Dear Supporter 2

The Coalition and Gurdwara Leaders Launch the Sikh Civil Rights Agenda for New Jersey

Waheguru ji ka Khalsa, Waheguru ji ke Fateh

As we reflect back upon 2003, the Sikh panth (community) and the Sikh Coalition can look back at a long list of important accomplishments. The student allowed to register for classes with his Sikh saroop (physical identity), the young Sikh allowed to eat dinner in a restaurant while wearing his turban, the thousands of police and bias officers trained to recognize the unique aspects of the Sikh faith, the Sikh prevented from being deported and potentially tortured, the struggle to force New York City to allow Sikhs to protect and serve the community as police officers – all of these, and many similar accounts, represent the collective growth of Sikhs in North America.

We would like to thank all of the people and organizations that supported our work in 2003. Our community’s achievements would not be possible without your moral and financial support, your words of encouragement, your willingness to volunteer, or your wise counsel. We sincerely thank you.

Yet still, even with all of this, this past year’s accomplishments only demonstrate the beginning of all that we could achieve. As Nelson Mandela dramatically described in his speech, we must let the light of the Sikh people shine through to the entire world. It is not too much to dream of a world where no Sikh child is bullied; our saroop is recognized and respected as the proud identity of a distinct religious group; our friends and family are free from name calling, insults or violence driven by prejudice; government agencies support and encourage the rights of Sikhs; and no member of society can claim ignorance of who a Sikh is and what values we hold dear. Together, we can achieve these goals.

In addition to serving a long list of individuals, the Coalition achieved several major milestones in 2003:

Organizing a nationwide Sikh Women’s Empowerment Conference at Columbia University
Receiving the James Park Morton Interfaith Tribute Award from the Interfaith Center of New York. Other recipients included Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Nina and Daniel Libeskind, and Ayisha Al-Adawiya.
Releasing a state Sikh Civil Rights Agenda. Initially launched in New Jersey, this landmark event represents the first formal Sikh civil rights agenda ever launched within a state.

The 2003 annual report describes these, and many other, major accomplishments of the Coalition. We wish to let our supporters see what your help enables us to accomplish. We thank you and look forward to continuing our partnership as we collectively work for the chardi kala of all people.