Legal Center

Sikhs and Turban Searches

October 1, 2002

VIA FACSIMILE (202) 307-2995
Christopher Erlewine, Esq.
Department of Justice
Federal Bureau of Prisons
320 First Street, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20534
Dear Mr Erlewine:

I represent The Sikh Coalition which seeks to safeguard the civil and human rights of all citizens as well as to promote the Sikh identity and communicate the collective interests of Sikhs to civil society.

My office was made aware of an egregious act of intolerance where Ravinder Singh Bhalla, a Sikh attorney, was barred from visiting his client at Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC), a federal prison in Brooklyn, NY, on September 10, 2002. After checking into the prison, Mr Bhalla went through a metal detector. After clearing the metal detector, the prison officials told him to remove his turban for a security search. The Sikh turban is a religiously mandated article of faith; its removal is tantamount to removal of one's underwear in public. As today's The New York Times article, "Learning the Etiquette of Patting Down Passengers," states:

"In a classroom session opened up briefly for visiting reporters, Rebecca Berry, a temporary instructor brought in by Lockheed Martin, a contractor, instructed screeners on the meaning of the terms bias, prejudice, stereotyping and discrimination. She told them that the Sikh religion is one of the world's largest, and that adherents wear turbans, and that removing them in public is a form of humiliation." (The New York Times, Matthew L. Wald , October 1, 2002)

The above interaction at Federal Aviation Administration's training academy illustrates the sensitivity and respect for other religions imparted by Transportation Security Administration (TSA) in its training, which was wholly lacking in the conduct of Federal Bureau of Prisons' employees. Because of extreme intolerance and lack of education of Sikh beliefs, your employees, particularly Warden Michael Zenk of the MDC, have prevented Mr Bhalla from discharging his duties of an attorney. His client sits in jail without proper representation, impacting his Sixth Amendment right to counsel.

Sikhs across the nation have been writing to The Sikh Coalition, which maintains a public database of bias incidents, concerning the resolution of this matter. We would like to amicably resolve this matter in an expeditious fashion. Please contact me directly to setup a meeting. I would be appreciative of your prompt attention towards this matter.

Sincerely,

Harpreet Singh
Director, Office of Community Relations
The Sikh Coalition

Cc: Jeff Toenges, Esq.
Dominique Raia, Esq.
Ravinder Singh Bhalla, Esq.