What lessons can British/European Sikhs learn from the hate violence documented in the film which highlights the backlash on American Sikhs, Arabs and others post 9/11?

 Saturday the 29th of Nov 08 saw the first public screening, of Divided We Fall – Americans in the Aftermath in London, an award winning documentary made by Valarie Kaur and Sharut Raju. This was organised by the Network of Sikh organisations Media Monitoring Group and in partnership with the Metropolitan Police Sikh Association, Panjab Radio as well as the Committee at Central Gurdwara Shepards Bush, London. The screening was followed by a debate with some well known panellists in the community, including Palbinder Singh, General Secretary of the MPSA , Kanwaljit Kaur from the NSO and Jasvir Singh Khalsa a popular presenter from Panjab Radio.

The event was unprecedented in that it also coincided with the tercentenary celebrations of the inauguration of Sri Guru Granth Sahib as Guru as well as the centenary celebrations of the founding of Shepards Bush Gurdwara, the first Gurdwara built in Europe and that which featured in the hit movie ‘Bend it like Beckham’.

 The hate crimes documented by the filmmakers ranged from verbal assault, beatings, stabbings, right through to cold blooded murder as seen with the tragic deathof Balbir Singh Sodhi, a Mesa, Arizona Gas station owner, murdered by someone calling himself a patriot. Sodhi was killed because his murderer thought he was an Arab due to his turban and beard, ironically symbols of his Sikh identity.

 Was this extreme backlash and mistaken identity exclusively an American Phenomenon? Have British Sikhs also felt the unrelenting backlash of arguably the two biggest terrorist atrocities in Western civilisation has faced in modern times, namely 9/11 and 7/7? The panellists provided their view on global events which have propelled us into what was forecast many years ago by Samuel Huntington, the Geo-politician and author of ‘Clash of Civilizations and the remaking of world order’.

 “This is mainly a Western Hemisphere problem the repercussion against Sikhs is born in the west. The Sikh crown or turban is being confused as a feature of the Mohamedens or Islamists, This is the first times Sikhs have been suffering from Islamophobia, when a bigot wants a revenge attack he does not go to an encyclopaedia to identify a Muslim or a non Muslim. We do not want Sikhs or Muslims to be attacked. These bigots, who attack innocent people need to enrol into the army, fly out to Afghanistan where they can engage with the real enemy.” Said Palbinder Singh, General Secretary of the Metropolitan Police Sikh Association.

 “Problems facing British Sikhs are not as severe, there are historical reasons for that as well as, British citizens are more educated than their American counterparts.” He added.

 The post film discussion led us down the arena of a mantra which helped support a victory in a general election many years ago for the labour party, ‘Education, education, education’. Have Sikhs in Britain educated others about their faith enough? the jury is still out on this, surely some of the responsibility of the ‘Bin Laden’  abuse thrown at Sikhs in the Al-Qaeda age lies with the Sikh community. Certainly one thing is for sure that bigots who have the grey matter akin to the contents of a compost heap, would not benefit from reading about Sikhism and it’s differences from Islam, Christianity and Hinduism, assuming they can read in the first place.

 “Identity is one thing you cannot hide, ours is the turban and beard. Smoking is banned by Sikhs for example, 90% of the world cut their hair, but Sikhs don’t cut their hair.” Said Jasvir Singh a presenter from Panjab Radio

 “I remember as a child there was a book about fill in the gaps and the gap was that Sikhs don’t cut their Hair. The child has to fill cut & the other gap the Sikhs do not smoke. As a Sikh it is a moral duty to let people know that the turban is a crown to the Sikhs. If we do not understand and respect this then nobody is going to accept us.” He added

One of the other important themes raised by the audience was the importance of the media in facilitating the gap in understanding, clearly present in Britain and in particular the US about the Sikh Faith. The power of television, the internet, radio, broadsheets and magazines should not be underestimated. Observations were made about the lack of dedicated Sikh media resources available globally, not through lack of funding however through the will to commit to providing a dedicated equivalent to lets say Al-Jazeera. There has been in recent years a mushrooming of Panjabi Radio stations along with a few satellite television channels, some of whom dedicate some time to the religion and prayer, however as commented on by one of the audience members, ‘We do not need to preach to the converted’.

 The audience was invariably captivated by Valarie’s documentary and the feedback afterwards was overwhelmingly positive. There was a sense that the community should have really had the opportunity to see this film sooner and that it should in essence be shown as far and wide to the UK public as possible.

 “Valarie Kaur's documentary is a triumph of the human thirst for knowledge and understanding.  Unlike most of us she did not sit idly by and watch the events of her time unfold on television but became part of them.  I applaud her sentiments and her courage in making this historic film.  She has recorded the otherwise untold stories of woe suffered by innocent, law-abiding American Sikhs in the wake of the terrible events of 9/11.  Sikhs are frontrunners when it comes to making history but not so when recording it.  The future is bright in this regard with innovative and inspirational youngsters such as Valarie, whose insight is highly impressive for one so young.  Congratulations!”  said Tejinder Singh a property consultant from London

 “I must congratulate  the Network of Sikh Organisations for organising this event.  Not only did they bring this excellent documentary to an audience who otherwise might never have seen it but they also began a discussion that is very necessary for Sikhs in the UK and globally at this time in history.  Never in the modern age has religion, and the difference between faiths, been so apparent and so present in the minds of the general population.  We are fortunate in this country that the average person is much more aware of the difference between Sikhs and Muslims than they are in the USA so we have not seen the same suffering as experienced there.  However, it is imperative that Sikhs use the media to show this country and the world who they are and all the excellent contributions they have made and are making in all areas of life.  This event is an excellent first step towards making that happen.  Keep up the good work!” He added

 The event was the start of a much needed dialogue in light of the fissures created in multicultural Britain by Global Terror; this has caused much division and fragmentation of society, propagating mistrust of anyone who looks remotely different. This divisive nature of terror has been more recently exacerbated here in Britain, by the failed liquid bomb plot and the Glasgow airport terrorist outrage, resulting in high profile trials in the Old Bailey. The realisation however is that much more dialogue and education is required by all faith groups, as on the same week we celebrated the first public screening of Divided We Fall – Americans in the Aftermath in London, an airline pilot in Sacramento California, from US airways refused to fly a plane unless three turbaned Sikhs left the flight, they were literally kicked off the flight. The reality is that the battle for the Sikh identity is here and now, it is forever etched in the annals of history, soaked with the lifeblood of many martyrs throughout; an unparallel history which Sikhs have in many instances, yet failed to inspire the western world with.

 Hardeep Singh

Secretary, Media monitoring Group,

The Network of Sikh Organisations UK

 Please see video feedback from the audience.................