Rupinder Mohan Singh |

A Sikh’s reaction to the killing of Osama bin Laden

May 4, 2011 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

I was sitting in a Bay Area, California, restaurant when I first learned of the killing of Osama bin Laden in Pakistan by US Navy SEALs. At my table, we were stunned into silence by news that came completely out of left field. Almost ten years after the 9/11 attacks, Americans finally brought to justice the man behind the attacks. Video footage and images of bin Laden took over all of the televisions in the restaurant that moments before were […]

Categories: Hate Crimes, News Bits • Tags: Balbir Singh Sodhi, Barack Obama, California, Osama bin Laden, Stockton, United States Navy SEALs

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Vetoed: Arizona Governor preserves memorial to Balbir Singh Sodhi

May 3, 2011 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

In recent days, I have heard concerns from some of the Arizona families directly affected by the 9/11 attacks and their aftermath. For their sake, I am sorry this issue has reared its head once more. — An excerpt from Arizona Governor Jan Brewer’s letter to the Secretary of State, explaining why she vetoed Arizona’s state bill HB 2230, which sought to modify the state’s 9/11 memorial, including the removal of (post-9/11 hate crime victim) Balbir Singh Sodhi‘s name. The bill’s original […]

Categories: News Bits, Politics • Tags: 9/11 Memorial, Arizona, Balbir Singh Sodhi, Jan Brewer, John Kavanagh

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Modoc Co., CA official blames ignorance for condescending reference to Sikhs

April 28, 2011 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

In the northwest-most corner of California is Modoc County, somewhat remote and removed from the more populated areas of the state. You may excuse someone from such parts for being ignorant, but not for being disrespectful. However, Modoc County Supervisor Loren “Shorty” Crabtree is using ignorance to account for disrespectful comments he made about Sikhs after visiting Woodland, California (near Sacramento, California): During a routine item at the end of the board’s meeting in Alturas, Crabtree, a retired brand inspector, reported on attending an […]

Categories: Hate Crimes, News Bits • Tags: California, Loren Crabtree, Modoc County, Sacramento, Woodland

Vaisakhi celebrations continue across the United States

April 27, 2011 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

Sikhs around the country are continuing to celebrate Vaisakhi and are opening up to their local communities in the process: Lansing, Michigan: Last weekend, the Guru Nanak Sikh Center in Lansing, Michigan organized their seventh annual Nagar Kirtan through downtown Lansing, which included an estimated 2,000 people from around the Midwest to celebrate Vaisakhi, as reported in the Lansing State Journal: Attendees came from as far away as Wisconsin, Ohio and Illinois for the largest Sikh harvest and religious celebration in the Midwest, […]

Categories: Events • Tags: "Washington, Guru Granth Sahib, Lansing, Louisiana, Lynden, Michigan, Nagar Kirtan, New Orleans, Vaisakhi

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“I apologized”: Arizona lawmaker backs down on removal of slain Sikh’s name from 9/11 memorial

April 27, 2011 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

On September 15, 2001, Balbir Singh Sodhi was shot and killed outside of his gas station in Mesa, Arizona. His murder was one of the first post-9/11 hate crimes in the United States. His murderer, Frank Roque (who mistook Balbir Singh as an Arab), is currently serving a life sentence for the crime. Balbir Singh’s death was a turning point for Sikhs in this country, who since that day have undertaken significant efforts to bring about more Sikh awareness in the United […]

Categories: Hate Crimes, News Bits • Tags: 9/11, Arizona, Balbir Singh Sodhi, Frank Roque, hate crime, Jan Brewer, John Kavanagh, memorial, Mesa, SALDEF, Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund

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A hukamnama (edict) from Guru Gobind Singh addressing the problems with masands. (source: info-sikh.com)

Gurdwara conflicts: When Sikhs live down to the stereotype

April 26, 2011 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

The internet is abuzz today with the reports and video of the violence at the Baba Makhan Shah Lubana Sikh Center, a Gurdwara in Queens, New York. The reports of this incident paint a disgusting picture. When Sikhs are dealing with an ignorant public (and I mean “ignorant” in its literal definition and not in a condescending way), these all-too-common conflicts only reinforce the stereotypes that are promoted in the media. However, while there are those who legitimately object to how the violence […]

Categories: News Bits, Reflections, Sikhism • Tags: Baba Makhan Shah Lubana Sikh Center, Gurdwara, Gurdwara conflict, Guru Gobind Singh, Guru Ram Das, New York, New York Post, Queens

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Recap: Funeral service for Gurmej Atwal

April 25, 2011 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

The funeral service for Gurmej Atwal, the second victim of the Elk Grove, California shootings, took place last Saturday and was covered by local media. The Elk Grove Patch reports: About 200 members of the Sikh and Sacramento community gathered Saturday afternoon at the Sacramento Memorial Lawn to mourn the death of Gurmej Atwal, one of two victims of the recent Sikh shooting. Preceding Atwal’s cremation was a two-and-a-half-hour long memorial service, where family members, friends, members of the Sikh community […]

Categories: Events, News Bits • Tags: California, Elk Grove, funeral, Gurmej Atwal, hate crime, Sacramento, Surinder Singh

Missionaries at the door: When opportunity knocks

April 22, 2011 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

I really liked the following post on Twitter from the author of SikhSwim, and had to re-post it here: Gave Sikh Awareness cards from SALDEF to the Jehovah's Witnesses that came to the door today. I picked up their info too. — sikhswim (@sikhswim) April 22, 2011 Admittedly, I’m usually both annoyed by missionaries who knock on my door to sell their religion to me, and amused by their facial expression when they see a full sardar answer the door. […]

Categories: Interfaith, Resources • Tags: missionaries, SALDEF, Sikh Awareness Card, SikhSwim

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The Sikh identity: the cover and content are not separate

April 20, 2011 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

Today, the Huffington Post published an essay by Jalees Rehman, M.D. , that discussed the figurative judging of books by their covers, especially in the context of Muslims and their beards: Choosing an outward appearance that is compatible with one’s faith is a personal decision. However, we have to constantly re-evaluate our priorities and make sure that the time, efforts and resources devoted to the outward appearance should be in some measure of proportion to its actual importance within the […]

Categories: News Bits, Reflections • Tags: Baisakhi, Huffington Post, J.D. Cunningham, Jalees Rehman, Sikh identity, Vaisakhi

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Considering the experience of Sikhs in America.

Author Archives: Rupinder Mohan Singh

A Sikh’s reaction to the killing of Osama bin Laden

Vetoed: Arizona Governor preserves memorial to Balbir Singh Sodhi

Modoc Co., CA official blames ignorance for condescending reference to Sikhs

Vaisakhi celebrations continue across the United States

“I apologized”: Arizona lawmaker backs down on removal of slain Sikh’s name from 9/11 memorial

Gurdwara conflicts: When Sikhs live down to the stereotype

Recap: Funeral service for Gurmej Atwal

Missionaries at the door: When opportunity knocks

The Sikh identity: the cover and content are not separate