Sikh Pupil Suspended Over Nose Piercing

[BuddhaDal]

Waheguroo Ji Ka Khalsa, Waheguroo Ji Ki Fateh

http://www.emgonline.co.uk/news.php?news=7914

A 12 year old girl has been suspended at her school in Bountiful, Utah for wearing a nose ring, as the school has a body piercing ban.

Seventh grader Suzannah Pabla, thought that by piercing her nose she was connecting with her roots and her family back home in India. Suzannah's school ultimately suspended her for violating the school dress code and officials argued that she had made a cultural choice and not a religious one. The school of the 12 year old American, did however allow her to wear a clear stud in her nose.

Her father was a born a Sikh, in India and her mother was born a Mormon near Salt Lake City. Suzannah's mother, Shirley Pabla, didn't think it would be "such a big deal." She felt that her daughter was following her heritage and her culture and was proud of her, she didn't expect her to be suspended.

This incident has stirred up controversy with other Indians in America, who believe that this incident is symbolic of how difficult it can be for American people to understand and accept the cultures and traditions of Indian people and other nationalities.

Amardeep Singh, a Sikh who was raised in the United States and works as an English professor, agrees that the nose ring is part of Indian culture and not religious identity, but still feels it is as important for her to express that. Singh, who wears a turban, says he is frequently asked why, and finds this can be a burden at times. "Most people presume I'm an immigrant, a foreigner," he continued.

"As a child of immigrants, you don't often feel fully American. The presumption is that you are somehow foreign to a core American identity. You always feel a little bit of an outsider, even in your own country." There are over 2.5 million people of Indian ancestery who live in the United States, Suzannah has since returned to school.

Anyone care to share their beliefs on this issue? :lol:

[Guest fordcapri]

A nose ring is part of indian culture ???

since when ?

 

[BhForce]

A nose ring is part of indian culture ???

since when ?

Teach this stupid girl a lesson only bulls have nose rings.

Her dad sounds like a thick inbred.

fordcapri, why do you doubt noserings are part of current Indian culture. They are proscribed in the Sikh culture, but they are surely part of the Indian culture. So too are lot of things which we, as Sikhs, may not agree with.

In any case, I don't think this is too big of a deal. It's hard to understand why schools (around the world) seem to want total uniformity in their students. A nosering here, a turban there, a scarf, etc. doesn't really seem to me to be a big deal.

What's really funny is schools that say they're doing this for "safety". For crying out loud, schoolboys used to carry rifles to school daily for shooting class! And now the schoolmarms are worried about noserings and mini-kirpans.

[buddasingh]

One should think very carefully before suggesting cultural or religious grounds to justify an action. A no body piercing policy was in place. She is a grade 7 student who violated the policy.

To do that one should have solid intelligent ground to stand upon in OPENLY DEFYING AND CHALLENGING the EXISTING policy. Nose piercing is currently a very popular fad in NORTH AMERICA and EUROPE. Was this the only way in which she could connect to her indian roots? There would be a thousand ways, why INSIST ON one which violates an existing school policy, and is currently not distinctly an Indian cultural statement.

If she still feels strongly that the policy is wrong, then she should be challenging it not upon Indian cultural grounds, but upon more general grounds of choice of dress within America as that is what it comes down to.

She’s a kid who’s learning so forgivable. But for the Sikh Times to cleverly design the headline to make it appear to be a Sikh issue is cheap and manipulative.