Sikh identity and understanding in wester media

[Whatdoiknow]

Caveat: this is a broad observation and being framed on an anecdotal basis

I'm finding in North American western media, there does not appear to be very much mention of Sikhi among the world's largest religions whenever a discussion of religious relativity occurs (ex. comparative stats for religions, interfaith discussions etc.)

I always see a reference to Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Judaism, Buddhism, however very little mention of Sikhi amongst the grouping of major world religions.

I find it concerning as Sikhi is visibly distinct, there are many Sikh-related issues which can be addressed with greater awareness and understanding such as the constant wave of disproportional hate crimes targeted at Sikhs for their visibly different appearance. Sure there the mention of the occasional 'langar', however i don't think there's much time allocated to explain the context and history behind the practice of Sikhs providing 'langar' and how it connects to the broader ideals of Sikhi.

This is not to say there have not been campaigns to educate and inform western media about Sikhs by many Sikh organizations doing great work. A great example is the recent PBS documentary about Guru Nanak Dev Ji - https://gurunanakfilm.com/ which was aired on local PBS stations across the US)

It just makes me wonder though if the disregard is intentional or due to a lack of awareness of Sikhi or perhaps a conflation of Sikhi as some part of Snatan Dharma (which I imagine is viewed as what is called Hinduism')?

There has been a sustained anti-Sikh campaign by many powers that be over history (with a live campaign in India and Pakistan to distort and downplay Sikh history in history textbooks for example), and historical evidence of attempts to dissolve Sikhi or assume it as part of a larger group (ex. Hinduism). So it wouldn't surprise me if the truth is a mix of ignorance and what many would call 'conspiracy'.

This being said, in this age of equity/diversity/inclusion, there's a real opportunity to seize the openness and invitation to the table to present the Sikh identify, and bring greater awareness to it to counter any narrative which is misrepresenting it.

[Whatdoiknow]

For example - in the spirit of equity/diversity/inclusion, companies are sending announcements and social media posts to include the celebration of Ramadan this year with Easter. However where is the mention of Vaisakhi? And if there is a mention of Vaisakhi, what you see is 'the harvest festival', the 'Sikh new year', and no mention of the birth of the Khalsa...? It starts at home though for sure, because there are a lot of 'Sikh' who don't know their own history, and can't articulate it to others as a result.

A first easy step is to equip all 'Sikhs' or those who may not call themselves Sikh, however still attend Gurudwara, with the understanding of the significance of Sikh tenets, history and ideals.

It wouldn't be hard to fold in a couple of sentences at any Gurudwara program. I usually see some people making speeches and announcements at some point with the larger congregation.

Why not just put up a couple of slides (for the Gurudwara with projectors), or speak to it (in both Punjabi and English or whichever is the native language of the place you are in), and make it interactive and a quick fact.

If this could be implemented on a broad basis, just imagine how informed and inspired many people in the congregation could be, and the parting message could be those people, please don't keep this knowledge to yourself. Share it and spread awareness where and when possible. (not to say everyone will be comfortable doing this) Some grass movement to claim and communicate could go a long way.

[Whatdoiknow]

Was reflecting more on this - and it seems that there are so many minor things that as a collective minority could be done to bring awareness and understanding to Sikhi.  Knowledge is power. Spreading that knowledge in a consistent way, keeps the script in check.   One doesn't need to be visibly Sikh to be charged as an 'ambassador' for Sikhi, however if all the sehajdari Sikhs felt empowered to communicate and educate, or even passively correct misperceptions when they arise amongst the general public, we will have informal controls to set the narrative for Sikhi in the eyes of non-Sikhs.  The sad thing is our own people are not aware themselves, and culturally are passive when it comes to bringing awareness to tenets of Sikhi.  No one is saying go proselytize and claim supremacy like a lot of abrahamic faiths do - however why not claim the set and project that when appropriate and necessary?  I found through personal experience, that people will fly the flag of punjabiyaat and the related vices which are associated with it (party people, strong and big physique etc.) as opposed to championing the amazing blessing by association punjabiyaat gets by way of Sikhi.  

[SinghPunjabSingh]

Great posts Ji + I am in full agreement with everything you say.

We as Sikhs need to ditch this pathetic concept of Punjabiyat.

Sikhi + the Punjabi language are all Punjabi Sikhs need. 

The reason the Harvest Festival nonsense is promoted over Vaisakhi (Khalsa Sajna Diwas) is that the opponents of Sikhi are scared of the 1.4 Billion Indian population realising that our Panj Piare from Gujarat, Karnataka, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, Sialkot standing up in 1699 was the most revolutionary and incredible instance of the oppressed standing up in the land of India from day one through the indisputable Truth of Sikhi.

 

 

[MisterrSingh]

On 5/12/2022 at 9:39 AM, Whatdoiknow said:

I found through personal experience, that people will fly the flag of punjabiyaat and the related vices which are associated with it (party people, strong and big physique etc.) as opposed to championing the amazing blessing by association punjabiyaat gets by way of Sikhi.  

Nothing wrong with having a strong and well-built physique. Not all of us have the physical build of money-lenders and merchants. You can't positively-discriminate certain physical characteristics out of a people who identify with a particular religion. If that's what a particular faction ACTUALLY desires, then come out and state it unequivocally, "We don't want this tribe in this religion."