Rupinder Mohan Singh |

Gunman opens fire in Oregon mall (source: CNN)

No solution to gun violence without meaningful discussion

December 12, 2012 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

After yet another mass shooting in the United States — this time at a mall in Portland, Oregon yesterday — Congressman Eric Blumenauer made a statement today in the House of Representatives about the plague of gun violence that has now victimized residents of his home district: Mr. Speaker, one is haunted by these events—we had one in Aurora, Colorado in the theater where there were twelve people killed, sixty wounded;, six people killed at the Sikh temple this summer; […]

Categories: Hate Crimes, News Bits, Politics • Tags: Eric Blumenauer, gun violence, Oregon, Portland

Woven bracelet that the Oak Creek Police Department had specially made for their officers to remember the shooting at the Oak Creek Gurdwara, including orange for the Sikh community, blue for the police officers, and black for those that were lost that day. (source: Sikh Coalition)

Quote of the Day: “strangers no longer”

December 11, 2012 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

Things have changed in Oak Creek, of course, in the months since a gunman with white supremacist ties took the lives of six temple members and wounded four others. Oak Creek and the Sikh community are strangers no longer; they will forever be linked with each other. — An article in the Oak Creek Patch describes Sikh awareness presentations being provided to Oak Creek, Wisconsin city staff, police department and schools by the Sikh Coalition. The article also includes an […]

Categories: Hate Crimes, Reflections • Tags: Gurdwara, hate crimes, Oak Creek, Sikh Awareness Seminar, Sikh Coalition, Sikh Temple of Wisconsin, Wisconsin

Baltej Singh Dhillon (source: Whitterings)

Turban-wearing Sikh now to guard Queen of England

December 11, 2012 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

In the United Kingdom, one Jatinderpal Singh Bhullar, a Sikh, became the first soldier to wear his turban instead of the traditional bearskin as a member of the Scots Guards at Buckingham Palace: LONDON — Britain’s Ministry of Defense says a Sikh soldier has become the first guardsman to parade outside Buckingham Palace while wearing his traditional turban. Fifty family members were on hand Tuesday as Guardsman Jatinderpal Singh Bhullar as he took part in the changing of the guard […]

Categories: Civil Rights, Picture of the Day • Tags: Baltej Singh Dhillon, bearskin, Buckingham Palace, Canada, Jatinderpal Singh Bhullar, RCMP, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Scots Guard, Stephen Harper, stetson, United Kingdom

Cover of "Guru Nanak Vol. 1" from Gyan Khand Media.

Sikh Comics releases Guru Nanak graphic novels

December 10, 2012 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

Back in February, I had the opportunity to review two graphic novels published by Gyan Khand Media (http://www.sikhcomics.com), a publishing house that creates comics based on Sikh history. The two I reviewed were stories of Guru Tegh Bahadur and Baba Deep Singh. The author behind Sikh Comics, Daljeet Singh, was also good enough to share the story behind the project as well. Recently, I was contacted by Daljeet Singh who indicated that two new novels have been released. I was […]

Categories: Art, Literature, Resources, Sikhism • Tags: Daljeet Singh Sidhu, Guru Nanak, Gyan Khand Media, Sikh Comics, sikhcomics.com

Illinois House of Representatives (source: Chicago Tribune file photo)

IL state legislature passes anti-hate resolution

December 10, 2012 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

Making reference to the August mass murder of Sikhs in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, and subsequent attacks on mosques in the United States, the Illinois state legislature recently passed a resolution called HR 1193-Encourage Religious Tolerance to denounce hate crimes and encourage participation and civic engagement of minorities and immigrants (via @sepiamutiny): The resolution, sponsored by Rep. Daniel Biss, (D-Skokie), is more of a statement against anti-Asian bigotry than a legal measure. But it has impact because it comes on the […]

Categories: Hate Crimes, Politics • Tags: Ami Gandhi, Daniel Biss, HR 1193, Illinois, Illinois General Assembly, Illinois House of Representatives, Oak Creek, Rajinder Majo, SAAPRI, Sikh Temple of Wisconsin, South Asian American Polity and Research Institute, Wisconsin

A man reads from the Guru Granth Sahib (source: sikh-history.com)

What makes a sacred text

December 7, 2012 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

In the Huffington Post, Joshua Stanton, of the Center for Global Judaism, explores what makes a text sacred: Humans sanctify themselves not in the passive resonance they feel with stories that transcend time, but in the active engagement and re-crafting of these stories through the questioning of premises, derivation of overarching truths, and a willingness to unweave and reweave these initial narratives in forms that more closely resemble that which we understand to be ultimate meaning. The Sikh faith is […]

Categories: Reflections, Sikhism • Tags: Guru Granth Sahib, Huffington Post, Joshua Stanton, sacred text

On Friday, December 7, 2012, the White House held a ceremony to commemorate the birth anniversary of Guru Nanak. (source: Gautam Raghavan)

Picture of the Day: The White House celebrates the birth anniversary of Guru Nanak

December 7, 2012 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

As mentioned yesterday, the White House invited Sikhs from across the country to Washington, D.C. to commemorate the 543rd birth anniversary of Guru Nanak today, as it had in 2009 and 2010. Read more here.

Categories: Events, Politics • Tags: gurpurab, Guru Nanak, White House

Sikhs celebrating the birth anniversary of Guru Nanak at the White House in 2010 (source: SikhNet)

White House to commemorate birth anniversary of Guru Nanak tomorrow

December 6, 2012 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

As in 2009 and in 2010, the White House will be holding a special ceremony on Friday to commemorate the birth of Guru Nanak, the founder of the Sikh faith, born in 1469. Manmeet Singh Grewal, from Modesto, California, is among 150 Sikhs who have been invited to attend: “For me, it’s an honor,” Grewal said Wednesday morning. “Furthermore, it’s a honor for the entire Sikh community.” …What will he say if he has a chance to speak to the […]

Categories: Events, Politics • Tags: Barack Obama, California, Guru Nanak, Manmeet Singh Grewal, Modesto, White House

Gunpreet Rekhi's turban collection (source: The Fine Young Gentleman)

Turbans as fashion

December 6, 2012 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

On the style blog The Fine Young Gentleman, Gunpreet Rekhi discusses how he expresses his fashion sense with his turban: With every passing year, my collection has grown larger and larger (see photo above). I’ve acquired somewhat of a reputation for matching my turban to my outfit. More often than not, the matching will be obvious. Sometimes, I’ll have more fun with it and match the turban colour to a more discreet pattern (e.g. polka dots) or item (e.g. a […]

Categories: Style • Tags: Fashion, Gagan Singh, Gunpreet Rekhi, Jean Paul Gaultier, The Fine Young Gentleman, Turban, Waris Ahluwalia

Considering the experience of Sikhs in America.

Author Archives: Rupinder Mohan Singh