United States |

Jon Huntsman, on breaking barriers

November 17, 2011 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

“We’re breaking barriers in this country all the time. And when people say that because you come from a certain background, that you’re not able to get from point A to point B, I’d say nonsense. That’s not part of the American tradition. … People are worried about the real issues and less about someone’s heritage or background.” — Jon Huntsman, seeking to be the Republican candidate for President of the United States, comments during an interview on being a […]

Categories: News Bits, Politics • Tags: Jon Huntsman, Mormon, Republican, United States

Choosing identity: American or Indian?

November 3, 2011 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

Simran Jeet Singh, who will be running the ING New York City Marathon (as a featured runner) in three days, writes in the Huffington Post about his identities as a Sikh, American, and Indian, and the role that the Indian state-sponsored atrocities of 1984 against the Sikh people (and others since) has played into how he reconciles the various labels: Yet I find that the values and ideals of my religion, Sikhism, resonate more closely with those of America. Like […]

Categories: 1984, Profiles, Reflections • Tags: Huffington Post, New York City Marathon, Simran Jeet Singh, United States

Can’t find a job? Perhaps your name isn’t English enough

October 20, 2011 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

Sikhs often suffer workplace discrimination as a result of maintaining their religious articles of faith – particularly the turban, uncut hair or the kirpan (sword). In many of these cases, qualified Sikhs are not hired or are asked to remove these items in order to qualify for a job even when these articles of faith do not interfere with job requirements. However, in employment, such discrimination isn’t always so obvious, and can occur long before an employer has even seen the candidate. A […]

Categories: Civil Rights, Reports/Studies • Tags: Canada, Employment Discrimination, English language, Language proficiency, microaggression, Simon Fraser University, United States

Ruling pending on diplomatic immunity for Kamal Nath from US trial

September 22, 2011 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

Yesterday, a preliminary hearing was held to determine whether Kamal Nath, an accused organizer of the anti-Sikh pogroms in November 1984 in India, would be granted diplomatic immunity from the civil trial proceeding in the United States. The case is being pursued by Sikhs for Justice on behalf of surviving victims of the mass murder of thousands of Sikhs more than 25 years ago in India. The US Judge who is overseeing the case is now considering the issue of […]

Categories: 1984, News Bits • Tags: 1984 anti-Sikh riots, Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, India, Judge Robert Sweet, Kamal Nath, New York, Pannun, Sikh, Torture Victim Protection Act of 1991, U.S. Federal Court, United States

Sikhs are America

July 4, 2011 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

(photo: sikhism.about.com) This Fourth of July – Independence Day in the United States – is my first as an American citizen. I had lived in this country for many years prior to obtaining my citizenship. Having been born and raised in another country, I only had vague notions about the principles on which this country was founded, and it was during my preparation for my U.S. citizenship test that I finally educated myself on what was the Proclamation of Independence, […]

Categories: Events, Reflections • Tags: Fourth of July, Independence Day, Pledge of Allegiance, United States, United States of America

Growing up Sikh: the lingering effects of bullying

June 21, 2011 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

A recent article in the US News & World Report talks about the lifelong impact of bullying on children: “Being the target of a bully involves real suffering,” Dr. Earlene Strayhorn, a child and adolescent psychiatrist at Loyola University, said in a university news release. “The constant stress of physical assaults, threats, coercion and intimidation can take a heavy toll on a child’s psyche over time. The abuse may end at some point but the psychological, developmental, social and emotional […]

Categories: News Bits, Reflections, Reports/Studies • Tags: Bay Area Civil Rights Report 2010, bullying, Global Sikh Civil & Human Rights Report, SALDEF, Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund, Sikh Coalition, United Sikhs, United States, US News & World Report

Attacker of Sacramento Sikh cabbie changes his mind

April 1, 2011 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

The sentencing process for the attackers of Sikh taxi driver Harbhajan Singh in West Sacramento, CA, still needs to come to a resolution after one of the attackers withdrew his guilty plea today: WOODLAND, CA – A man set to be sentenced to 13 years in prison for a hate crime attack on a taxi driver in West Sacramento last Nov. 28, withdrew his guilty plea in court Friday morning. Pedro Ramirez had admitted in a plea agreement with the Yolo County […]

Categories: Hate Crimes, News Bits • Tags: Harbhajan Singh, hate crime, Johnny Morales, Pedro Antonio Ramirez, Sacramento, taxicab, United States, West Sacramento

Is religion still “socially useful” in the west?

March 24, 2011 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

In an interesting follow-up to last week’s post comparing worship attendance in the United States and Canada, TIME.com reports on another study that looks at the numbers of people claiming a religious affiliation in nine western countries: Researchers at Northwestern University and the University of Arizona gathered census data in nine countries—Australia, Austria, Canada, the Czech Republic, Finland, Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand and Switzerland—where officials have traditionally included questions about religious affiliation in their population count. They found a […]

Categories: News Bits, Reports/Studies, Sikhism • Tags: Australia, Austria, Canada, Czech Republic, Finland, Ireland, Netherlands, New Zealand, religious affiliation, Switzerland, United States

Is the United States more religious than Canada?

March 18, 2011 by Rupinder Mohan Singh

An interesting article in Canada’s National Post presents a comparison of religion above and below the 49th Parallel: Competition, innovation and entrepreneurialism, all qualities normally associated with business, may explain why the United States is more religious than Canada, and determine the future of organized religions in our country, says a leading sociologist. The article summarizes an upcoming book by Reginald Bibby called Beyond the Gods and Back, in which he presents some interesting statistics: The United States is considered one […]

Categories: Interfaith, Reports/Studies • Tags: Beyond the Gods and Back, Canada, National Post, Reginald Bibby, Religion, Secularism, Sikhism, United States

Considering the experience of Sikhs in America.

Tag: United States