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  Thank You! With Your Support, We Raised Over $776,000!

  Thank you for making 2013 such a success! You helped us achieve many great victories. Also, with your generous support, we exceeded our goal and raised $776,710! This is a victory for the entire Panth. Pooling our resources and supporting this important work further ensures that Sikhs can and will practice their faith fearlessly. We would like to thank all Sikh Coalition supporters for your tireless commitment to this work and your generous dasvandh.

• Major Kalsi Featured in Time Magazine

  On January 10, 2014, Time Magazine published an article on its website about Major Kamaljeet Singh Kalsi and the Sikh Coalition’s ongoing campaign to expand opportunities for all Sikhs to serve in the U.S. Armed Forces with their articles of faith intact
  
  Click here to read the article.
  
  We are grateful to Time Magazine for creating awareness about this historically significant issue for the Sikh American community.
  
  This campaign can only move forward with grassroots community support, and it is important to let our government know how vitally important this campaign is for the protection of religious liberty in the United States. If you live in the United States, please click here to send a letter to your representatives in the U.S. Congress. In addition, if you believe that all Sikh Americans deserve an equal opportunity to serve in the U.S. military, please click here to sign our petition to President Obama.

• Sikh American Soldier Speaks at Congressional Briefing

  On January 8, 2014, the Sikh Coalition—in partnership with the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty and the law firm McDermott Will & Emery—organized a Congressional briefing to highlight ongoing challenges faced by Sikhs who wish to serve in the U.S. military. Major Kamaljeet Singh Kalsi spoke about his military career and barriers to religious liberty for Sikhs who wish to join the U.S. military.
  
  Click here to watch a video of the entire briefing.
  Click here to watch highlights from the briefing.
  Click here to view photos from the briefing.

• PBS Program Features Sikh Coalition's Military Campaign

  On Friday, January 3, 2014, Senior Religion Fellow Simran Jeet Singh appeared in an interview on the nationally-run PBS program, Religion & Ethics Newsweekly. The program featured a number of leaders from various faith communities and explored the question of the big issues that religious communities will face in America in the new year. Among issues discussed, PBS prominently featured the current efforts to have the U.S. military end its presumptive ban that bars Sikhs from serving with their articles of faith intact.

• Sikh Coalition Presents FlyRights 2.0 at Department of Homeland Security Roundtable

  On December 12, 2013, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) invited the Sikh Coalition to its held its quarterly roundtable community meeting in Manhattan The Sikh Coalition was asked to share FlyRights 2.0, a mobile phone application that enables users to report TSA screening discrimination in real time, as an example of how non-government organizations can engage government agencies and the civil rights process. The Sikh Coalition would like to thank the DHS Community Engagement Team for the opportunity to and its ongoing work with the Sikh community.
  
  To download FlyRights 2.0 please visit the Apple App Store or Google Android Market. Learn more here.

• America's Largest Police Force Continues Training on Sikhi

  The Sikh Coalition was invited back to the New York City Police Academy on December 23, 2013 to train its newest graduating class of police officers for the third year in a row. Over 1,200 New York Police Department (NYPD) recruits were given information about Sikh beliefs including the significance of the turban and the Sikh articles of faith. Special attention was given on how to respectfully interact with Sikhs who wear turbans or kirpans and how to effectively engage with Sikhs in New York City. The presentations lasted ninety minutes each and included a question and answer session as well as a turban tying demonstration.
  
  Click here to see pictures from the presentations.

• Bay Area 5K for the 5Ks and NYC Bowl-a-thon Raise Over $135,000 to Support Sikh Rights

  In 2013, the Sikh Coalition hosted two large-scale community events in support of our work - the Bay Area 5K for the 5Ks and the New York City Bowl-a-thon. Each event provided an opportunity for the community to come together to celebrate the progress of Sikhs in America and commit ourselves to a brighter future for generations to come. Both these events were immensely successful with the Bay Area 5K for the 5Ks raising over $55,000 and the NYC Bowl-a-thon raising over $82,000. Click here to read more.
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  Click here for pictures for the Bay Area 5K for the 5Ks.
  Click here for a video from the Bay Area 5K for the 5Ks.
  Click here for pictures from the NYC Bowl-a-thon.
  Click here for a video for the NYC Bowl-a-thon.

• Sikhi Included in School Curricula and Medical Manual

  Over the past year, the Sikh Coalition’s work to ensure that educational curricula and resources include information on Sikhs and the Sikh experience continued robustly. We are pleased to share three new educational resources that the Sikh Coalition reviewed and for which we submitted Sikh-related content.
  

  • "Let’s Get Real” by Groundspark is a 30- minute film and 130-page curriculum guide meant to combat school bullying
  • “In the Face of Xenophobia: Lessons to Address Bullying of South Asian American Youth” released by South Asian Americans Leading Together (SAALT) in 2013 is a 90- page curriculum guide.
  • The Medical Manual for Religio-Cultural Competence includes an entire chapter devoted to Sikhism and caring for Sikh patients.

  
  Click here to read more.

• Bronx Students Vote Senior Religion Fellow as Local Hero

  On Wednesday, December 18, 2013, Senior Religion Fellow Simran Jeet Singh was honored by students of the Metropolitan Soundview High School and the Illuminated Cities Project with the Goodman-Chaney-Schwerner Award for Values. After completing a unit on heroism and activism and studying some of Simran's work, the Bronx-based students voted him as their local hero and invited him to speak on a panel about leadership, values, and heroism.

• Apply Now! Job Posting: Community Development Manager

  The Sikh Coalition is looking for individuals with a passion for social justice and youth leadership development to become our next Community Development Manager. The ideal candidate will strongly relate to members of the Sikh community, have an outgoing personality, be achievement oriented, gain the trust of community elders and adults and be able to effectively engage various city and state government officials, all with the aim of ultimately empowering the Sikh community to be advocates for their rights.
  
  If you are interested in applying, please look at the full job description and submit your cover letter and resume to jobs@sikhcoalition.org.

• Apply to Be a Legal Fellow Today!

  The Sikh Coalition’s Legal Program is seeking a Legal Fellow (preferably a law school graduate) to serve full-time or part-time from January through June of 2014 at our New York City office.
  
  Click here for a full job description and instructions on how to apply.

• The Sikh Coalition Is Accepting Applications for Spring and Summer Internships

  The Sikh Coalition Internship Program gives students hands-on experience in promoting civil and human rights. Through the years, interns have worked to further the mission and vision of the Sikh Coalition by helping to achieve legal victories, as well as educating and empowering the community and contributing to the growth of the organization. For more information about our internship program, please click here.

In this Issue

• Thank Your for Your Support
• Major Kalsi Featured in Time Magazine
• Sikh American Soldier Speaks at Congressional Briefing
• PBS Features Military Campaign
• FlyRights 2.0 Presented at DHS Roundtable
• NYPD Continues Training on Sikhi
• 5K for the 5Ks and NYC Bowl-a-thon Raise Over $135,000!
• Sikhi Included in School Curricula & Medical Manual
• Bronx Students Vote Senior Religion Fellow as Local Hero
  
• Job Opening: Community Development Manager
• Job Opening: Legal Fellow
• Now Accepting Spring and Summer Internship Applications

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