New York Sikhs speak
Posted by Reema in General on 06 30th, 2008 | 5 Comments
I’ve mentioned before how much I enjoy belonging to such a pro-active community. I don’t know whether it’s the Punjabi, the Sikh, or some combination of the two influences that makes people speak out, but whatever it is, I love it.
This picture, I think, portrays why. It speaks volumes....
REMINDER- For a right to education without harassment
Posted by Reema in General on 06 28th, 2008 | 8 Comments
REMINDER– If you’re in the New York area, take the morning off work/school on Monday and join the Sikh Coalition in a march to end harassment against Sikh students in public schools:
When: Monday, June 30th, 11:00AM
Where: Meet at Sikh Cultural Society: 95-30 118th Street or Gurdwara Baba...
Language and personality
Posted by Reema in General on 06 26th, 2008 | 6 Comments
A blogger recently mentioned that many of us switch back and forth between English and Punjabi in conversations, and how it’s sometimes more comfortable to speak Punjabi. Have you thought about how your mental frame of reference shifts when you switch languages? Do you think this affects your personality?...
Blind organizations make many invisible
Posted by Reema in General on 06 23rd, 2008 | 42 Comments
SCORE has already come under scrutiny here in The Langar Hall, and I don’t wish to scrutinize the entire organization further. But their list of honorees from the 2008 Heritage Dinner does deserve some attention. This year, the following individuals were honored:
1. Sandeep Singh Caberwal, a Sikh...
An interview with Fauja Singh
I found this interview with the revered Fauji Singh ji, after completing the Edinburgh daur- a mere chabi (26) miles to be so endearing.
He has a message for the nau-jawan and at the end (it kind of got cut off, but he seems happy that the nau-jawan, both boys and girls, are running these days)…
Is there a limit to the cost of accommodation?
The UK has been hit with a recent controversy over expenditures, allegedly upwards of £100,000, spent on finding appropriate anti-terror gear that could accommodate the Sikh turban. A good deal of this was spent taking the officer away from duty and asking him to approach equipment manufacturers himself...
A note of hope in Jersey
Posted by Reema in General on 06 18th, 2008 | 10 Comments
Could the community’s recent rallying in response to hate crimes have similar results (though in smaller proportions) as was seen after Operation Bluestar of people re-committing to their faith?
Many Sikhs today, unfortunately, cut their hair at some time during their adolescence. This is seen...
Representation and Reality
Apparently the police have arrested over 70 Sikhs in Mumbai for vandalizing MTV’s headquarters there. The reason for the protest and vandalism? Apparently MTV’s poster promos featured a sardarni massaging a man, which they found offensive to the faith community and its principles.
Now, I...
Happiest place on earth? Not for Sikhs
Posted by Sundari in Media on 06 17th, 2008 | 76 Comments
For a place that makes money off turban-wearing and multicultural disney characters, it seems a little ironic that a turban-wearing employee of Walt Disney would be fired for not having the “Disney look.” Uhh what?
This story has been getting a lot of press lately (so for the two of you...
Aaloo Revolution
Posted by Jodha in Punjab on 06 16th, 2008 | 13 Comments
Revolutions come in strange shapes. Sometimes ‘French,’ sometimes ‘Islamic,’ other times ‘American,’ and maybe even ‘Russian.’ Closer to us, they may even be ‘Sikh.’ However, they may even be in the form of a carbohydrate.
During the 16th...
Baeke Vekh Jawana…
72 year old Balwant (“Bobby“) Singh Grewal is walking 500 miles (800 km) from the Scottish Parliament Building in Edinburgh to the House of Parliament in London in five weeks. He began on June 5th and is scheduled to finish on July 9th. He is raising 100 million pounds for cancer research....
Leadership Training by Sikh RI
Few programs exist that provide an in-depth study of Sikhi. Fewer exist in the United States. While there are other ventures, such as the Jakara Movement that attempt to allow entry and inspiration, Sikh Research Institute’s (San Antonio, TX) Sidak provides
distinctive learning program for...
Panjab’s Got Talent
So this week, I blogged about two unfortunate murders in the community. Maybe as a release, maybe just to cheer everyone up for the weekend, I am returning to my Friday lite post.
We’ve seen the talent in Britain, with Suleman Mirza and Madhu Singh together as Signature. And as brilliant as they...
Try a bike
Adding onto prior posts concerned about the environment, it’s interesting that the Transport Minister of Punjab made a statement today by riding his bike to work.
In a rare display of a public official and a cabinet minister and that too the transport minister of a state at its austere best, Master...
UPDATE: Tragedy in New Zealand Sikh Community
The police have apprehended two suspects and are charging them with the killing of Navtej Singh. The police are still searching for additional suspects and accomplices.
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Many...
New Theater Play about 1984 Sikh Genocide
Posted by Jodha in General on 06 11th, 2008 | 11 Comments
A recent play seems to have caught my attention. I provide the description here in length:
Dangalnama is a gripping account of sectarian rioting in India since the assassination of Indira Gandhi in 1984. It is also the story of a younger generation making sense of their history.
Through the voices and...
UPDATE: Signature’s Finale
In a day of updates, I figured I should update this one as well.
Although losing out on the 100,000 pound grand prize, the dynamic duo of Suleman Mirza and Madhu Singh have been invited by Michael Jackson to join him on his comeback tour in the UK. The newspaper report is a bit ambiguous suggesting...
UPDATE: Navraj Bassi – Sikh CFL Football Player
Since the Sikh community first learned about Navraj (Nuvraj) Singh Bassi, many on the internet have rushed to create facebook groups, orkut groups, and other fan displays. I think the CFL in general, but the SASKATCHEWAN ROUGHRIDERS, in particular, will see a new group of excited fans.
Many have wondered...
Sad and Disturbing
In Ceres, California an 86 year old Sikh bibiji, Jagir Kaur Johal, was found stabbed to death in her home. The Modesto Bee reports:
She died as a result of loss of blood from a stab wound to the chest and multiple slash wounds to the face, arms and legs, the Stanislaus County coroner’s office said.
Authorities...
Is there such a thing as Sikh banking?
I had a long and interesting conversation with a friend of mine this weekend on different attitudes towards finance and charity between different world religions. We noted that both Judaism and Sikhi require a 10% charitable contribution, in addition to service, which has no upper or lower bound and...
