July 19, 2023 (Washington, DC) – Today, the Sikh Coalition is unveiling the third edition of our flagship policy guide: Combating Bias, Bigotry, and Backlash: Sikh American Civil Rights Policy Priorities.
As exemplified by a wide range of federal advocacy work this year—from holding Customs and Border Protection accountable on Sikh migrants to assessing new Department of Justice policies to high-level engagement around Prime Minister Modi’s state visit—the Sikh Coalition continues to engage the federal executive and legislative branches to ensure Sikh civil rights issues are at the forefront of our national conversation. Sikh American Policy Priorities drills down on core areas of the Sikh Coalition’s work, including hate crimes, employment discrimination, safe and inclusive schools, and profiling, as well as offering insights in other essential areas like efforts to counter white supremacy, reform policing policies, ensure humane immigration policies, and fight for religious freedom and democracy itself both at home and abroad.
“This update to Sikh American Policy Priorities reflects many of our key victories and engagements over the past year, while also identifying new and specific recommendations that we are pushing elected lawmakers and appointed officials to implement,” said Sim J. Singh Attariwala, Sikh Coalition Senior Manager of Policy and Advocacy.“It remains essential that Sikh voices are involved in conversations to address these issues at the highest levels of government, and this document is our path to ensuring accountability and the necessary progress.”
Sikh American Policy Priorities was first unveiled in 2020 as part of the Sikh Coalition’s efforts to ensure that the nationwide sangat’s perspective was well-represented on key challenges in the 2020 election. Since then, it has served as an essential blueprint for our congressional and executive branch engagement on the core civil rights areas in which our organization has more than two decades of experience and expertise. The Sikh Coalition continues this engagement at the federal level, while simultaneously undertaking advocacy around hate crimes, inclusive education, and more alongside sangats in different states across the nation.
As a final note, the Sikh Coalition believes that all Sikh Americans deserve to have their voices heard in matters of politics and governance, and we continue to push for policies and reforms enacted with transparency and accountability. As a non-partisan, non-profit organization, all of our work is being done in support of broader Sikh American civic engagement, and not for the benefit of any candidate, elected official, or political party.
As always, the Sikh Coalition urges you to practice your faith fearlessly.