California | | Page 3

"Terrorist" spray-painted on a wall at the Sikh Gurdwara of Riverside, in Jurupa Valley, California. (Source: PEBloggers)

Gurdwara near Riverside, CA, vandalized with graffiti

July 30, 2013 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

Only days before the one-year anniversary of the shooting attack at the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin in Oak Creek, the Sikh Gurdwara of Riverside, in Jurupa Valley, California, has been vandalized with the word “terrorist” spray-painted twice on its walls: “This is definitely a hate crime,” [Birpal Kaur, of SALDEF,] said. “It was very purposely targeted toward a minority community.” A police report was filed with the Riverside County Sheriff. Incidentally, Jurupa Valley, California, is also home to a school […]

Categories: Hate Crimes • Tags: California, Graffiti, hate crimes, Jurupa Valley, Riverside, SALDEF, Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund, Sikh Gurdwara of Riverside, vandalism

Gulwinder Singh was attacked by another driver after a minor vehicle accident in Manteca, CA. (Photo: KTXL/Fox40)

CA Sikh man attacked after vehicle accident

July 5, 2013 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

During his commute on Tuesday morning, in Manteca, California, Gulwinder Singh was involved in a minor accident with another car, and then brutally attacked by the other driver: “I asked him for his license and he pulled a gun on me. And I said, ‘O.K., O.K., it’s cool, I’m leaving,’” Singh told FOX40. Walking back to his car, the other driver attacked Singh – first hitting him in the back of the head with a rock and then pulling a […]

Categories: News Bits • Tags: Attempted murder, California, Gulwinder Singh, Manteca

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"Ikman and Manjot Singh, shown here with their children, were forced to leave an AMC theater in Emeryville, Calif., after security guards accused the couple of carrying weapons." (Source: India West)

Religious freedom at the movies

July 3, 2013 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

A recent incident in which a Sikh couple was ejected from an AMC movie theater in Emeryville, California, because they each were wearing a kirpan, a small sword that is a recognized article of the Sikh faith (worn by Sikhs who are initiated into the Khalsa order), has raised the issues of religious freedom and racial profiling: On June 22, Manjot and Ikman Singh were preparing to watch the new Superman movie, “Man of Steel,” at AMC’s Bay 16 theater […]

Categories: Civil Rights • Tags: AMC, AMC Theatres, California, Emeryville, Ikman Kaur, Khalsa, Kirpan, Manjot Singh

A service by The Sikh Gurdwara of San Francisco. (Source: The Sikh Gurdwara of San Francisco Facebook page)

Bay Area synagogue opens doors to Sikh congregation

June 28, 2013 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

The San Mateo Daily Journal provides a profile of The Sikh Gurdwara of San Francisco, a Sikh congregation in the West Bay area of greater San Francisco, California. The Gurdwara, having just celebrated its first year of existence, is unique: the congregation actually meets monthly in a space provided by a synagogue called Peninsula Temple Beth El: “We’re willing to make room for them whenever we can … until they expand or run out of space [for their services],” [Peninsula […]

Categories: Interfaith, News Bits, Profiles • Tags: Blair Brown, California, Mehar Singh Mahal, Peninsula Temple Beth El, San Francisco, San Mateo, San Mateo Daily Journal, The Sikh Gurdwara of San Francisco, West Bay

"Widening the Lens on Boys and Men of Color." (Source: Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy)

The experiences of Asian American males in California

June 11, 2013 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

The website Colorlines summarizes seven findings of a study entitled “Widening the Lens on Boys and Men of Color” by the organization Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy (AAPIP). The seven findings presented by Colorlines about boys and men in the Californian Asian American/Pacific Islander (AAPI) and Arab, Middle Eastern, Muslim and South Asian (what the study abbreviates as “AMEMSA”) communities debunk the “model minority” myth that is often used to describe Asian Americans. One such conclusion discusses the experiences of […]

Categories: Civil Rights, Reports/Studies • Tags: AAPI, AAPIP, AMEMSA, Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy, Bhujangi Youth Academy, bullying, California, Colorlines, Jakara Movement, model minority, Widening the Lens on Boys and Men of Color

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US Marine Cpl. Gurpreet Singh from Antelope, California, died in combat in Afghanistan in June, 2011. He was posthumously awarded with the Bronze Star with Combat "V" for valor last week.(Photo: News10/KXTV)

Sikh American marine awarded posthumously for valor

June 7, 2013 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

At a ceremony last week, the US Marines posthumously awarded Cpl. Gurpreet Singh (of Antelope, California) with the Bronze Star with Combat “V” (which recognizes acts of heroism). His sister, Manpreet Kaur, described how Cpl. Singh was inspired by his Sikh heritage: “When he was younger, he always looked up to people who fought wars,” Kaur said. “He would see the military men who sacrificed so much and would look up to them. He admired the courage of how people […]

Categories: Profiles • Tags: Antelope, Bronze Star Medal, California, Cpl. Gurpreet Singh, United States Marine Corps

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"No injuries were reported and no arrests made when unrest between hundreds brewed Sunday afternoon at the Glen Rock [New Jersey] temple. " (Source: Ridgewood-Glen Rock Patch)

Conflicts at Gurdwaras in NJ and CA last Sunday

June 5, 2013 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

It happens with disgusting frequency in our Gurdwaras when conflicts develop into physical acts of violence in and around our sacred spaces. Last November, an especially violent riot took place at a Gurdwara in Yuba City, California, and just this past weekend, Sikh communities in Glen Rock, New Jersey, and in Turlock, California, bore witness to the condemnable acts of the demented. It is unclear what the reasons of the conflict were in either case. At the Siri Guru Singh […]

Categories: News Bits • Tags: California, Glen Rock, Gurdwara, Gurdwara conflict, New Jersey, Turlock

"Simran Kaur, advocacy manager for the Sikh Coalition, recently spoke to 10 classes at Selma High School to help educate them about the Sikh community. The coalition wants to increase awareness, following the May 5 beating of an 82-year-old Sikh man in Fresno. The Fresno County District Attorney’s Office has called the assault a hate crime. Here, Kaur sits at teacher Alison Sickler’s desk as students write about what they learned from Kaur’s presentation." (Source: The Selma Enterprise)

Eliminating stereotypes through education

June 5, 2013 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

In the wake of last month’s attack on 82-year-old Piara Singh in Fresno, California, the Sikh Coalition provided awareness presentations to ten classes at nearby Selma High School. The school’s principal, Mark Babiarz, discusses why it was important: “We need to educate others outside the community of Selma about the many contributions that the Sikh community makes to Selma, the state of California and throughout the nation. Education is the key to eliminating stereotype bias and ignorance about any culture.” […]

Categories: Education • Tags: California, Fresno, Mark Babiarz, Selma, Selma High School, Sikh Coalition, Simran Kaur

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"In the Sikh community garden in Fresno [California], where older gardeners mentor younger ones." (Credit: Jim Wilson | The New York Times)

The community gardens of Fresno, CA

June 3, 2013 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

In The New York Times, Patricia Leigh Brown writes about community gardens in Fresno, California, as places of support for various communities, including the Punjabi Sikh Sarbat Bhalla Community Garden, which provides a safe space for conversation for Sikh women: “Young women have to prove ourselves more than our brothers do,” she said. So the group members supports one another, “especially if a girl is down,” [Parmeshvar Kaur Dhaliwal] said. …and Sikh men: Amandip Singh Gill, a 32-year-old garden organizer, […]

Categories: News Bits • Tags: Amandip Singh Gill, California, Community Garden, Fresno, New York Times, Parmeshvar Kaur Dhaliwal, Punjabi Sikh Sarbat Bhalla Community Garden

Considering the experience of Sikhs in America.

Tag: California

Gurdwara near Riverside, CA, vandalized with graffiti

CA Sikh man attacked after vehicle accident

Religious freedom at the movies

Bay Area synagogue opens doors to Sikh congregation

The experiences of Asian American males in California

Sikh American marine awarded posthumously for valor

Conflicts at Gurdwaras in NJ and CA last Sunday

Eliminating stereotypes through education

The community gardens of Fresno, CA