The population of Sikhs in USA is between 200,000 and 500,000. Sikh community in the USA has contributed in various sectors and has a history of peaceful coexistence of more than 150 years.
Earlier this month a Sikh man in UK was asked to leave the
overnight camping queue for Wimbledon’s centre court because he was ‘making other people feel uncomfortable’. This shows how Sikh community is misunderstood in western countries.
In USA since 9/11 after each terrorist attack there has been a rise in prejudice and violence against Sikhs. This is the reason Sikhs in the US state of California have raised a record USD 400,000 for a national media campaign to generate awareness among Americans about their religion in the backdrop of increasing hate crimes against the community.
“This is a historic moment in the history of the Sikh community in America. Never before have we had the opportunity to tell our story to our fellow Americans around the country and that time has come now,” said Kaval Kaur, national charter member of NSC and host of the event.
This awareness campaign is getting supported by leading Silicon Valley IT professionals, Medical doctors, owners of trucking companies and officials of all Gurdwaras in the area.
Rajwant Singh, co-founder of National Sikh Campaign, who presented the overview of the campaign and appealed to the audience to donate for the cause said, “We, Sikhs, need to change the narrative and present the correct image of who we are, showcasing how we are totally integrated in the American society and not only as victims.”
National Sikh Campaign has engaged AKPD Message and Media which is an American political and media consulting firm to develop 30-second ads on Sikhs to run on TV media and social media nationally.
