The Sikh Coalition Newsletter

Justice for All e-Newsletter
March 1, 2005
Volume 36

New York City Dastaar Bill Support Increases to 17 Cosponsors; Backlash Mitigation Bill Has 16 Cosponsors

The Sikh Coalition’s dastaar and backlash mitigation bills gained significant support on day of their introduction. The dastaar bill now has 17 cosponsors! The backlash mitigation bill has 16 cosponsors! The bills were introduced by New York City Councilman David Weprin on February 16, 2005, during a press conference with the Sikh Coalition.

The dastaar bill will ban discrimination in city agencies on the basis of religious headdress such as the turban or hijab. The backlash mitigation bill will require New York City to create a plan to prevent and decrease backlash hate violence in the face of catastrophic public emergencies such as the events of September 11, 2001. A coalition of over 25 New York City–based civil rights, immigrants rights, South Asian, Arab, Muslim and interfaith organizations support the bills.

The New York City Council has 51 members. The dastaar bill and backlash mitigation bill only need 9 and 10 more cosponsors, respectively, to have majority support in the Council. If passed, both bills would be the first of their kind in the United States.

View Latest Information About the Bill

Please thank Councilman David Weprin for introducing these historic bills.

Sikh Subway Franchise Owner States He Was Ordered to Remove Dastaar — Coalition Writes to Corporation

A Sikh Subway sandwich shop owner in California has reported that he was told he could no longer wear his turban by a Subway quality-control inspector this past February. Instead, the inspector ordered him to wear a Subway baseball cap.

The franchise owner, Harbans Singh, has owned his shop for over a year. He has worn his turban since he bought his franchise, during his franchise training, and during previous quality-control inspections.

The Coalition has written to the Subway Development office for Harbans Singh demanding that the company cease any attempt, if any, to curtail Harbans Singh’s right to wear his turban while in his store. The Coalition will keep the community updated as this matter develops.

Sikh States He Was Told Not To Work While Wearing Kara — Coalition Takes Action

A Sikh food-service employee has been ordered to remove his kara while working for a Toronto-area caterer. The employee, Manjit Singh, has worked for the caterer, Chartwells, for more than a year while wearing his kara. The caterer has temporarily reassigned Manjit Singh to another position while considering Manjit Singh’s request for religious accommodation.

The Coalition, with the assistance of Canadian attorneys, has written to Chartwells requesting that Manjit Singh be allowed to wear his kara without restriction. The Coalition is presently working with Chartwells to devise an acceptable solution.

Sikh Given Criminal Citation for Wearing Kirpan — Coalition Works to Get Matter Dismissed

Jagdish Singh, the Bhai Sahib at the Sikh Foundation San Diego Gurdwara Sahib, was arrested at San Diego International Airport on December 23, 2004, for mistakenly carrying his kirpan while attempting to go through a metal detector. Instead of requesting that he place his kirpan in his stowed luggage, as discussed in a Federal Aviation Administration policy, Jagdish Singh was questioned by officers for approximately one hour before being released. He was given a criminal citation for carrying a knife.

The Coalition is working with the local Sikh community and community organizations to have the case against Jagdish Singh dismissed. The Coalition will update the community as this matter develops.

Sikh School Boy Suspended After Defending Kesh from Attack — Coalition Writes to School Principal

Gurkirat Singh, a seventh-grade Sikh student at Lawrenceville Middle School in Lawrenceville, New Jersey, was suspended in November 2004 for what officials at his school categorized as physical aggression. The Coalition has written to the school’s principal to request that the school investigate a possible bias motive for the attack.

Gurkirat was seated on his school bus, waiting to go home, when a classmate asked for permission to use his CD player. When Gurkirat Singh declined, his classmate tried to touch his turban. In order to prevent this, Gurkirat Singh pushed his classmate away. The bus driver reported the incident to Gurkirat’s school. Gurkirat was subsequently suspended for two days. The incident is now a part of his permanent record.

The Coalition’s letter to the school raises concerns that it did not follow appropriate procedures to determine whether Gurkirat was acting in self-defense. It also makes note of a new law on the prevention of bullying in New Jersey schools and asks whether the mandates of that law were followed in this matter.

Coalition Regional Director Selected by Virginia State Bar Association for Pro Bono Law Student of the Year Award

Amandeep Singh (Sidhu), the Coalition’s Southeast Regional Director, has been named the recipient of the 2005 Oliver White Hill Student Pro Bono Award by the Virginia State Bar Association. The award is named for Oliver White Hill, the Richmond, Virginia lawyer who lead the fight against school segregation in the court case Brown v. Board of Education.

Amandeep is a third-year law student at the University of Richmond Law School in Richmond, Virginia. As a lifelong resident of Richmond and as a law student, he has devoted much of his time to upholding justice and civil rights for all people. He was instrumental in the creation of the Sikh Coalition, and assumed a leadership role in ensuring the passage of U.S. Senate and House resolutions calling for better protection for Sikhs from hate crimes in October 2001. Amandeep also has represented the Sikh Coalition at meetings with the U.S. Department of Transportation and the Federal Aviation Administration to ensure that complaints of air travel discrimination are investigated. He also was a lead organizer of the Sikh Coalition Awards banquet in Washington, DC, which honored persons invaluable in assisting the Sikh community after September 11, 2001. Amandeep was also instrumental in the creation of a BBC radio documentary on the work of the Sikh Coalition.

At the University of Richmond Law School, Amandeep serves as president of the student bar association. He is also a founding advisory board member of A More Perfect Union, a Richmond organization created to increase respect and understanding between religious and ethnic majorities and their Muslim, South Asian and Arab counterparts. For A More Perfect Union, his skills were key in organizing a Vaisakhi dinner attended by the University of Richmond principals and in the creation of public service announcements promoting tolerance of Sikh and Muslims in the United States.

Amandeep was nominated for the award by the dean of the law school, who stated, “In my 24 years of law teaching, I can think of no student more deserving of an award bearing Oliver Hill’s name.” The Coalition would like to thank Amandeep for his dedicated contribution and personal commitment to our community. He is truly devoted to the cause of justice for all.

Coalition’s Legal Director Opens Penn Law's Asian-American Law Students Conference

The Coalition’s Legal Director, Amardeep Singh, presented the opening remarks at the 4 th Annual Mid-Atlantic Asian-American Law Students conference at the University of Pennsylvania Law School on February 5, 2005. The conference focused on activism among Asian-American law students and lawyers and provided participants with the opportunity to explore current civil and political issues facing the Asian-American community and the role of Asian-American lawyers in serving community needs. Amardeep also spoke on a panel on Asian-American political participation. The Coalition thanks the Asian-Pacific American Law Students Association at the University of Pennsylvania for organizing an excellent conference and allowing the Coalition to participate.

Coalition Selected For New American Leaders Fellowship Program
On January 28, 2005, the Coalition was selected to join the New American Leaders Fellowship Program . The program, a joint venture of the Coro Leadership Center and the New York Immigration Coalition, is designed to help activists develop the insights, strategies and skills needed to increase immigrant participation in the civic and political life of New York City.

The program includes an opening weekend retreat and eight full-day sessions during which participants spend time with city leaders and develop the skills and strategies necessary to better serve their communities. Program participants include leaders from over 20 immigrant organizations around New York City. The Coalition thanks the Coro Leadership Center and the New York Immigration Coalition for providing it the opportunity to participate in this valuable program.

Coalition Participates in Interfaith Panel at Grace Church School
On January 27, 2005, Gurpreet Singh, a Coalition volunteer, participated in a panel organized by the Grace Church School in New York City. The panel discussed religious privilege and its implications for members of non-Christian faiths in a Christian society. The discussion is part of a larger effort by the school to incorporate discussion of Sikhism during a weekly religion class its students attend. The Coalition wants to thank Gurpreet Singh in his efforts to help educate our local community on Sikhism.

FBI National Recruitment Advertisement Features Sikh Analyst
A new Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) recruitment advertisement features a Sikh intelligence analyst. The advertisement, which features Sunjeet Singh, ran just prior to kickoff of the Superbowl in the Washington, DC Metro area and in New York. The Superbowl is the most-watched television event in the world.

A significant part of the Coalition’s work has been dispelling stereotypes in the public mind with the turban and beard. Sunjeet’s initiative will facilitate publicizing the image of Sikhs in America. The Coalition thanks Sunjeet Singh for his initiative in requesting to be a part of the advertisement. The Coalition also thanks the FBI for creating the advertisement and for its efforts to boost minority recruiting.

To see FBI video clip, please click here.

Featured Sikh Student Association of the Month: Stony Brook University

This month’s featured Sikh Student Association (SSA) is the Sikh Student Association at the State University of New York at Stony Brook. Started during Vaisakhi 2004, the organization has sustained tremendous growth during its first year. There are 15 active members and many other members of many religions and cultures who attend SSA programs. 

The SSA was launched with a "Sikh Awareness Banquet" attended by over 200 members of the university community in which the Coalition’s Legal Director was a key speaker. The group also held a Diversity Day Program last semester in which the members tied turbans on participating students of the Stony Brook community. Dozens of students participated in the Diversity Day program.

This semester, Stony Brook SSA plans to organize langars and another Sikh Awareness Banquet from which all proceeds will benefit tsunami disaster relief charities.  The Coalition commends the Stony Brook SSA for its hard work to promote understanding and respect for diversity in the university community.
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