/cases/ZACC/2007/21.html">Constitutional Court of South Africa</a> noted in a case about wearing nose studs for religious and cultural reasons:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Granting exemptions will also have the added benefit of inducting the learners into a multi-cultural South Africa where vastly different cultures exist side-by-side.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Allowing kirpans, and other symbols of faith, to be worn in Australian schools is an important part of a multicultural secular education.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/161413/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Renae Barker is a Trustee for the Anglican Diocese of Bunbury </span></em></p>Banning the kirpan because it resembles a knife heads Australia down a path of religion free schools.Renae Barker, Senior Lecturer, The University of Western AustraliaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1600762021-05-04T12:17:12Z2021-05-04T12:17:12ZIndians are forced to change rituals for their dead as COVID-19 rages through cities and villages<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/398447/original/file-20210503-21-1jco2wf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C4%2C3288%2C2169&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Mass cremations in the city of Bengaluru, India, due to the large number of COVID-19 deaths.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/men-wearing-ppe-perform-the-last-rites-of-a-deceased-news-photo/1315456370?adppopup=true">Abhishek Chinnappa/Getty Images)</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>In the past several weeks, the world has looked on in horror <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/24/world/asia/india-coronavirus-deaths.html">as the coronavirus rages across India</a>. With <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/india-pandemic-record-coronavirus-oxygen/2021/04/24/3afea474-a4f3-11eb-b314-2e993bd83e31_story.html">hospitals running out of beds, oxygen and medicines</a>, the official daily death toll has <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/live/2021/05/01/world/covid-vaccine-coronavirus-cases">averaged around 3,000</a>. Many <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2021/04/30/992451165/india-is-counting-thousands-of-daily-covid-deaths-how-many-is-it-missing">claim that number</a> could be an undercount; crematoriums and cemeteries have run out of space.</p>
<p>The majority of India’s population are Hindu, who favor cremation as a way of disposing of the body. But <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/04/21/by-2050-india-to-have-worlds-largest-populations-of-hindus-and-muslims/">the Muslim population, which is close to 15%,</a> <a href="http://cup.columbia.edu/book/muhammads-grave/9780231137423">favors burying its dead</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/398449/original/file-20210503-21-1kuba0d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A worker digging a cemetery in Guwahati, India." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/398449/original/file-20210503-21-1kuba0d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/398449/original/file-20210503-21-1kuba0d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/398449/original/file-20210503-21-1kuba0d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/398449/original/file-20210503-21-1kuba0d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/398449/original/file-20210503-21-1kuba0d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/398449/original/file-20210503-21-1kuba0d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/398449/original/file-20210503-21-1kuba0d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Workers digging as they prepare to bury the body of a person who died of COVID-19 in Guwahati, Assam.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/workers-digging-as-they-are-prepare-to-bury-a-body-of-a-news-photo/1232595392?adppopup=true">David Talukdar/NurPhoto via Getty Images</a></span>
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</figure>
<p>Generally, tradition holds that the body is to be cremated or buried as quickly as possible – within <a href="https://www.routledge.com/Death-and-Religion-in-a-Changing-World/Garces-Foley/p/book/9780765612229">24 hours for Hindus, Jains and Muslims, and within three days for Sikhs</a>. This need for rapid disposal has also contributed to the current crisis.</p>
<p>Hundreds of families want their loved ones’ bodies cared for as quickly as possible, but there is a shortage of people who can do the funerals and last rites. This has led to a situation where people are <a href="https://www.telegraphindia.com/india/covid-narendra-modi-pits-smashan-against-kabristan-in-polarising-elections-speech-in-uttar-pradesh/cid/1813065">paying bribes</a> in order to get space or a furnace for cremation. There are also reports of <a href="https://qz.com/india/1824866/indian-doctors-fighting-coronavirus-now-face-social-stigma/">physical fights, and intimidation</a>. </p>
<p>As a scholar interested in the ways Asian societies tell stories about the afterlife and prepare the <a href="https://faculty.txstate.edu/profile/1922200">deceased for it</a>, I argue that the coronavirus crisis represents an unprecedented cultural cataclysm that has forced the Indian culture to challenge the way it handles its dead. </p>
<h2>Cremation grounds and colonial rule</h2>
<p>Many Americans think of cremation happening within an enclosed, mechanized structure, but most Indian crematoriums, known as “shmashana” in Hindi, are open-air spaces with dozens of brick-and-mortar platforms upon which a body can be burned on a pyre made of wood. </p>
<p>Hindus and Sikhs will dispose of the remaining ashes <a href="https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/hinduism-today-9781441138200/">in a river</a>. Many shmashana are therefore built near the banks of a river to allow for easy access, but many well-off families often travel to a sacred city along the banks of the river Ganges, such as Hardiwar or Benares, for the final rituals. Jains – who have traditionally given significant consideration to humanity’s impact <a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07P86357M/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1">on the environmental world</a> – bury the ashes as a means to return the body to the Earth and ensure they do not contribute to polluting rivers.</p>
<p>The workers who run shmashana often belong to the Dom ethnicity and have been doing this work for generations; they are lower caste and subsequently perceived as polluted for their intimate <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Nomads-India-Proceedings-National-Seminar/dp/B0042LSNH0">work with dead bodies</a>.</p>
<p>The act of cremation has not always been without controversy. In the 19th century, British colonial officials viewed the Indian practice of cremation as barbaric and unhygienic. But they <a href="https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520379343/burning-the-dead">were unable to ban it</a> given its pervasiveness. </p>
<p>However, Indians living in the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2008/sep/05/law.religion">United Kingdom</a>, <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/3557415">South Africa</a> and <a href="https://digitalcommons.butler.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1178&context=jhcs">Trinidad</a> often had to fight for the right to cremate the dead in accordance with religious rituals because of the mistaken and often racist belief that <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2008/sep/05/law.religion">cremation was primitive, alien and evironmentally polluting</a>. </p>
<h2>Rituals and a long history</h2>
<p>The earliest writings on Indian funerary rituals can be found in the Rig Veda – a Hindu religious scripture orally composed thousands of years ago, potentially as <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-rigveda-9780199370184?cc=us&lang=en&">early as 2000 B.C.</a> In the Rig Veda, a hymn, traditionally recited by a priest or an adult male, urges Agni, the Vedic god of fire, to “<a href="https://books.google.com/books/about/Textual_Sources_for_the_Study_of_Hinduis.html?id=YxoaUKmMG9gC">carry this man to the world of those who have done good deeds</a>.” </p>
<p>From the perspective of Hindu, Jain, and Sikh rituals, the act of cremation is <a href="https://books.google.com/books/about/The_Many_Colors_of_Hinduism.html?id=RVWKClYq4TUC">seen as a sacrifice</a>, a final breaking of the ties between the body and the spirit so it may be free to reincarnate. The body is traditionally bathed, anointed, and carefully wrapped in white cloth at home, then carried ceremonially, in a procession, by the local community to the cremation grounds. </p>
<p>While Hindus and Sikhs often decorate the body with flowers, Jains avoid natural flowers for concern of inadvertently destroying the lives of insects that may be hidden within its petals. In all of these faiths, a priest or male member of the family recites prayers. It is traditionally the eldest son of the deceased who lights the funerary pyre; women do not go to the <a href="https://www.indiatvnews.com/news/india/why-women-are-not-allowed-at-shamshan-ghat-55126.html">cremation ground</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/398450/original/file-20210503-17-1g3f6c0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Relatives gather around the body of a man who died of COVID-19 in India, to perform religious rituals." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/398450/original/file-20210503-17-1g3f6c0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/398450/original/file-20210503-17-1g3f6c0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/398450/original/file-20210503-17-1g3f6c0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/398450/original/file-20210503-17-1g3f6c0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/398450/original/file-20210503-17-1g3f6c0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/398450/original/file-20210503-17-1g3f6c0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/398450/original/file-20210503-17-1g3f6c0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Family members perform rituals at a crematorium for a person who died of the coronavirus in India.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/family-members-and-relatives-perform-rituals-before-the-news-photo/1232622320?adppopup=true">Sajjad Hussain/AFP via Getty Images</a></span>
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<p>After the ceremony, mourners return home to bathe themselves and remove what they regard as the inauspicious energy that surrounds the cremation grounds. Communities host a variety of postmortem rituals, including scriptural recitations and symbolic meals, and in some Hindu communities the sons or male members of household will shave their head as a sign of their bereavement. During this mourning period, lasting from 10 to 13 days, the family performs scriptural recitations and prayers in honor of their deceased loved one. </p>
<h2>The changing times of COVID-19</h2>
<p>The wave of death from the COVID-19 pandemic has forced transformations to these long-established religious rituals. <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/asia/india/india-delhi-pyres-public-parks-b1838649.html">Makeshift crematoriums are being constructed</a> in the parking lots of hospitals and in city parks.</p>
<p>Young women may be the only ones available to light the funerary pyre, which was previously not permissible. Families in quarantine are forced to use WhatsApp and other video software to visually identify the body and recite digital <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/30/opinion/india-covid-crematorium.html">funerary rites</a>. </p>
<p>Media reports have pointed out how in some cases, crematorium workers <a href="https://www.vice.com/en/article/y3dggy/we-spoke-to-a-cremator-at-the-center-of-indias-covid-hell">have been asked to read prayers</a> traditionally reserved for Brahmin priests or people from a higher caste. Muslim burial grounds have begun to run out of space and are tearing up parking lots to bury more bodies. </p>
<h2>The work of the dead</h2>
<p>While other important rituals such as marriage and baptism may take on a new appearance in response to cultural changes, social media conversations or economic opportunities, funerary rituals <a href="https://oxford.universitypressscholarship.com/view/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195183559.001.0001/acprof-9780195183559">change slowly</a>. </p>
<p>Historian <a href="https://history.berkeley.edu/people/faculty/emeritus/thomas-w-laqueur">Thomas Laqueur</a> has written on what he calls “<a href="https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691157788/the-work-of-the-dead">the work of the dead</a>” – the ways in which the bodies of the deceased participate in the social worlds and political realities of the living. </p>
<p>In India’s coronavirus pandemic, the dead are announcing the health crisis that the country believed it had conquered. As recently as April 18, 2021, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi was <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/india/indias-modi-scorned-over-reckless-rallies-religious-gathering-amid-virus-mayhem-2021-04-19/">holding crowded political rallies</a>, and his government allowed the massive Hindu pilgrimage festival of <a href="https://theconversation.com/india-prepares-for-kumbh-mela-worlds-largest-religious-gathering-amid-covid-19-fears-158364">Kumbh Mela</a> to proceed a year early in response to the <a href="https://science.thewire.in/health/leaders-listened-to-astrologers-so-haridwar-mela-happened-after-11-years-not-12/">auspicious forecasts of astrologers</a>. Authorities began to act only when the deaths became impossible to ignore. But even then, the Indian government appeared more concerned about <a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/04/27/991343032/indias-government-is-telling-facebook-twitter-to-remove-critical-posts">removing social media posts that were critical of its functioning</a>.</p>
<p>India is one of the world’s <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2021/03/18/978065736/indias-role-in-covid-19-vaccine-production-is-getting-even-bigger">largest vaccine-producing nations</a>, and yet it was unable to make or even purchase the needed vaccines to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/25/world/asia/india-covid-vaccine-astrazeneca.html">protect its population</a>. </p>
<p>The dead have important stories to tell about neglect, mismanagement or even our global interdependence – if we care to listen.</p>
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<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Natasha Mikles does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>As cremation grounds struggle to keep up with the long line of people dying from COVID-19, age-old customs are being pushed aside.Natasha Mikles, Lecturer in Philosophy, Texas State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1591962021-04-17T14:31:42Z2021-04-17T14:31:42ZSikhs in America: A religious community long misunderstood is mourning deaths in Indianapolis mass shooting<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/395550/original/file-20210417-21-1pqooh2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=9%2C0%2C6029%2C4019&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Members of the Sikh community in Indianapolis gather after a mass shooting in which eight people, including four Sikhs, died, in Indianapolis, Indiana.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/leaders-of-the-sikh-satsang-of-indianapolis-participate-in-news-photo/1232349024?adppopup=true">Jon Cherry/Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>On April 16, 2021, a gunman <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2021/04/16/us/indianapolis-shooting-fedex-facility/index.html">opened fire at a FedEx facility in Indianapolis</a> killing eight people and injuring several others before taking his own life. <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us/members-sikh-community-among-victims-indianapolis-fedex-shooting-group-2021-04-16/">Four members of the Sikh community were among those gunned down</a>. </p>
<p>The site was reported as having <a href="https://news.yahoo.com/8-killed-indianapolis-fedex-shooting-233106851.html">a significant number of Sikh employees</a>, and the massacre has left the community shaken and in grief.</p>
<p>“I have sat with families from our community and so many others at the Holiday Inn Express as they wait to hear the fates of their loved ones,” <a href="https://www.sikhcoalition.org/press-release/least-four-sikh-americans-among-killed-others-injured-indianapolis-fedex-shooting/">said Maninder Singh Walia,</a> a member of the Indianapolis Sikh community. “These kinds of violent attacks are a threat to all of us. Our community has a long road of healing – physically, mentally, and spiritually – to recover from this tragedy.” </p>
<p>The shooter’s motive is not yet known. In a statement following the incident, the Sikh Coalition, an advocacy group, <a href="https://twitter.com/sikh_coalition/status/1383117585974169605">called on authorities</a> to conduct a full investigation “including the possibility of bias as a factor.”</p>
<p>Sikhs have in the past been targeted in racist attacks. <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&view_op=list_works&authuser=1&gmla=AJsN-F7irP4mmhGxZbPfBF8jBXPvOLWMrqTjeDnqSnXJsyWttjQGrUI9m_tJBBh0QJHK1BWEVbHbPbe-ihA2qhlr05ClxIa12g&user=DxunMTcAAAAJ">As a scholar of the tradition</a> and a practicing Sikh myself, I have studied the prejudices and barriers that many Sikhs in America face. I have also experienced racial slurs from a young age.</p>
<p>The bottom line is there is little understanding in the U.S. of who exactly the Sikhs are and what they believe. So here’s a primer. </p>
<h2>Founder of Sikhism</h2>
<p>To start at the beginning, the founder of the Sikh tradition, Guru Nanak, was born in 1469 in the Punjab region of South Asia, which is currently split between Pakistan and the northwestern area of India. A majority of the global Sikh population <a href="https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/9781135367459">still resides in Punjab on the Indian side of the border.</a></p>
<p>From a young age, Guru Nanak was disillusioned by the social inequities and religious hypocrisies he observed around him. He believed that <a href="https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/9781136451010">a single divine force</a> created the entire world and resided within it. In his belief, God was not separate from the world and watching from a distance, but fully present in every aspect of creation. </p>
<p>He therefore asserted that all people <a href="http://www.iuscanada.com/journal/archives/2011/j1312p42.pdf">are equally divine</a> and <a href="https://academic.oup.com/jaar/article-abstract/74/3/646/895695">deserve to be treated</a> as such.</p>
<p>To promote this vision of divine oneness and social equality, <a href="http://www.academicroom.com/article/guru-nanak-and-%E2%80%98sants%E2%80%99-reappraisal">Guru Nanak created institutions and religious practices</a>. He established community centers and places of worship, wrote his own scriptural compositions and institutionalized a system of leadership (gurus) that would carry forward his vision.</p>
<p>The Sikh view thus rejects all social distinctions that produce inequities, including gender, race, religion and caste, the predominant structure for social hierarchy in South Asia. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/230978/original/file-20180807-191044-t68ftq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/230978/original/file-20180807-191044-t68ftq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230978/original/file-20180807-191044-t68ftq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230978/original/file-20180807-191044-t68ftq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230978/original/file-20180807-191044-t68ftq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230978/original/file-20180807-191044-t68ftq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230978/original/file-20180807-191044-t68ftq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A community kitchen run by the Sikhs to provide free meals irrespective of caste, faith or religion, in the Golden Temple, in Punjab, India.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/shankaronline/38938496121">shankar s.</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Serving the world is a natural expression of Sikh prayer and worship. <a href="https://therevealer.org/why-sikhs-serve/">Sikhs call this prayerful service “seva,”</a> and it is a core part of their practice.</p>
<h2>The Sikh identity</h2>
<p>In the Sikh tradition, a truly religious person is one who cultivates the spiritual self while also serving the communities around them – or a <a href="https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=FqvTRUrwt2UC&oi=fnd&pg=PP2&dq=sikh+saint+soldier++&ots=eM7EOLjPBV&sig=jXLxItv_Xp9n7Plh-C55G0M6oaM#v=onepage&q=sikh%20saint%20soldier&f=false">saint-soldier</a>. The saint-soldier ideal applies to women and men alike.</p>
<p>In this spirit, Sikh women and men maintain <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=TJb_i97CG70C&pg=PT149&dq=sikh+identity+articles+of+faith&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiXx4TZtszcAhWm44MKHU-ICfQQ6AEIQTAE#v=onepage&q=sikh%20identity%20articles%20of%20faith&f=false">five articles of faith, popularly known as the five Ks</a>. These are: kes (long, uncut hair), kara (steel bracelet), kanga (wooden comb), kirpan (small sword) and kachera (soldier-shorts). </p>
<p>Although little historical evidence exists to explain why these particular articles were chosen, the five Ks continue to provide the community with a collective identity, binding together individuals on the basis of a shared belief and practice. As I understand, Sikhs cherish these articles of faith as gifts from their gurus.</p>
<p>Turbans are an important part of the Sikh identity. Both women and men may wear turbans. Like the articles of faith, Sikhs regard their turbans as gifts given by their beloved gurus, and its meaning is deeply personal. In South Asian culture, wearing a turban typically indicated one’s social status – kings and rulers once wore turbans. The <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/17448720500132557">Sikh gurus adopted the turban</a>, in part, to remind Sikhs that all humans are sovereign, royal and ultimately equal. </p>
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<h2>Sikhs in America</h2>
<p>Today, there are <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=7QEjPVyd9YMC&pg=PA275&lpg=PA275&dq=sikhs+30+million&source=bl&ots=urtHXKjCPx&sig=nyZTGrreOK6owh5EmmPA16YVD8A&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj_8Lbk9M7cAhXis1kKHWCPB-UQ6AEwFXoECAIQAQ#v=onepage&q=sikhs%2030%20million&f=false">approximately 30 million Sikhs worldwide</a>, making Sikhism the world’s fifth-largest major religion. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/230981/original/file-20180807-7141-1vxo11c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/230981/original/file-20180807-7141-1vxo11c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=418&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230981/original/file-20180807-7141-1vxo11c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=418&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230981/original/file-20180807-7141-1vxo11c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=418&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230981/original/file-20180807-7141-1vxo11c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=525&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230981/original/file-20180807-7141-1vxo11c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=525&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230981/original/file-20180807-7141-1vxo11c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=525&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Sikh Day parade on Madison Avenue, New York.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/Craig Ruttle</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>After British colonizers in India seized power of Punjab in 1849, where a majority of the Sikh community was based, <a href="http://booksandjournals.brillonline.com/content/books/9789004257238">Sikhs began migrating to various regions controlled by the British Empire</a>, including Southeast Asia, East Africa and the United Kingdom itself. Based on what was available to them, Sikhs played various roles in these communities, including military service, agricultural work and railway construction.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.ccss.org/Resources/Documents/Sikh%20Migration%20to%20CA%20_%20West%20Coast.pdf">The first Sikh community entered the United States</a> via the West Coast during the 1890s. They began experiencing discrimination immediately upon their arrival. For instance, <a href="http://depts.washington.edu/civilr/bham_intro.htm">the first race riot targeting Sikhs</a> took place in Bellingham, Washington, in 1907. Angry mobs of white men <a href="http://depts.washington.edu/civilr/bham_history.htm">rounded up Sikh laborers</a>, beat them up and forced them to leave town. </p>
<p>The discrimination continued over the years. For instance, after my father moved from Punjab to the United States around the time of the <a href="https://www.history.com/topics/middle-east/iran-hostage-crisis">Iran hostage crisis in 1979</a> and racial slurs like “Ayatollah” and “raghead” were hurled at him. It was a time when <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2013/09/15/world/meast/iran-hostage-crisis-fast-facts/index.html">52 American diplomats and citizens were taken captive in Iran</a> and tension between the two countries was high. These slurs reflected the racist backlash against those who fitted the stereotypes of Iranians. Our family faced a similar racist backlash when the U.S. engaged in the Gulf War during the early 1990s. </p>
<p>The racist attacks spiked again after 9/11, particularly because Americans did not know about the Sikh religion and <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/17448727.2013.822138">conflated the unique Sikh appearance with popular stereotypes</a> of what terrorists look like.</p>
<p>The <a href="http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-trump-sikhs-20170509-htmlstory.html">rates of violence against Sikhs surged</a> after the election of President Donald Trump. The Sikh Coalition estimated in 2018 that Americans Sikhs were being targeted in hate crimes <a href="https://www.sikhcoalition.org/blog/2018/new-wave-hate-crimes-demands-vigilance/">about once a week</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/231170/original/file-20180808-191019-xqmsqj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/231170/original/file-20180808-191019-xqmsqj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231170/original/file-20180808-191019-xqmsqj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231170/original/file-20180808-191019-xqmsqj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231170/original/file-20180808-191019-xqmsqj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231170/original/file-20180808-191019-xqmsqj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231170/original/file-20180808-191019-xqmsqj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A Sikh American Journey parade in Pasadena, Calif.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/Michael Owen Baker</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Scholars and government officials estimate the Sikh American population to <a href="http://pluralism.org/religions/sikhism/sikhism-in-america/the-sikh-community-today/">number around 500,000</a>.</p>
<p>As a practicing Sikh, I can affirm that the Sikh <a href="http://digitalrepository.unm.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1296&context=law_facultyscholarship">commitment to the tenets of their faith</a>, including love, service and justice, keeps them resilient in the face of violence. For these reasons, many Sikh Americans, including those affected by the mass shooting in Indiana, I believe, will continue to maintain their unique Sikh identity, proudly and unapologetically.</p>
<p><em>This is an updated version of an article <a href="https://theconversation.com/who-are-the-sikhs-and-what-are-their-beliefs-97237">first published</a> on Aug. 9, 2018.</em></p>
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<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Simran Jeet Singh does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A scholar explains the religious beliefs of Sikhs as well as the prejudices and barriers that many Sikhs in America face.Simran Jeet Singh, Visiting Professor, Union Theological SeminaryLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1516012020-12-08T15:19:57Z2020-12-08T15:19:57ZConfronting colonial legacies in London’s ‘Little India’<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/373353/original/file-20201207-19-vjhgp5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=34%2C0%2C2826%2C1930&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A dome of the Sri Guru Singh Sabha Gurdwara in Southhall, west London.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/golden-dome-on-sri-guru-singh-775621">Peter Elvidge/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Addressing the legacies of colonialism and slavery has been a prominent narrative throughout 2020. A number of calls to <a href="https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/features/addressing-the-histories-of-slavery-and-colonialism-at-the-national-trust">recognise</a>, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/jun/08/edward-colston-statue-history-slave-trader-bristol-protest">remove</a>, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2020/jul/01/decolonise-and-rename-streets-of-uganda-and-sudan-activists-urge">rename</a>, <a href="https://edition.cnn.com/style/article/brutish-museums-benin-bronzes/index.html">repatriate</a>, and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/education/2020/jun/17/students-want-to-confront-it-academics-on-how-to-decolonise-the-university">redress</a> have underlined the extent to which Britain’s history of slavery and colonial exploitation are woven into, and layered over, the built environment.</p>
<p>One such call has made a breakthrough. On November 25, Ealing Council in London’s west London officially <a href="https://www.ealing.gov.uk/news/article/2048/southall_road_to_be_named_after_guru_nanak">announced</a> that it was renaming Havelock Road in Southall. It is one of the dozens of places around the world named after one of Britain’s most <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Henry-Havelock">prominent military leaders in colonial India</a>. Havelock Road will now become Guru Nanak Road, after the <a href="https://www.sikhpa.com/five-facts-about-guru-nanak/">founder of the Sikh faith</a>. </p>
<p>The London suburb of Southall, in which <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southall#cite_note-ukcensusdata1-45">three-quarters</a> of the local population are of South Asian descent, is home to one of the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2018/apr/04/how-london-southall-became-little-punjab-">largest Sikh communities</a> outside India. On Havelock Road, itself is Europe’s <a href="https://www.sgsss.org/">largest Sikh temple</a>, the Sri Guru Singh Sabha Gurdwara.</p>
<h2>What’s in a name?</h2>
<p>Responding to Britain’s post-war recruitment drive across the empire and Commonwealth, thousands of Sikh immigrants sought jobs in Southall’s factories from the 1950s. This move followed the independence and partition of India, in which the Radcliffe Line split Punjab in two. This was a traumatic and dislocating experience for inhabitants of the region, which had a profound and enduring impact on the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/books/2019/jul/16/partition-voices-untold-british-stories-kavita-puri-review">South Asian diaspora</a>.</p>
<p>Life for the growing immigrant communities of London’s “Little India” was by no means easy. Intense racism led to murders, street fights, and unrest on the streets of Southall, particularly in the <a href="https://irr.org.uk/article/recollections-on-the-asian-youth-movements-that-emerged-in-the-1970s/">1970-80s</a>. By the early 2000s, the socio-economic status of Southall’s Sikhs had considerably improved and films such as <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_gJGQizLlW8&ab_channel=FREETRAILERARCHIVE">Bend it Like Beckham</a> further increased the area’s visibility. But inequality, marginalisation, and discrimination in many ways endure.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="The exterior of Gurdwara Sri Guru Singh Sabha Southall." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/373357/original/file-20201207-17-uo0a28.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/373357/original/file-20201207-17-uo0a28.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=358&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/373357/original/file-20201207-17-uo0a28.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=358&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/373357/original/file-20201207-17-uo0a28.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=358&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/373357/original/file-20201207-17-uo0a28.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/373357/original/file-20201207-17-uo0a28.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/373357/original/file-20201207-17-uo0a28.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Gurdwara Sri Guru Singh Sabha in Southall was opened in 2003.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/gurdwara-sri-guru-singh-sabha-southall-507606964">4kclips/shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The stark symbolic juxtaposition between the gurdwara and the area’s inhabitants with their address has been noted long before the recent push to “decolonise” things and even long before the gurdwara’s construction in 2003. </p>
<p>The member of parliament in Southall, Virendra Sharma, was born in Punjab four months before the British partitioned and left India in 1947. Sharma emigrated to West London in the 1960s, becoming a councillor in 1982 and MP for Ealing Southall in 2007. Talking in a recent video about campaigning in the 1980s, <a>he said</a>: “I have often been ashamed [that] the names of empire still pervade our streets,” adding that “names like Havelock belong in books, classrooms and museums, not on the streets to be celebrated”.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1270733806027317251"}"></div></p>
<p>Also commemorated with a statue in Trafalgar Square, Henry Havelock was a distinguished East India Company general. He became famous for his brutal suppression of the 1857 Indian Rebellion at Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh. Before this, however, he had battled the Sikhs in the First Anglo-Sikh War (1845-46), which culminated in the British annexing a large swathe of Punjabi territory. </p>
<h2>Not everyone’s happy</h2>
<p>The decision to change the name followed a process of consultation which responded to the mayor of London’s <a href="https://www.london.gov.uk/press-releases/mayoral/mayor-unveils-commission-to-review-diversity">announcement</a>, in June this year, to appoint a commission to review and improve the diversity of community representation across London’s public memorials. Ealing Council’s <a href="https://www.ealing.gov.uk/info/201266/past_consultations_2020/2700/havelock_road_-_proposed_street_name_change_consultation/1">consultation</a> resulted in a small majority favouring the renaming, though overall response rates were low.</p>
<p>One of Henry Havelock’s descendants, Emily McKenzie, welcomed the news. “This makes me really happy,” <a href="https://twitter.com/Emily_Mckenzie/status/1333136341761216514">she wrote</a>. “My ancestor’s story will always be part of British history, but his living relatives have a much different view on the world and are very happy to celebrate Sikh influences and culture in the UK.”</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1333136341761216514"}"></div></p>
<p>The announcement of the change at Havelock Road has, however, not been universally welcomed. Much of the backlash argues it’s the result of “political correctness” and constitutes an “erasure of history”. One <a href="https://twitter.com/ishaantharoor/status/1333533696486486017">person tweeted</a>: “What a load of nonsense. What if we went to India and started changing their street names.” Unsurprisingly, Twitter users responded in their hundreds to this reactionary colonial amnesia, including many people from India where countless place names were Anglicised, or changed entirely, over more than three centuries. </p>
<p>Urban environments in the colonised world, and the imperial centre, both reflected – and were tools of – colonisation. Civic spaces symbolised the power of the state, its development prowess, civilising mission, and, ultimately, the supposed superiority of the coloniser. The current resistance to addressing legacies of imperialism reflects an enduring and even growing feeling of <a href="https://yougov.co.uk/topics/politics/articles-reports/2014/07/26/britain-proud-its-empire">colonial pride</a> and nostalgia.</p>
<p>But renaming the street after Guru Nanak has proved contentious among some Sikhs as well. Nanak is considered a universal, <a href="https://indianexpress.com/article/india/road-in-southall-named-after-british-general-who-suppressed-1857-uprising-is-now-guru-nanak-road/">inclusive icon</a> by those who suggested celebrating his name in Southall. However, <a href="https://twitter.com/JustJuice7/status/1331940732563808257?s=20">others have argued </a> that the Guru is at <a href="https://twitter.com/jesssoomal/status/1332105361327857">risk of being disrespected</a>. These people claim that drug and alcohol abuse, gambling and prostitution take place in the area.</p>
<p>Opponents are also concerned that Ealing Council is simply indulging in a superficial name-changing in response to this summer’s heated protests, but is otherwise doing little of real value to promote community uplift in the borough’s socially deprived areas. As part of the new statement issued on November 25 to announce the name change, Ealing Council also reiterated its plans to proceed with a review of all structural inequalities in the borough by May 2021. But it remains to be seen what practical changes this will bring.</p>
<p>Removing the name of a notorious colonialist from one street in Southall is clearly of symbolic significance. Sharma told us: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>[Havelock’s] name is to me, and I am sure millions of other British Indians, British Pakistanis and British Bangladeshis, synonymous with murder, oppression and thuggery. It means memories of stories told by parents and grandparents of being a second-class citizen in your own country.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>But for many, taking down a statue or a street sign is just the beginning of decolonising 21st-century Britain.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/151601/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A campaign to change the name of a road in London’s ‘Little India’‘ has succeeded. While some members of the local Sikh population welcome it, others aren’t so happy.Edward Anderson, Lecturer in History, Northumbria University, NewcastlePriya Atwal, Community History Fellow, University of OxfordLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1497922020-11-12T13:27:51Z2020-11-12T13:27:51ZThe many stories of Diwali share a common theme of triumph of justice<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/368684/original/file-20201110-15-1u68rl2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=20%2C2%2C1970%2C1275&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Diwali is the most important festival for the South Asian community.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/anjali-cq-voria-cq-and-her-sister-rakhi-voria-cq-at-news-photo/161008394?adppopup=true">Photo By Cyrus McCrimmon/The Denver Post via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Sometimes called the Indian festival of lights, Diwali is arguably the <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/what-diwali-festival-lights-india-hindu-1467603">most important holiday</a> of the year for South Asian families. </p>
<p>The festival, which is observed by Hindus, Sikhs and Jains, lasts five days in its entirety. Traditionally the third day is considered the most important. During this day, families gather to light candles, eat sweets and place lit lamps in their public-facing windows.</p>
<p>As a <a href="https://faculty.txstate.edu/profile/1922200">scholar of Asian religion</a> and popular narratives, I’m interested in Diwali because it demonstrates how ancient tales in epics become part of religious practice. </p>
<h2>Popular stories from Hinduism</h2>
<p>There are many stories around what exactly Diwali commemorates and why it is celebrated. </p>
<p>Among Hindu families, <a href="https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520249141/the-life-of-hinduism">many</a> claim the festival celebrates the defeat of the evil demon king Ravana by Rama – an incarnation of the Hindu god Vishnu and the hero of India’s Ramayana epic. In the most famous part of this epic tale, Rama’s wife is abducted by the demon Ravana, and Rama must journey to the land of Lanka to save her with the assistance of his brother.</p>
<p>A different tradition states that the festival commemorates the defeat of the demon Narakasura by Lord Krishna. Like Rama, <a href="https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Bhagavad_Gita/DtCvAC94ZbUC?hl=en">Krishna is an incarnation of the god Vishnu</a>, who has come to assist humanity in its time of need. </p>
<p>Stories tell of Krishna’s efforts to rid the world of demons. In this particular story, the King Naraka gains extraordinary abilities through a deal with a demon and becomes intoxicated with power. </p>
<p>Narakasura, as he is now called, destroys the kingdoms around him and eventually plans to assault even the heavens. Krishna appears and uses his divine powers to neutralize Narakasura’s weapons, eventually beheading him with a multi-pronged discus. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.google.com/books/edition/Guests_at_God_s_Wedding/3KcEotmV2MAC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=Guests+at+God%27s+Wedding:+Celebrating+Kartik+among+the+Women+of+Benares&printsec=frontcover%22%22">Other traditions</a> associate the festival with the birth of the goddess Lakshmi and her marriage to Vishnu. In the Hindu tradition, Lakshmi is worshipped as the goddess of wealth, while Vishnu is seen as the preserver of humanity.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/368689/original/file-20201110-17-k9egdc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/368689/original/file-20201110-17-k9egdc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/368689/original/file-20201110-17-k9egdc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=449&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/368689/original/file-20201110-17-k9egdc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=449&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/368689/original/file-20201110-17-k9egdc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=449&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/368689/original/file-20201110-17-k9egdc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=565&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/368689/original/file-20201110-17-k9egdc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=565&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/368689/original/file-20201110-17-k9egdc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=565&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Lord Vishnu and his consort goddess, Lakshmi.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/16/Lord_Vishnu_and_his_consort_Goddess_Lakshmi.jpg">Bikashrd via Wikimedia Commons</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>While there are many stories of her birth, the most prevalent is that Lakshmi appeared during the churning of the divine ocean of milk from which the nectar of immortality comes during a fight between the gods and demons. After appearing, she chooses to marry Vishnu and to assist him in working for the benefit of humanity. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.pitara.com/non-fiction-for-kids/festivals-for-kids/the-story-of-diwali/">In southern India, Hindu families</a> commemorate the defeat of the demon Hiranyakshipu by Narasimha, the lion-headed incarnation of Vishnu. Like many Indian stories, Hiranyakshipu is a demi-god who believes he is immortal after receiving a divine blessing from the Hindu creator-god Brahma that lists the conditions for his death. </p>
<p>According to the boon, he cannot be killed at day or at night, inside or outside, by human or by animal, by projectile weapons or by hand weapons, and neither on the ground nor in the sky. </p>
<p>In response to Hiranyakshipu’s terrorizing of the heavens and Earth, Vishnu then incarnates as the lion-headed god Narasimha to kill the demon. He kills him at dusk, on the step of his house, as a chimeric lion with his claws as he lies on Narasimha’s lap – all conditions that satisfy the elements of the boon.</p>
<h2>Stories from other religions</h2>
<p>The Diwali tradition is celebrated by Jains and Sikhs as well, who have their own interpretations of the festival. For <a href="https://www.google.com/books/edition/Jainism/JmRlAgAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0">Jains</a>, Diwali celebrates the nirvana, or enlightenment, of Mahavira, the 24th spiritual teacher of the Jain path and the contemporary tradition’s founder. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/368691/original/file-20201110-23-3wxf5q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/368691/original/file-20201110-23-3wxf5q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/368691/original/file-20201110-23-3wxf5q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/368691/original/file-20201110-23-3wxf5q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/368691/original/file-20201110-23-3wxf5q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/368691/original/file-20201110-23-3wxf5q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/368691/original/file-20201110-23-3wxf5q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/368691/original/file-20201110-23-3wxf5q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A Jain sculpture showing Mahavira in Madurai, Tamilnadu, India.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mahavira_Keezhakuyilkudi.jpg">Francis Harry Roy S via Wikimedia Commons</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=w8yWAwAAQBAJ&newbks=0&printsec=frontcover&pg=PT86&hl=en&source=newbks_fb%22%22">Sikhs</a> consider Diwali a commemoration of the release of Guru Hargobind, the sixth of 10 spiritual leaders, and 52 other men who were imprisoned by the Mughal Empire that ruled the Indian subcontinent from 1526 to 1857. </p>
<p>After the public execution of his father by Mughal leaders, Guru Hargobind became increasingly passionate about forming an independent Sikh homeland through military action if necessary. He was eventually jailed by the Mughal Emperor Jahangir, but was released two years later on the day of Diwali.</p>
<p>Popular legends state that when he was freed, Guru Hargobind tricked the Mughal emperor into allowing him to bring out as many men as could hold onto the hem of his cloak and, in this way, helped release 52 other prisoners who held onto 52 threads coming off of his garment. </p>
<h2>Origins of Diwali</h2>
<p>The multiplicity of interpretations for why Diwali is celebrated and questions regarding the festival’s exact origins may have one potential answer: that the narrative of origins is an afterthought to rituals. </p>
<p>This problem is illustrated in a well-known episode of the sitcom “<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diwali_(The_Office)">The Office</a>,” where the Dunder Mifflin team attends a Diwali celebration at a local Hindu temple. Before they go, they ask Kelly – the Hindu office worker who is playing hostess – to explain the origins of the festival. </p>
<p>She demurs, stating “I don’t know; it’s really old, I think,” before excitedly discussing the beautiful clothes everyone wears, the dancing and the food. Mindy Kaling, who plays Kelly and wrote the episode, <a href="https://mashable.com/article/the-office-diwali-episode-mindy-kaling-podcast/">explained</a> that she based Kelly’s cluelessness on her own, noting that – despite identifying as Hindu – she had to do significant research into her own religious tradition to write the episode.</p>
<p>In other words, while she was aware of and excited about the rituals, the narrative explanation was secondary to joining with her community in celebration. </p>
<p>But this does not mean that narrative may be inconsequential. It is important to think what these multiple narratives about Diwali’s origins may be able to tell us about the Indian culture. </p>
<p>Asian religions scholar <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=Nl63ENwAAAAJ&hl=en">Robert Ford Campany</a> <a href="https://www.google.com/books/edition/A_Garden_of_Marvels/0PHGDwAAQBAJ?hl=en%22%22">suggests</a> that narratives entail a subtle form of argument that “reveal, argue, or assume something significant about the world, about spirits, about relations between humans and other beings, or about the afterlife and the dead.” </p>
<p>Perhaps these diverse origin stories of Diwali point to a shared argument that Indian culture is making about the world: that good – whether as one of the many avatars of Lord Vishnu, an enlightened Jain prince, or an imprisoned guru – will necessarily triumph over the evils of demons, injustice and ignorance. </p>
<p>Certainly that’s an argument worth celebrating, especially in the chaotic times we live in today.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/149792/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Natasha Mikles does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Many Indian Americans will be celebrating the festival of Diwali soon. A scholar of Asian religion explains what this festival of lights means – especially in chaotic times.Natasha Mikles, Assistant Professor in Philosophy and Religious Studies, Texas State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1232562019-09-13T11:41:53Z2019-09-13T11:41:53ZWhy Sikhs wear a turban and what it means to practice the faith in the United States<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/292055/original/file-20190911-190012-1s4t5ou.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">People participate in a candlelight vigil near the White House to protest violence against Sikhs in 2012.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Sikh-Temple-Shooting-Vigil/ad57c7685bef4f4bb6cddecaa1883221/20/0">AP Photo/Susan Walsh</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>An elderly Sikh gentleman in Northern California, 64-year-old Parmjit Singh, was recently <a href="https://sacramento.cbslocal.com/2019/08/27/sikh-stabbed-to-death-tracy-parmjit-singh/">stabbed to death</a> while taking a walk in the evening. Authorities are still investigating the killer’s motive, but community members have <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2019/08/29/us/california-sikh-mans-death-fbi-trnd/index.html">asked the FBI to investigate</a> the killing. </p>
<p>For many among the <a href="http://pluralism.org/religions/sikhism/sikhism-in-america/the-sikh-community-today/">estimated 500,000</a> Sikhs in the U.S., it wouldn’t be the first time. According to the Sikh Coalition, the largest Sikh civil rights organization in North America, this is the <a href="https://www.kqed.org/news/11770976/hate-crime-sikh-community-asks-fbi-to-investigate-stabbing-death-in-tracy">seventh such attack</a> on an elderly Sikh with a turban in the past eight years. </p>
<p><a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&view_op=list_works&authuser=1&gmla=AJsN-F7irP4mmhGxZbPfBF8jBXPvOLWMrqTjeDnqSnXJsyWttjQGrUI9m_tJBBh0QJHK1BWEVbHbPbe-ihA2qhlr05ClxIa12g&user=DxunMTcAAAAJ">As a scholar of the tradition</a> and a practicing Sikh myself, I have studied the harsh realities of what it means to be a Sikh in America today. I have also experienced racial slurs from a young age.</p>
<p>I have found there is little understanding of who exactly the Sikhs are and what they believe. So here’s a primer.</p>
<h2>Founder of Sikhism</h2>
<p>The founder of the Sikh tradition, Guru Nanak, was born in 1469 in the Punjab region of South Asia, which is currently split between Pakistan and the northwestern area of India. A majority of the global Sikh population <a href="https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/9781135367459">still resides in Punjab on the Indian side of the border</a>.</p>
<p>From a young age, Guru Nanak was disillusioned by the social inequities and religious hypocrisies he observed around him. He believed that <a href="https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/9781136451010">a single divine force</a> created the entire world and resided within it. In his belief, God was not separate from the world and watching from a distance, but fully present in every aspect of creation. </p>
<p>He therefore asserted that all people <a href="http://www.iuscanada.com/journal/archives/2011/j1312p42.pdf">are equally divine</a> and <a href="https://academic.oup.com/jaar/article-abstract/74/3/646/895695">deserve to be treated</a> as such.</p>
<p>To promote this vision of divine oneness and social equality, <a href="http://www.academicroom.com/article/guru-nanak-and-%E2%80%98sants%E2%80%99-reappraisal">Guru Nanak created institutions and religious practices</a>. He established community centers and places of worship, wrote his own scriptural compositions and institutionalized a system of leadership (gurus) that would carry forward his vision.</p>
<p>The Sikh view thus rejects all social distinctions that produce inequities, including gender, race, religion and caste, the predominant structure for social hierarchy in South Asia. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/230978/original/file-20180807-191044-t68ftq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/230978/original/file-20180807-191044-t68ftq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230978/original/file-20180807-191044-t68ftq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230978/original/file-20180807-191044-t68ftq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230978/original/file-20180807-191044-t68ftq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230978/original/file-20180807-191044-t68ftq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230978/original/file-20180807-191044-t68ftq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A community kitchen run by the Sikhs to provide free meals irrespective of caste, faith or religion, in the Golden Temple, in Punjab, India.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/shankaronline/38938496121">shankar s.</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Serving the world is a natural expression of the Sikh prayer and worship. <a href="https://therevealer.org/why-sikhs-serve/">Sikhs call this prayerful service “seva,”</a> and it is a core part of their practice.</p>
<h2>The Sikh identity</h2>
<p>In the Sikh tradition, a truly religious person is one who cultivates the spiritual self while also serving the communities around them – or a <a href="https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=FqvTRUrwt2UC&oi=fnd&pg=PP2&dq=sikh+saint+soldier++&ots=eM7EOLjPBV&sig=jXLxItv_Xp9n7Plh-C55G0M6oaM#v=onepage&q=sikh%20saint%20soldier&f=false">saint-soldier</a>. The saint-soldier ideal applies to women and men alike.</p>
<p>In this spirit, Sikh women and men maintain <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=TJb_i97CG70C&pg=PT149&dq=sikh+identity+articles+of+faith&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiXx4TZtszcAhWm44MKHU-ICfQQ6AEIQTAE#v=onepage&q=sikh%20identity%20articles%20of%20faith&f=false">five articles of faith, popularly known as the five Ks</a>. These are: kes (long, uncut hair), kara (steel bracelet), kanga (wooden comb), kirpan (small sword) and kachera (soldier-shorts). </p>
<p>Although little historical evidence exists to explain why these particular articles were chosen, the five Ks continue to provide the community with a collective identity, binding together individuals on the basis of a shared belief and practice. As I understand, Sikhs cherish these articles of faith as gifts from their gurus.</p>
<p>Turbans are an important part of the Sikh identity. Both women and men may wear turbans. Like the articles of faith, Sikhs regard their turbans as gifts given by their beloved gurus, and their meaning is deeply personal. In South Asian culture, wearing a turban typically indicated one’s social status – kings and rulers once wore turbans. The <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/17448720500132557">Sikh gurus adopted the turban</a>, in part, to remind Sikhs that all humans are sovereign, royal and ultimately equal. </p>
<h2>Sikhs in America</h2>
<p>Today, there are <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=7QEjPVyd9YMC&pg=PA275&lpg=PA275&dq=sikhs+30+million&source=bl&ots=urtHXKjCPx&sig=nyZTGrreOK6owh5EmmPA16YVD8A&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj_8Lbk9M7cAhXis1kKHWCPB-UQ6AEwFXoECAIQAQ#v=onepage&q=sikhs%2030%20million&f=false">approximately 30 million Sikhs worldwide</a>, making Sikhism the world’s fifth-largest major religion. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/231170/original/file-20180808-191019-xqmsqj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/231170/original/file-20180808-191019-xqmsqj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231170/original/file-20180808-191019-xqmsqj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231170/original/file-20180808-191019-xqmsqj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231170/original/file-20180808-191019-xqmsqj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231170/original/file-20180808-191019-xqmsqj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231170/original/file-20180808-191019-xqmsqj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">‘A Sikh-American Journey’ parade in Pasadena, Calif.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/Michael Owen Baker</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>After British colonizers in India seized power of Punjab in 1849, where a majority of the Sikh community was based, <a href="http://booksandjournals.brillonline.com/content/books/9789004257238">Sikhs began migrating to various regions</a> controlled by the British Empire, including Southeast Asia, East Africa and the United Kingdom itself. Based on what was available to them, Sikhs played various roles in these communities, including military service, agricultural work and railway construction.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.ccss.org/Resources/Documents/Sikh%20Migration%20to%20CA%20_%20West%20Coast.pdf">The first Sikh community entered the United States</a> via the West Coast during the 1890s. They began experiencing discrimination immediately upon their arrival. For instance, <a href="http://depts.washington.edu/civilr/bham_intro.htm">the first race riot targeting Sikhs</a> took place in Bellingham, Washington, in 1907. Angry mobs of white men <a href="http://depts.washington.edu/civilr/bham_history.htm">rounded up Sikh laborers</a>, beat them up and forced them to leave town. </p>
<p>The discrimination continued over the years. For instance, when my father moved from Punjab to the United States in the 1970s, racial slurs like “Ayatollah” and “raghead” were hurled at him. It was a time when <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2013/09/15/world/meast/iran-hostage-crisis-fast-facts/index.html">52 American diplomats and citizens were taken captive in Iran</a> and tension between the two countries was high. These slurs reflected the racist backlash against those who fitted the stereotypes of Iranians. Our family faced a similar racist backlash when the U.S. engaged in the Gulf War during the early 1990s. </p>
<h2>Increase in hate crimes</h2>
<p>The racist attacks spiked again after 9/11, particularly because many Americans did not know about the Sikh religion and may have <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/17448727.2013.822138">conflated the unique Sikh appearance with popular stereotypes</a> of what terrorists look like. News reports show that in comparison to the past decade, the <a href="http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-trump-sikhs-20170509-htmlstory.html">rates of violence against Sikhs have surged</a>.</p>
<p>Elsewhere too, Sikhs have been victims of hate crimes. An Ontario member of Parliament, Gurrattan Singh, was <a href="https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2019/09/01/brampton-mpp-gurratan-singh-denounces-islamophobic-remarks-made-toward-him-at-muslimfest.html">recently heckled</a> with Islamophobic comments by a man who perceived Singh as a Muslim.</p>
<p>As a practicing Sikh, I can affirm that the Sikh <a href="http://digitalrepository.unm.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1296&context=law_facultyscholarship">commitment to the tenets of their faith</a>, including love, service and justice, keeps them resilient in the face of hate. For these reasons, for many Sikh Americans, like myself, it is rewarding to maintain the unique Sikh identity.</p>
<p><em>This is an updated version of an article <a href="https://theconversation.com/who-are-the-sikhs-and-what-are-their-beliefs-97237">first published</a> on Aug. 9, 2018.</em></p>
<p>[ <em>Like what you’ve read? Want more?</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=likethis">Sign up for The Conversation’s daily newsletter</a>. ]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/123256/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Simran Jeet Singh does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Sikh gurus adopted the turban, in part, to remind Sikhs that all humans are sovereign, royal and ultimately equal. But their attire can also lead to misunderstandings and at times, hate crimes.Simran Jeet Singh, Henry R. Luce Post-Doctoral Fellow in Religion in International Affairs Post-Doctoral Fellow, New York UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1177112019-05-26T13:52:27Z2019-05-26T13:52:27ZClashing rights: Behind the Québec hijab debate<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/276145/original/file-20190523-187179-18aba1o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">People hold up signs as they march during a demonstration in Montreal, April 7, 2019, in opposition to the Quebec government's newly tabled Bill 21.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) government has introduced Bill 21, a law that would supposedly <a href="http://www.assnat.qc.ca/en/travaux-parlementaires/projets-loi/projet-loi-21-42-1.html?appelant=MC">entrench religious neutrality in the province.</a> It would do so by prohibiting providers of government services in positions of authority such as judges, police and teachers from wearing religious symbols, including hijabs (headscarves for female Muslims), turbans (for male Sikhs), kippas (skullcaps for male Jews) and visible Christian crosses. </p>
<p>Bill 21 also prohibits providing or seeking a government service with one’s face covered. This principle is relatively uncontroversial in Québec, though some worry that it might discriminate against the very few Muslim women who cover their faces.</p>
<p>The principle behind Bill 21 is laicity, or secularism. Québécois are currently debating the human rights implications of Bill 21, just as they debated earlier versions proposed by the Parti Québecois government <a href="https://globalnews.ca/news/952478/read-full-text-of-bill-60-quebecs-charter-of-values/">in 2013</a> and the Liberal government <a href="http://www.assnat.qc.ca/en/travaux-parlementaires/projets-loi/projet-loi-62-41-1.html">in 2014.</a></p>
<p>I wrote a detailed analysis of these debates in an academic article <a href="http://muse.jhu.edu/article/685700">“The ‘Quebec Values’ Debate of 2013: Minority vs. Collective Rights” for <em>the Human Rights Quarterly</em>, published in 2018.</a></p>
<h2>Three types of rights clashes are involved</h2>
<p>The first clash is about whether public servants in positions of authority, while at work, should be permitted to exhibit their religious beliefs through their dress.</p>
<p>The CAQ considers wearing religious dress to be a violation of state religious neutrality. In the CAQ’s view, wearing religious dress is a form of passive or silent proselytism, trying to convert others to your own religion. </p>
<p>For the CAQ, prohibition of government servants’ wearing of religious symbols is necessary to preserve the secular character of Québec society. The prohibition is a relatively minor violation of freedom of religion, if indeed it is a violation at all.</p>
<p>Yet the 1975 Québec Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms includes the right to openly profess religious beliefs <a href="http://legisquebec.gouv.qc.ca/en/ShowDoc/cs/C-12">without fear of reprisal</a>. International law protects this right too, in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, <a href="https://www.ohchr.org/en/professionalinterest/pages/ccpr.aspx">Article 18</a>, as does a <a href="https://www.revolvy.com/page/R-v-Big-M-Drug-Mart-Ltd">1985 decision by the Supreme Court of Canada</a>. </p>
<p>From this point of view, while the state has to demonstrate its religious neutrality, its individual employees do not have the same obligation.</p>
<figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/276142/original/file-20190523-187172-ydctyj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/276142/original/file-20190523-187172-ydctyj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=394&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/276142/original/file-20190523-187172-ydctyj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=394&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/276142/original/file-20190523-187172-ydctyj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=394&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/276142/original/file-20190523-187172-ydctyj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=495&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/276142/original/file-20190523-187172-ydctyj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=495&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/276142/original/file-20190523-187172-ydctyj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=495&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A man wears a Kippah during a demonstration opposing the Quebec government’s newly tabled Bill 21 in Montreal, Sunday, April 14, 2019.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The second clash is about women’s rights. Bill 21 states that the Québec nation “attaches importance to the equality of women and men.” This equality takes precedence over religious customs that imply discrimination against women.</p>
<p>Some Québec feminists, including some of Muslim background, maintain that men have always used religion to oppress women. Even if Muslim women wear the <em>hijab</em> voluntarily, many feminists believe, they have been taught to believe that the sexes are unequal. </p>
<p>Some of the older women who support Bill 21 remember when the Catholic Church dominated Québec. During the <a href="https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/quiet-revolution">1960s Quiet Revolution</a>, Québécois freed themselves from the church’s control over marriage, divorce, contraception and abortion. These older women believe Bill 21 will similarly help Muslim women <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/bill-21-quebec-feminists-on-opposite-sides-of-religious-symbols-ban-1.5139422">free themselves from religious control.</a></p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/276143/original/file-20190523-187185-yqdzbg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/276143/original/file-20190523-187185-yqdzbg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/276143/original/file-20190523-187185-yqdzbg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/276143/original/file-20190523-187185-yqdzbg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/276143/original/file-20190523-187185-yqdzbg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=505&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/276143/original/file-20190523-187185-yqdzbg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=505&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/276143/original/file-20190523-187185-yqdzbg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=505&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">People hold up signs during a demonstration in Montreal in opposition to the Quebec government’s newly tabled Bill 21.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Those who oppose Bill 21 argue that it is discriminatory to refuse the opportunity of state employment to women who choose to wear religious symbols. They believe the ban on religious clothing and accessories will undermine some minority women’s right to employment, as in the case of Muslim women teachers.</p>
<p>Opponents also maintain that women who enjoy equality should be permitted to make independent individual decisions about whether to wear the hijab. If women are being forced to wear religious clothing, then the people forcing them should be punished, not the women themselves.</p>
<p>The third debate is about collective versus individual rights. Bill 21 states that:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“Laicity should be affirmed in a manner that ensures a balance between the collective rights of the Québec nation and human rights and freedoms.” </p>
</blockquote>
<p>According to Bill 21, these include the collective right to maintain Québec’s religious cultural heritage, even if the state is formally secular. Thus for example, religious place names can still exist. </p>
<p>People favouring the new law believe in the right of the community to a certain level of social integration or cohesion. It is important for all to live together in harmony, emphasizing sameness rather than difference. People who speak French at home are more likely to believe this than people who speak other languages.</p>
<p>Many critics of this view assume that anyone who defends it is afraid of residents of Québec not descended from the original French Catholic settlers. The law appears to be directed primarily against Montreal and Québec City and reflects a fear of strangers in Québec’s more homogeneous regions. </p>
<p>Critics argue that it’s not necessary for more recent immigrant groups — or for long-standing Québecers like Jews — to remove their religious symbols in order to be part of Québec society.</p>
<p>If Bill 21 is passed, it’s likely that many Québec Muslims, Jews and Sikhs will migrate to other parts of Canada so that they can freely manifest their religions at work. The rest of Canada will gain from this migration, and Québec will lose.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/117711/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rhoda E. Howard-Hassmann received funding from the Canada Research Chairs Program that supported her scholarly research on Quebec until June 20, 2016. </span></em></p>The proposed secular law (Bill 21) in the province of Québec appears to be directed primarily against Montreal and Québec City, and reflects a fear of strangers in Québec’s more homogeneous regions.Rhoda E. Howard-Hassmann, Professor Emeritus, Department of Political Science, Wilfrid Laurier UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/972372018-08-09T10:40:45Z2018-08-09T10:40:45ZWho are the Sikhs and what are their beliefs?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/230977/original/file-20180807-191013-19czcpz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir Grewal.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/Julio Cortez</span></span></figcaption></figure><p><strong><a href="https://theconversation.com/sikhs-in-america-deaths-in-indianapolis-shooting-put-a-spotlight-on-a-community-long-misunderstood-and-marginalized-159196">An updated version of this article was published on April 17, 2021</a>.</strong></p>
<p>New Jersey’s first Sikh attorney general, Gurbir Singh Grewal, was a <a href="https://www.apnews.com/5d8f58fc9ac54493a6bbd6aa5eddc59b">target of disparaging remarks</a> in 2018. Two radio hosts commented on Grewal’s Sikh identity and repeatedly referred to him as “turban man.” When called out on the offensiveness of their comments, one of them stated, “Listen, and if that offends you, then don’t wear the turban and maybe I’ll remember your name.” </p>
<p>Listeners, activists and Sikhs around the country acted immediately by contacting the station to express their concerns. News outlets quickly picked up the story and the <a href="http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/398963-radio-station-suspends-hosts-who-called-new-jersey-attorney">radio hosts were suspended</a>.</p>
<p>Grewal is a practicing Sikh who maintains a turban and beard. Scholars and government officials estimate the Sikh American population to <a href="http://pluralism.org/religions/sikhism/sikhism-in-america/the-sikh-community-today/">number around 500,000</a>. Nevertheless for many American Sikhs, such experiences are not uncommon. <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&view_op=list_works&authuser=1&gmla=AJsN-F7irP4mmhGxZbPfBF8jBXPvOLWMrqTjeDnqSnXJsyWttjQGrUI9m_tJBBh0QJHK1BWEVbHbPbe-ihA2qhlr05ClxIa12g&user=DxunMTcAAAAJ">As a scholar of the tradition</a> and a practicing Sikh myself, I have studied the harsh realities of what it means to be a Sikh in America today. I have also experienced racial slurs from a young age.</p>
<p>The bottom line is there is little understanding of who exactly the Sikhs are and what the believe. So here’s a primer. </p>
<h2>Founder of Sikhism</h2>
<p>To start at the beginning, the founder of the Sikh tradition, Guru Nanak was born in 1469 in the Punjab region of South Asia, which is currently split between Pakistan and the northwestern area of India. A majority of the global Sikh population <a href="https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/9781135367459">still resides in Punjab on the Indian side of the border.</a></p>
<p>From a young age, Guru Nanak was disillusioned by the social inequities and religious hypocrisies he observed around him. He believed that <a href="https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/9781136451010">a single divine force</a> created the entire world and resided within it. In his belief, God was not separate from the world and watching from a distance, but fully present in every aspect of creation. </p>
<p>He therefore asserted that all people <a href="http://www.iuscanada.com/journal/archives/2011/j1312p42.pdf">are equally divine</a> and <a href="https://academic.oup.com/jaar/article-abstract/74/3/646/895695">deserve to be treated</a> as such.</p>
<p>To promote this vision of divine oneness and social equality, <a href="http://www.academicroom.com/article/guru-nanak-and-%E2%80%98sants%E2%80%99-reappraisal">Guru Nanak created institutions and religious practices</a>. He established community centers and places of worship, wrote his own scriptural compositions and institutionalized a system of leadership (gurus) that would carry forward his vision.</p>
<p>The Sikh view thus rejects all social distinctions that produce inequities, including gender, race, religion and caste, the predominant structure for social hierarchy in South Asia. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/230978/original/file-20180807-191044-t68ftq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/230978/original/file-20180807-191044-t68ftq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230978/original/file-20180807-191044-t68ftq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230978/original/file-20180807-191044-t68ftq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230978/original/file-20180807-191044-t68ftq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230978/original/file-20180807-191044-t68ftq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230978/original/file-20180807-191044-t68ftq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A community kitchen run by the Sikhs to provide free meals irrespective of caste, faith or religion, in the Golden Temple, in Punjab, India.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/shankaronline/38938496121">shankar s.</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Serving the world is a natural expression of the Sikh prayer and worship. <a href="https://therevealer.org/why-sikhs-serve/">Sikhs call this prayerful service “seva,”</a> and it is a core part of their practice.</p>
<h2>The Sikh identity</h2>
<p>In the Sikh tradition, a truly religious person is one who cultivates the spiritual self while also serving the communities around them – or a <a href="https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=FqvTRUrwt2UC&oi=fnd&pg=PP2&dq=sikh+saint+soldier++&ots=eM7EOLjPBV&sig=jXLxItv_Xp9n7Plh-C55G0M6oaM#v=onepage&q=sikh%20saint%20soldier&f=false">saint-soldier</a>. The saint-soldier ideal applies to women and men alike.</p>
<p>In this spirit, Sikh women and men maintain <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=TJb_i97CG70C&pg=PT149&dq=sikh+identity+articles+of+faith&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiXx4TZtszcAhWm44MKHU-ICfQQ6AEIQTAE#v=onepage&q=sikh%20identity%20articles%20of%20faith&f=false">five articles of faith, popularly known as the five Ks</a>. These are: kes (long, uncut hair), kara (steel bracelet), kanga (wooden comb), kirpan (small sword) and kachera (soldier-shorts). </p>
<p>Although little historical evidence exists to explain why these particular articles were chosen, the 5 Ks continue provide the community with a collective identity, binding together individuals on the basis of a shared belief and practice. As I understand, Sikhs cherish these articles of faith as gifts from their gurus.</p>
<p>Turbans are an important part of the Sikh identity. Both women and men may wear turbans. Like the articles of faith, Sikhs regard their turbans as gifts given by their beloved gurus, and its meaning is deeply personal. In South Asian culture, wearing a turban typically indicated one’s social status – kings and rulers once wore turbans. The <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/17448720500132557">Sikh gurus adopted the turban</a>, in part, to remind Sikhs that all humans are sovereign, royal and ultimately equal. </p>
<h2>Sikhs in America</h2>
<p>Today, there are <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=7QEjPVyd9YMC&pg=PA275&lpg=PA275&dq=sikhs+30+million&source=bl&ots=urtHXKjCPx&sig=nyZTGrreOK6owh5EmmPA16YVD8A&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj_8Lbk9M7cAhXis1kKHWCPB-UQ6AEwFXoECAIQAQ#v=onepage&q=sikhs%2030%20million&f=false">approximately 30 million Sikhs worldwide</a>, making Sikhism the world’s fifth-largest major religion. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/230981/original/file-20180807-7141-1vxo11c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/230981/original/file-20180807-7141-1vxo11c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=418&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230981/original/file-20180807-7141-1vxo11c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=418&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230981/original/file-20180807-7141-1vxo11c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=418&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230981/original/file-20180807-7141-1vxo11c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=525&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230981/original/file-20180807-7141-1vxo11c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=525&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/230981/original/file-20180807-7141-1vxo11c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=525&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Sikh Day parade on Madison Avenue, New York.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/Craig Ruttle</span></span>
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<p>After British colonizers in India seized power of Punjab in 1849, where a majority of the Sikh community was based, <a href="http://booksandjournals.brillonline.com/content/books/9789004257238">Sikhs began migrating to various regions controlled by the British Empire</a>, including Southeast Asia, East Africa and the United Kingdom itself. Based on what was available to them, Sikhs played various roles in these communities, including military service, agricultural work and railway construction.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.ccss.org/Resources/Documents/Sikh%20Migration%20to%20CA%20_%20West%20Coast.pdf">The first Sikh community entered the United States</a> via the West Coast during the 1890s. They began experiencing discrimination immediately upon their arrival. For instance, <a href="http://depts.washington.edu/civilr/bham_intro.htm">the first race riot targeting Sikhs</a> took place in Bellingham, Washington, in 1907. Angry mobs of white men <a href="http://depts.washington.edu/civilr/bham_history.htm">rounded up Sikh laborers</a>, beat them up and forced them to leave town. </p>
<p>The discrimination continued over the years. For instance, when my father moved from Punjab to the United States in the 1970s, racial slurs like “Ayatollah” and “raghead” were hurled at him. It was a time when <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2013/09/15/world/meast/iran-hostage-crisis-fast-facts/index.html">52 American diplomats and citizens were taken captive in Iran</a> and tension between the two countries was high. These slurs reflected the racist backlash against those who fitted the stereotypes of Iranians. Our family faced a similar racist backlash when the U.S. engaged in the Gulf War during the early 1990s. </p>
<p>The racist attacks spiked again after 9/11, particularly because Americans did not know about the Sikh religion and <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/17448727.2013.822138">conflated the unique Sikh appearance with popular stereotypes</a> of what terrorists look like.</p>
<p>In comparison to the past decade, the <a href="http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-trump-sikhs-20170509-htmlstory.html">rates of violence against Sikhs have surged</a> after the election of President Donald Trump. The Sikh Coalition, the largest Sikh civil rights organization in the U.S., estimated in 2018 that Americans Sikhs were being targeted in hate crimes <a href="https://www.sikhcoalition.org/blog/2018/new-wave-hate-crimes-demands-vigilance/">about once a week</a>. </p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/231170/original/file-20180808-191019-xqmsqj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/231170/original/file-20180808-191019-xqmsqj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231170/original/file-20180808-191019-xqmsqj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231170/original/file-20180808-191019-xqmsqj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231170/original/file-20180808-191019-xqmsqj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231170/original/file-20180808-191019-xqmsqj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/231170/original/file-20180808-191019-xqmsqj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption"></span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AP Photo/Michael Owen Baker</span></span>
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<p>As a practicing Sikh, I can affirm that the Sikh <a href="http://digitalrepository.unm.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1296&context=law_facultyscholarship">commitment to the tenets of their faith</a>, including love, service and justice, keeps them resilient in the face of hate. For these reason, for many Sikh Americans, like Gurbir Grewal, it is rewarding to maintain their unique Sikh identity.</p>
<p><em>Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in 2018.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/97237/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Simran Jeet Singh does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>American Sikhs have been the target of many racist attacks. An expert explains the Sikh faith and its history in the United States.Simran Jeet Singh, Visiting Professor, Union Theological Seminary, Association of Theological SchoolsLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.