This petition will be presented at the virtual California Department of Education meeting in May, and it is critical that as many Sikhs as possible speak up to make our voices heard before it is delivered. Additionally, the Sikh Coalition and the Jakara Movement are working to prepare several California sevadaars to give public comment regarding the importance of Sikhism’s inclusion at this meeting.
“Sikhs have played an underrecognized driving force in the legal, social, political, and economic history of the United States for more than 100 years,” said Sikh Coalition Executive Director Satjeet Kaur and Jakara Movement Executive Director Naindeep Singh in a joint statement. “That story started with the first Sikh immigrants arriving in California, and it continues today with sangats across the state leading the way on COVID-19-related seva in their communities. As education authorities work to determine how California’s diversity will be reflected through curriculums in the classroom, now is the moment to fight for our history to be taught.”
At the end of last month, the Sikh Coalition and the Jakara Movement
delivered a letter to state education authorities signed by 52 different gurdwaras across the state of California. In this letter, the gurdwaras expressed their support of the two organizations’ suggestions regarding ways to incorporate the contributions of Sikhs into the new Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum.
As a reminder, the new curriculum will not be finalized until March of 2021. State education authorities are, however, expected to release a revised draft before then, incorporating any recommendations and engaging in further outreach and public input. The Sikh Coalition and the Jakara Movement will continue to monitor these developments closely and call for further public action as needed.
As always, the Sikh Coalition urges you to practice your faith fearlessly.
