“Indians, many of whom were Sikh, worked at the Hammond Mill before its demise in 1922. During that time period, the Indians left their mark on Astoria, participating in wrestling matches, occupying Alderbrook also known as “Hindu Alley,” and forming the Ghadar political party. Courtesy of Clatsop County Historical Society.” (source: The Daily Astorian)
One of the legacies of the earliest Sikh and Indian immigrants to the United States at the turn of the twentieth century was the creation of the Ghadar Party, a political movement based in northern California that sought to promote India’s liberation from British rule.
Led by Indian expatriates in the United States, the Ghadar Party was formed in 1913. One of its main activities was the publishing of literature to promote resistance to British rule and for a free India. Obviously a threat to the ruling class, the literature was banned in India, and upon their capture, the Ghadarites were often imprisoned or executed as terrorists by the British.
This year, the San Francisco headquarters of the Ghadar Party has been opened to the public by the Indian Consulate as a museum. The printing press that the Ghadar Party used to print their literature is also now on display at the Gurdwara in Stockton, California. However, while it was previously believed that the Ghadar Party was founded in California, historians now place the genesis of the movement further north in the state of Oregon, where Johanna Ogden recently mapped a forgotten (and primarily) Sikh settlement of laborers in 1910 known as “Hindu Alley”.
A North American based Internationalist movement for the liberation of India
Guest blogged by York Ghadaris
On the centenary of the Ghadar Movement, a conference is being held at York University, Toronto, Canada on April 12 to April 13, 2013, to honour and remember its history, and its contemporary relevance to the revolutionary struggle of people of the Indian subcontinent.
It has been 100 years since the Ghadar Movement was formed by emigrant Punjabis and other Indian nationals in San Francisco in 1913. The Ghadar Movement ranks alongside other revolutionary movements of the early 20th century. In common with revolutionary movements in Latin America, Asia, Africa, and the Black Liberation movements of North America, the Ghadar Movement opposed imperialist powers, colonialism, and strived to develop working class internationalism.
This conference is called, with the participation of approximately 18 scholars and activist from North America and the UK, to remember the Ghadar Movement, its historical development, and to analyze its contemporary relevance to the revolutionary struggle of the people of the Indian subcontinent. The conference will examine the Ghadar struggle as a journey from the 20th century, “a century of revolutions”, to its role in laying the foundation stones for the revolutions of the 21st century. These revolutions are crystallizing in response to the imperialist occupations of Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Haiti, the air attacks on Pakistan and the possibility of NATO attacks on Iran and Syria. The economic meltdown of the European Union (EU) and North America resulting in mass unrest are adding to the cause of revolution. They are taking shape in the form of the Arab Spring, the ongoing revolutions in Venezuela, Nepal, and the emerging people’s struggles in India.
“While Sikh American women do a lions-share of organizing and executing the business of the Sikh community, their experiences of faith, family, and community are under-represented in art, literature, and scholarship. In fact, the experience and image of a Sikh woman is obsolete and in most cases invisible in the North American milieu. The modern landscapes and political andsocial influences that shape Sikh womens lives as well as the subsequent paths they take have yet to be understood, documented, shared and absorbed by our cultural psyche.”
The above description is an excerpt fromthe “Sikh American Women and Their Love Stories Collection” presentation that will be taking place at this year’s Our Journeys conference, hosted by the Sikh Feminists Research Institute on October 27th. This conference series, the first of its kind, provides a platform to explore the intersections of Sikhi and gender. The goal is to promote research around Sikh feminist issues, heighten participation in critical discourse, promote alliance building and develop partnerships between academic and community organizations.
Often times, conversations about Sikhs, Sikh issues and the Sikh identity start and end with the Sikh male identity. While this conversation is acutely relevant in the climate ofignoranceand discrimination that we live in, it’s also critical that we have conversations that include, are about, and are led by Sikh women.
Having attended last year’sinauguralconference, I look forward to engaging once again in a conversation around women’s issues within the Punjabi/Sikh framework. It’s exciting that we have a platform to celebrate the growth and development of the Sikh feminist voice.
During this past week following the tragic events in Wisconsin, our community has changed substantially. We have grown as a people and identified even more with Sikhi, standing up in a time of crisis, and responding in a positive and effective way, battling apathy with activism and suffering with solidarity.
SALDEFsSikhLEADLeadership Development Program will ensure that our youth remain engaged with the issues that continue to affect our community today and will provide them with the tools they need to enact real change. Although it may be a dark time for many of us, it is now more than ever that we need leaders and young activists leading the struggle against oppression. It is now more than ever that we need the younger generation to step up to the podium and speak out and act against injustice. Its not enough to feel for our Sikh brothers and sisters anymore. The time is now for the youth to rise up and become leaders, especially in the wake of the Wisconsin shooting tragedy.
The Leadership Development Program brings together approximately 15 young Sikh American leaders from across the country to participate in six days of training spread over Columbus Day and Memorial Day weekends. Attendees will participate in a series of workshops aimed to challenge, inspire and support a group of intelligent and motivated Sikh leaders. The purpose of the program is to empower the Sikh American youth to be confident, aware and resourceful individuals, equipped with all the tools they need to fulfill both their personal potential but also that of the Sikh American community. For more details please visit www.sikhlead.org.
Let us take on the Gurus seva together and become the pioneers of our own future, a future that has no place for events such as the Wisconsin shootings. The deadline to apply for the SikhLEAD LDP has been extended until August 19, 2012 at 11:59 EST.
Guestblogged by Harinder Singh
Harinder Singh is a co-founder of the Sikh Research Institute and the Panjab Digital Library. He is interested in anything Sikhi, esp. institutional development towards community building. His Twitter handle is @1Force.
I heard as recently as last Sunday at a Baltimore gurduara, that Sikhs dont know how to make their own decisions. True, and false.
For more than a century (1699-1805), Sikhs made tough, controversial, politically incorrect, yet reached consensus-driven, time-sensitive, and decisive conclusions via the institutions of the Sarbat Khalsa and the Gurmata. And this was accomplished during a century that saw half of Sikh population killed in a single genocidal campaign.
It has taken more than 200 years to dismantle these systems of consensus building; it will take a concerted effort for at least 20 years to revive it. This process will require complete openness and inclusivity. It is a risk worth taking and a solemn opportunity to grasp what others deemed worth dying for!
Sikhs worldwide responded to the recent Rajoana phenomenon with stunning solidarity. Governments, politicians, and spiritualists werent sure what was going on. Musicians used the opportunity to wash-off their sins of sycophancy from the last Panjab election promos. People-at-large were excited, but they were not prepared. I felt personally that I failed to convince myself of what matters most, and I failed to convince the activists (both the Tweeting and sloganeering kinds) to do something meaningful in any concerted way. I concluded that we self-deluded panthak folks failed everyday-Sikhs at this historical moment with an engagement policy. There was no mechanism to decide what the Panth must do at the crucial tipping point of actionable potential.
Last year the Jakara Movement held the first ever Bhujangi Youth Academy camp, aimed at young at-risk Sikh males, ages 13-17. It was a HUGE success. You can see the previous description and reflections write-up from last year.
This year the camp is happening again.
WHEN: July 15-24, 2012
WHERE: Camp Sierra (central California)
HOW TO REGISTER: Visit www.bhujangi.org
WHO TO CALL: For more information, call 1-408-905-7454 (English and Punjabi)
There will be fun activities such as paintballing, horseback riding, and sports. There will also be classes to instill a sense of pride in our collective Sikh past, but also an opportunity for reflection, emotional growth, and anger management.
The Jakara Movement is willing to work with all families of any means. As the deadline is soon approaching, we need your help and encouragement. Recommend a family member or talk to a friend if they have a young son, nephew, cousin, or brother that may be able to benefit from such an experience.
Caste is one of those dark secrets in our community. Some defend it as culture, others downplay its discriminatory effects, and some go even as far as to blame the victims of the violence itself.
Many have documented the ongoing apartheid that exists in our villages and in our minds.
Some scholars have recently looked at the issue in light of the commitment to equality bequeathed by our Gurus, but the continued existence of discriminatory practices by many Sikhs. Professor Natasha Behl sheds some light on this topic in her dissertation, titled The Politics of Equality: Caste and Gender Paradoxes in the Sikh Community. She began her research asking the simple questions: How do ordinary Sikhs maintain a belief in equality while also participating in caste- and gender-based discrimination? How do Scheduled Caste Sikhs and Sikh women take political action in a community that engages in discrimination, yet denies its very existence?
Tomorrow, May 1st, is International Workers Day and may very well be one of the largest days of mass action and protest we’ve seen in the North 
America in some time. Also known as May Day, the day has a long and rich history of working people courageously fighting for dignity and justice.
May 1st is the original “Labor Day” in the US. On May 1, 1886, 100,000 workers went on strike in Chicago demanding an eight-hour work day. They were met with violent repression from the police who killed four and injured many more. A massive rally against police brutality was organized in the coming days at Haymarket Square where violence escalated. Martial law was declared in Chicago, and police arrested hundreds of activists. The “Chicago Eight” were arrested and convicted solely because of their political beliefs. Seven were sentenced to death, and four were eventually hanged. Hanged for being freedom-fighters. Sound familiar?
In more recent years, May Day has become a mass day of action for immigrant workers rights here in the United States as well. In 2006, literally millions of immigrants and allies took to the streets in the midst of draconian anti-immigrant legislation working its way through the halls of Congress in the first “Day Without Immigrants.”
90 percent of truckers did not show up for work at the Port of Los Angeles, 27 percent of students did not show up for school. In the Central and Imperial Valleys, farm tools lay idle in the biggest agricultural work stoppage in Californias history. Corporations like Perdue, Cargill, and Swift preemptively gave workers the day off in an effort to save face and minimize production losses. In New York, whole neighborhoods closed as Korean and Latino business shuttered their windows. (see: http://maydaynyc.org/history)
Following the success of the third Sikholars conference in February, the Jakara Movement is allying with the Canadian Sikh Coalition to bring the conference to British Columbia.
This unique forum brings together researchers, budding scholars, and community members in conversations about some of the most pressing issues. For this year’s inaugural conference, a theme has been selected: Theeja Ghallughara: On Justice, Memory, and Transmission. The conference will be held at Simon Frasier University from June 16-17, 2012. Please help circulate and encourage young scholars to send their abstracts before May 16, 2012 for consideration.
The scope of the conference is global; papers may concentrate on particular localities or regions, or they may present cross-regional comparisons and convergences. We encourage submissions from a broad range of disciplines, methodologies, and perspectives. All approaches will be considered from medicine, to law, to history, sociology, media studies, etc. so long as they are related to the theme.
You can get more information about the conference at the Sikholars website.
In a previous post, I reflected on attending the Sikholars Sikh Graduate Student Conference at CSU East Bay in Hayward, California a few weeks ago. I commented on the first day’s presentations and panel discussions and now offer the same for the second day. As before, I will refer to Jodha’s post that provided a recap of the conference and also to the papers that were presented this year made available on the Sikholars website for a limited time.
Day 2 of the conference was very thought-provoking, and both reinforced and challenged some of my perspectives.
The Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund (SALDEF) has announced the application for the 2012SikhLEAD Internship Program.The objective of SikhLEAD is to inspire, train, and support motivated and enterprising young Sikh American leaders as they prepare for a lifetime of community engagement and community leadership.
The internship program is aims to put Sikh American college and graduate students, as well as recent grad, in competitive internship in the White House, on Capitol Hill and government agencies. Through this program, students will be afforded first-hand perspective into the functioning of the federal government, as a way of providing experience-based training to individuals interested in civic engagement and government affairs.
Through the experience of interning in a congressional office, interns will:
- explore a potential career track
- create a network of professional and personal contacts
- develop real-world skills
- build confidence and professional work habits
The application deadline for summer 2012 internships is THIS SUNDAY, Feb 26th, 2012!
Visitwww.sikhlead.orgfor more details and to apply.Spread the word and tell your friends about this exciting opportunity.
(photo: Twitter user @ksalag)
I would like to follow up on Jodha’srecap of thethird annual Sikholar’s conference that took place this past weekend at California State University, East Bay (in Hayward, California).I had attended the previous conferences in 2010 and 2011and was happy to attend this year’s event. I’ve enjoyed all three of these meetings of the mind immensely, and I believe the 2012 iteration was a raising of the bar in the discourse it brought forth about our community and faith group.
What follows are some of my own reflections of the presentations and panels as a member of the audience.
Since the inception of Sikholars: Graduate Sikh Conference, we have featured it here on The Langar Hall. The past two years have been huge successes and the third year will prove no different. A terrific agenda of evidence and research-based topics, as well as current thinking and new ideas will be presented by graduate students and professionals in various fields to challenge you and get you thinking.
As always, this year, Sikholars will offer a balance of well-known experts along with new faces and a stronger international representation. Students and professionals will come together from all across the globe and have the opportunity to learn from each other, to interact and form personal and professional relationships and to focus on learning and spreading knowledge.
Everyone is invited to come to CSU East Bay on February 18th & 19th, 2012. For more information: www.sikholars.org
Below the fold, I’ll post the abstracts of this year’s presenters.
I spent this weekend in Fort Lee, New Jersey across the river from Manhattan at the Surat-Lalkaar Conference, “Kaur Voices: Exalt, Express, Empower.” As discussed previously, this event was a new collaboration between organizers of the popular Surat Conference in NY/NJ and California’s Jakara Movement. Never having attended a conference put on by either group, I was curious what the weekend would bring and eager (and a bit nervous) to help facilitate dialogue in our community about gender, sexism, and intimate violence.
Perhaps others will also have report backs and reflections on the conference in the coming days and weeks (feel free to share your thoughts in the comments), but for now I wanted to share a few highlights, a few aspects of my experience as both participant and a facilitation at Surat-Lalkaar while it’s fresh.
What struck me the most this weekend was simply the theme of the conference: issues of gender and gendered violence in the Punjabi Sikh community. As I was co-facilitating an intense discussion about a case study (based on a real situation) about child sexual abuse in a Sikh family, I looked around at the dozen or so Singhs or Kaurs in my group and realized I had never talked about this issue with a group of Sikhs. Nor had the rest of the participants in my discussion group.
A shared experience of nearly everyone in the group (and likely everyone at the conference) was the resounding silence about domestic violence, sexual assault, and child sexual abuse in our families, our gurdwaras, and our communities. There was a sense from many that these issues are indeed problems in our community, but problems that are hard to know the scope or seriousness of because no one talks about them openly. Many participants saw a tendency in our Sikh families to brush any “problems” under the rug to preserve the reputation or “honor” of the family.
Guest blogged by Mewa Singh.
Earlier this year, I wrote an in-depth post, summarizing the workshops and questions raised at the Jakara Movement’s annual Lalkaar conference. I was hardly alone. Our sisters at Kaurista shared their thoughts, as did a number of individual participants.
So now is something big and exciting. For years a criticism of the Jakara Movement was that it was California-centric. Recently an exciting collaboration opportunity availed itself. Sevadars of the annual Surat Sikh Conference were seeking fresh blood and ideas. The Jakara Movement was seeking an opportunity to begin unveiling its numerous local projects in more venues. Synergies were found and Surat-Lalkaar 2012 was born.
As promised, here is my follow-up to Monday’s post about the Inquilab hip hop workshop in New York.
This past Saturday night brought together hundreds of Sikhs (and others) for the fourth annual Lahir: Move the Movement. I always seemed to have a conflict the last several years, but finally made it out to New Brunswick, New Jersey this year for my first Lahir. I am grateful for it.
Again, I’ll keep my words short as the video below speaks for itself. But a couple of things that were especially noteworthy to me about the experience.
The audience was really multi-generational. It was much more like a typical gurdwara sangat than I had expected, crying babies, hyper adolescents, and plenty of elders included. The energy was positive and empowering, and the high school and college-aged youth, in particular, were fired up.
The performances were extremely diverse and full of raw talent and passion. As you’ll see below, the performances (only a few of which I captured) went far beyond the spoken word and hip hop that I was expecting.
A friend of mine leaned towards me while a pre-pubescent high school student with a patka was rapping passionately about post-9/11 racism and said, “I am so excited about this new generation.” Indeed, I share her sentiment. These young people are indeed moving the movement, and in doing so, in the words of the event’s organizers, perhaps they are also “bringing Sikhi back.”
On December 2nd and 3rd, Sikh youth will have the opportunity to participate in a special workshop that willallow them to learn the power of expression and how it can be used to create change in their life and communities. Inquilab: Raising our Voices, organized by The Sikh Coalition and Slumgods, will bring together hip-hop artists, Mandeep Sethi and Selena Dhillon, to work with South Asian youth as a way of encouraging their engagement with expression. Through this participation, youth can learn how to effectively use art to inspire positive change within their own communities.
Following the workshop this weekend isLahir – an event thataims to inspire, educate andawakenthe community torebuild the panth andencourage youthto becomeactivists. The concert will provide a much-needed platform for powerful Sikh artists to express themselves throughmusic, art, film, and poetry. Some more information from the organizers:
In past years, Lahir’s central theme focused on 1984 and Punjab. This year, Lahir 2011 will be “Bringing Sikhi Back”. Ten years post 9/11, it’s time to stand up as individuals and as a community to begin to shape the next ten years. Join us for an evening of spoken work, music, poetry and the arts to reflect and reenergize to ensure a future of chardi kala! This year, all proceeds will go to the Saanjh Sikh Youth Scholarship.We need strong voices in our community and we need diverse voices to help us educate others and ourselves about the historical, political, social, and economic issues that affect our community. Therefore, this event is not just for us, but for our future.
Inquilab will take place on December 2nd and 3rd 2011 at South Asian Youth Action Inc | 5405 Seabury St,Elmhurst, NY.
Lahir will take place on December 3rd 2011 atRutgers University
We encourage you to learn more about these events, and if you are in the area – please attend and let us know how it goes!
Tears and Ashes, an event to remember 1984, is happening this evening in Toronto, Canada. The event will be a night of reflection remembering victims and survivors.It would be great to see this event organized simultaneously in cities across the globe as a way for our community to come together and remember 1984 and the events that followed. The Sikh Activist Network is organizing the event and have made arrangements for transportation from neighboring cities. See the event page for more details.
Co-blogged by Sundari and Ajaib Kaur
How many young Sikh women do you know who are looking to meet their Sardar? And how many young Sikh men do you
know who are looking to meet their Sardarni?
Lots? We hear you. But how can we make these two groups meet?
We decided to write a post on this topic for many different reasons. Its clear that there is little space elsewhere to talk about how young Sikhs can meet each other, with the potential of pursuing something beyond a friendship.
Gasp! Are we actually admitting this? After a few dialogues with friends and families, we decided that we may as well start breaking the ice here on the West Coast. Over the last few years, SikhNet has been hosting Gursikh Speed Meetings, in cities such as New York, Boston, and Toronto. It is nice to see that the organizers has decided to bring this successful event to the West Coast, in our beloved City of Angels. These events give young, single Sikhs between the ages of 25-40 a chance to meet fellow single-and-ready-to-mingle like minded Sikhs in a communal safe space. This concept may feel familiar, because it is. The speed meeting is a popular spin-off of an American cultured speed-dating event; having an even number of men and women participants, and rotating through getting a brief chance to connect with everyone in the room. It seems like a lot of work, but based on our feedback from some past participants, it is fairly enjoyable. The best part: if you do not click with someone mutually, you do not need to face them again. Contact information is only shared if both parties have expressed interest in each other. Fool proof for both ladies and gents!
The tragic murder of two of our grandfathers – S. Gurmej Singh Atwal and S. Surinder Singh – in Elk Grove earlier this year, shocked both the Sikh and local communities. The murderers still roam free.
This Sunday, if you are in the Sacramento area, or if you can reach there, please come and stand with your community on this ‘Day of Action.’ We are calling for justice, not vengeance. We are here to remind the world that we have not forgotten these two men and that we want the perpetrators apprehended.
The schedule reads as follows:
Day of Action
Help Find The Criminals That Murdered Surinder Singh and Gurmej Singh Atwal
Join us in Elk Grove as we blanket the city, contacting local businesses and posting reward bulletins.
Tentative Schedule:
9:45am — Gather at the EG Park & Ride near the site of the murders
10:30am — Volunteers go to assigned areas to request that local businesses put up a flyer re EG Shooting Deaths
12:30pm — Return to Park&Ride for debriefing and Ardaas
12:45pm — Langar
Intersection of East Stockton Boulevard at Geneva Point DriveElk Grove, CA 95624
You can find more information on the Facebook event page. Stand with your community. Stand together. Stand on this ‘day of action.’
