Sikhi or Soccer?
[Note] There has been an update to this post, please see below.
Earlier this month the ruling body for international soccer, FIFA, banned the Iranian women’s team from playing because of their uniforms. The stated reason for the disqualification is that the women’s uniforms, which include a track...
Proud Sikh at Pride Parade
A friend sent me this photo yesterday from this past weekend’s annual LGBT Pride Parade in New York City, which was attended by about a million people. I’ve seen this Singh around NYC before. He happens to be one of the transit workers standing up to the NYC Transit Authority’s...
Celebrating Cpl. Gurpreet “Gopi” Singh
Posted by Jodha in USA on 06 29th, 2011 | 12 Comments
Writing a post such as this can be difficult. A war has gone on for far too long. I do not believe there can be an end-game, other than the action that President Obama is beginning to take. American soldiers must leave Afghanistan. This post is about one that did not.
I don’t know much...
To Send or Not to Send My Kids to a “Sikh” School?
Posted by Jodha in California on 06 28th, 2011 | 14 Comments
How would you answer this question?
At least for the first time in the US, parents will now have the option. Although billed as a “Punjabi” school, the Sikh sangat in Sacramento [The Sikh community of Sacramento seems to find itself in the limelight quite a bit recently] seems ecstatic...
150+ Revolutionaries – Answering a Lalkaar
Guest-blogged by Mewa Singh. Mewa Singh is a sevadar with the Jakara Movement.
Previously, here in The Langar Hall, there was a discussion by Navdeep Singh on an important panel discussion, held in NYC, on faith, feminism, and Sikhi. Brooklynwala had asked for a comment and report about Lalkaar 2011,...
What Happens When Lions Roar?
Toronto is abuzz. This weekend the IIFA [International Indian Film Academy] awards are being held in Toronto to many a South Asian’s delight. We are, however, delighted about Toronto for another reason. This weekend, The Sikh Activist Network will be hosting When Lions Roar 3 – a night of...
Assessing ‘Victories’ – Arizona Governor Rightfully Vetoes Anti-Sikh Legislation
Guest blogged by Dilpreet Kaur
Mere days before Osama bin Laden’s capture and death, the Arizona state legislature had set into motion legislative steps to remove a 9/11 hate crime victim’s name from the state’s memorial in Phoenix. At the time, the bill’s original sponsor, Rep. John Kavanaugh...
Sarbat da Bhala in Action in Sacramento
As the Sikh community in Sacramento continues to grieve the losses of hate crime victims Surinder Singh and Gurmej Singh Atwal who were gunned down earlier this Spring (with no suspects still), the Sacramento Sikh Temple has truly embodied the Sikh spirit of sarbat da bhala this past week, extending...
Incarceration & Religious Freedom: A Sikh Story from Behind Bars
A few years ago I was putting up some flyers on street poles and bulletin boards in Williamsburg, Brooklyn promoting an upcoming concert for my band. If you’re from New York City, you know Williamsburg is a neighborhood covered with concert flyers and band logos, and the home of dozens of music...
Contest: Ladoos Pink and Blue
Posted by Jodha in Activism on 06 13th, 2011 | 25 Comments
Crowdsourcing has its uses. Here is one.
This year the Jakara Movement is celebrating its 12th annual Lalkaar Conference with the theme Kaur Voices: Exalt, Express, Empower. Hosted in Sacramento this week, June 16-19, 2011 – I am sure the conference will be a success.
The email...
The First Youth Camp for At-Risk Sikh Boys
Do you know a young boy, ages 13-16 that may have:
problems in school or with family
exhibiting low self-esteem or low motivation
making poor peer and relationship choices
defiant of authority
refusing to take responsibility
experimenting with drugs and alcohol
Maybe some of this describes your nephew,...
Does this look like 6,000 people?
You can repeat your lies….This one comes from the Times of India:
The organisers claimed a figure of 25,000, but the Scotland Yard put the number at 6,000. The ‘Remembrance March’ began at Hyde Park and concluded at Trafalgar Square.[link]
But the truth will get out and you will look...
Remembering ’84: Our Rhyme and Reason
Posted by Ajaib Kaur in Activism, History, Human Rights, Punjab, Sikhi on 06 6th, 2011 | 26 Comments
Today we remember twenty seven years since June 1984.
We remember twenty seven years since Indira Gandhi sent the Indian Army tanks and artillery to the Darbar Sahib Complex and forty one Gurdwaras across Punjab on the shaheedpurab of Guru Arjan Dev Ji.
We remember twenty seven years since bodies lined...
Sikh Beard Swag
According to Urban Dictionary (is there another source?), “The single most manly, and great thing a man can do [is grow a beard]. To have a beard is to be a true man. If you have a beard, show it off proudly, and enjoy the satisfaction of the envy in the eyes of people around you who don’t...
UPDATE: #Neverforget84
Posted by Jodha in General on 06 3rd, 2011 | 17 Comments
6/4 @ 2:15pm – More tweets by Panjabi MC, award-winning MC Amrit Tung, even hiphop artist B-Magic. Also pagh salute to our friends at Naujawani for keeping us up to date with their twitter feeds.
6/3 @ 4:45am – Since the post went up, Bhangra Star Jassi Sidhu, famed DJ Bobby Friction,...
Sada Safar
Guest blogged by Adi Shakti Kaur
For as long as I can remember, I can envision the imprints of patriarchy within the Guruduaras (Sikh spaces of worship). The Guru, was more than sacred scriptures; more than a living embodiment of the ‘word’; more than a Guru, who took us from darkness to light; but...
