Rupinder Mohan Singh |

Surveying the candidates of California’s 9th Congressional District on Sikh American issues

October 26, 2012 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

Co-blogged with Sundari Kaur of The Langar Hall Of recent and recurring discussion on The Langar Hall and American Turban has been the election race in California’s 9th Congressional District (map). For Sikh Americans, this district’s race is significant. Located in northern California, the 9th Congressional District contains America’s oldest and one of its largest Sikh American communities. The oldest Gurdwara in the United States (which only a couple of weeks ago celebrated its centennial anniversary) is located in this […]

Categories: Civil Rights, Politics • Tags: California 9th Congressional District, Jerry McNerney, Ricky Gill

Picture of the Day: WI Sikhs hold vigil for victims of another shooting

October 23, 2012 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

Over the weekend and almost two months after the shooting attack, another vigil was held at the Gurdwara in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, to pray for the victims of another mass shooting in the area, this time at a salon in nearby Brookfield: Arriving at the staging area, near Brookfield Square Mall, involved “a lot of dejavu,” [Pardeep] Kaleka said. “It just brought back the flood of memories of what happened that day,” he said. “That waiting around to see what […]

Categories: Picture of the Day • Tags: Brookfield, Brookfield Square Mall, Oak Creek, Palmeet Kaur Rathor, Pardeep Kaleka, shootings, Wisconsin

Leave a comment

The incomprehensible New York Sikh International Film Festival

October 23, 2012 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

In just over a week, Sikhs in the United States and around the world will be commemorating the 28th anniversary of the anti-Sikh pogroms of 1984 — quite often described as a genocide — in which thousands of Sikhs were pulled from their homes and butchered in the streets of India during the aftermath of the assassination of Indira Gandhi by her Sikh bodyguards on October 31, 1984. In the decades since, Sikhs and human rights organizations have attempted to […]

Categories: 1984, Events, TV/Movies • Tags: boycott, Canadian Sikh Coalition, Ensaaf, Film Festival, New York, Sikh International Film Festival, sikhchic, The Langar Hall

Picture of the Day: The pain and resilience of the Oak Creek’s Sikhs

October 22, 2012 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

Adam Morris, a photographer for MilwaukeeMag.com, shares his photos of the survivors of the shooting at the Gurdwara in Oak Creek, Wisconsin in August: Look at their faces. Look into their eyes. You’ll see pain, heartbreak and weariness. But you’ll also see resilience and, in some instances, even defiance. Family members, survivors, priests and temple leaders stared unflinchingly into the camera’s lens. Here they were – and are and will continue to be – in a sacred space where they […]

Categories: Hate Crimes, Picture of the Day • Tags: Adam Morris, hate crimes, MilwaukeeMag.com, Oak Creek, Sikh Temple of Wisconsin, Wisconsin

Leave a comment

Picture of the Day: SEVA volunteers epitomize selflessness

October 18, 2012 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

The Appeal-Democrat, reporting out of the Yuba City, California area, highlights the activities of SEVA Selfless Service, a Sikh youth group in northern California that provides meals for the needy and homeless in the area: “We don’t do this for religion. Our purpose is to serve food, and that is all,” [co-founder Daman Singh Bhangu] says. The recipients, he says, “are just getting a meal. We’re getting a lot more out of this. It helps us grow as human beings.” Read […]

Categories: Picture of the Day • Tags: Daman Singh Bhangu, Jeevanjot Singh, Jetender Kaur Johal, Karanjeet Singh Randhawa, Pawandeep Kaur Khakh, Sandeep Kaur Johal, SEVA Selfless Service

Soliciting applications for IVACC College Scholarships for South Asians in Northern California

October 18, 2012 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

As last year, the northern California-based Indus Valley American Chamber of Commerce is soliciting applications for their IVACC Scholarship program: The Indus Valley American Chamber of Commerce is proud to announce the third year of the IVACC Scholarship Program. Scholarships are being awarded to high school and college students that have shown a commitment to the South Asian community and culture. The IVACC Scholarship Committee is now accepting applications with a deadline of November 25, 2012. Please download the scholarship […]

Categories: Resources • Tags: California, Education, Financial Aid, Indus Valley American Chamber of Commerce, IVACC, Northern California, scholarship

Leave a comment

Fourth WI shooting victim, Punjab Singh, released from hospital

October 17, 2012 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

Punjab Singh, the fourth and last remaining hospitalized victim of the Oak Creek, Wisconsin shooting, has been released from hospital: MILWAUKEE – A Sikh priest injured in an August shooting rampage at his Milwaukee-area temple has been transferred from the hospital to a long-term care facility. The family of Punjab Singh said in a statement Wednesday that he still requires around-the-clock care. They say they’ve made arrangements to transfer him to a health facility where he’ll receive that care. Singh […]

Categories: Hate Crimes • Tags: hate crimes, Oak Creek, Punjab Singh, Wisconsin

When a Sikh runs: the irony of California’s 9th Congressional District

October 17, 2012 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

Tonight, I attended the 100th Anniversary of the local Sikh temple in #Stockton. Congratulations to the community. It was an honor to attend — Jerry McNerney (@RepMcNerney) October 14, 2012 During last Saturday’s celebrations to celebrate the Centennial of the Stockton, California, Gurdwara, in addition to having the opportunity to listen to Ricky Gill (Republican candidate for California’s 9th Congressional District) speak, I also was interested to hear the congratulatory words offered to the Sikh community by Representative Jerry McNerney, […]

Categories: Politics • Tags: California, California 9th Congressional District, Jerry McNerney, Oak Creek, Ricky Gill, Stockton Gurdwara Centennial Celebration, Stockton Gurdwara Sahib, Wisconsin

“Please rebuild your place of worship.”

October 17, 2012 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

In a letter to her local newspaper, Jan Asai writes to the local Sikh community in Vancouver, Washington, who lost their place of worship to a fire last week: My heart goes out to the entire Sikh community. Please rebuild your place of worship. Our diversity makes our community richer, stronger and more vital. You have friends and neighbors here willing to offer you encouragement and hope for the future. Read her entire letter here. More about the fire that […]

Categories: News Bits • Tags: "Washington, fire, Gurdwara, Guru Ram Das Church, Guru Ram Das Gurdwara, Jan Asai, Vancouver

Leave a comment

Considering the experience of Sikhs in America.

Author Archives: Rupinder Mohan Singh

Surveying the candidates of California’s 9th Congressional District on Sikh American issues

Picture of the Day: WI Sikhs hold vigil for victims of another shooting

The incomprehensible New York Sikh International Film Festival

Picture of the Day: The pain and resilience of the Oak Creek’s Sikhs

Picture of the Day: SEVA volunteers epitomize selflessness

Soliciting applications for IVACC College Scholarships for South Asians in Northern California

Fourth WI shooting victim, Punjab Singh, released from hospital

When a Sikh runs: the irony of California’s 9th Congressional District

“Please rebuild your place of worship.”