LOS ANGELES – More than 10,000 Sikhs celebrated Baisakhi in Los Angeles last week, and used the occasion to educate the public about the Sikh identity.

On a beautiful spring Sunday, April 8, Sikhs from the western United States gathered at the Los Angeles Convention center to celebrate the 308th anniversary of the birth of the Khalsa.

This year, the community honored dignitaries from California who had given exceptional support to the Sikh community. They included Congressman Brad Sherman, Democrat, who is co-authoring legislation that would categorize hate crimes as a separate crime category. “When vandalism occurs as part of an attack on an entire community, it needs a different punishment,” he said. “Hate crimes are the result of bigotry combined with ignorance.”

The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department was honored for continuing to lead the nation in employing bearded and turbaned Sikh men on the police force. “We cannot tolerate any hate,” said Police Chief Jimmy McDonald. “If any one of us are not free, none of us are free.”

For the Sikhs, Baisakhi is the most important celebration of the year. It commemorates the day in 1699 when the tenth teacher, Guru Gobind Singh, initiated the order of the Khalsa. Founded on equality, the Khalsa live a life of meditation and service to others, with a duty to defend the defenseless.

On that day in 1699, Guru Gobind Singh codified the form that Sikhs wear today – uncut hair, the flowing beards (for men) and the turban.

Since September 11th, however, the identity of beards and turbans has come under attack. Images in the media depict bearded and turbaned men as terrorists. The Khalsa image, which symbolizes freedom and dignity, has been misunderstood by the public.

The Baisakhi celebration began at 8 a.m. with two hours of children’s kirtan (sacred Sikh devotional music). Children’s jethas came from all over southern California to participate.

Afterwards, ragi jethas from all the local gurdwaras played kirtan. The featured ragis included Pritpal Singh and jetha from Espanola, New Mexico; Bhai Gurvinder Singh; and Bhai Gurdeep Singh, Kashmir wale.

Langar was served to the enormous crowd throughout the day.

The program ended with a two-hour colorful parade through the heart of downtown Los Angeles. The 15 hand-made Sikh-themed floats are a favorite tradition and were used to help educate the Los Angeles community about the Sikh identity.

During the program, Sikh Dharma International and the Sikh community of Southern California also honored Sikh organizations within the United States who are actively protecting and promoting the Sikh identity with the ‘Spirit of Baisakhi Award’.

Those honored were Jasjit Kaur of the Sikh Coalition; Kavneet Singh, managing director of the Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund (SALDEF); Gurumustuk Singh, webmaster of SikhNet.com; United Sikhs; and the Sikh Council on Religion and Education.

These organizations were recognized for their outstanding work in protecting the rights of Sikhs, educating the wider community about Sikhs, inspiring the youth, serving during natural disasters and creating positive interfaith connections.

Sikh Dharma International’s Bibi Inderjit Kaur and Guru Amrit Kaur received honors for their work in continuing the mission of the late Yogi Harbhajan Singh.

This Sikh Baisakhi celebration in Los Angeles began in the 1980’s through the inspiration of the Yogi Harbhajan Singh who passed away on October 6, 2004. He brought the message of the Sikh Gurus from India to every continent and culture. Through his teachings and personal touch, hundreds of thousands of people around the world have embraced the Sikh faith. Bibi Inderjit Kaur is the Yogi Harbhajan Singh’s widow.

The event was a combined effort of many different organizations. Sikh Dharma organized the kirtan program in cooperation with all of southern California Gurdwaras.

HONOREES

Other dignitaries who received Baisakhi honors included: Dr. Judy Chu, Vice Chair of the California State Board of Equalization; Rev. Leonard Jackson, representing the Los Angeles mayor’s office who brought a special proclamation from Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa for Baisakhi; Harry Sidhu, city councilman for the city of Anaheim who is running for state senate in California; and representatives from the Los Angeles City and County law enforcement agencies, including James Lopez from the County Sheriff’s Department.

Other honorees included Willie Jordon, President of the Fred Jordon Mission. The Fred Jordon Mission reaches out to homeless men, women and children in the heart of Los Angeles. On Saturday, April 7th, the Sikh community of southern California participated with the Fred Jordon Mission in a special Easter Celebration on Skid Row. The Sikh community handed out one thousand Subway sandwiches to the homeless. This Sikh service was organized by Surinder Singh, Mukhtiar Singh, Darshan Dhillon, and Gary Grewal.


Note: Report by Ek Ong Kaar Kaur.
Top photo by Gurumustuk Singh.