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California School Curriculum & Sikhism
WSN Network

SACRAMENTO: Most Americans do not know that practically every one who wears a turban in the USA is a Sikh and that Sikhs are neither Hindus nor Muslims.  This is so because school textbooks include hardly anything about the Sikhs, owing to the fact hat the History-Social Science Curriculum Framework does not include the word “Sikh” or its derivatives, although Sikhs have been in California for well over a century. For the last few years, efforts have been afoot to rectify the situation. Last Friday, a milestone was reached. 

The History-Social Science Curriculum Framework & Evaluation Criteria Evaluation Committee of California Department of Education held its fifth and final monthly meeting at Sacramento. During the process, a large number of Sikhs made public comments. Others submitted written comments. Some of them woke up at 3 A.M. and drove up to 450 km. to make their comments at the meetings in Sacramento. Some non-Sikhs (Prof. Brodd of CSUS & Mrs. Taylor, who developed a World Religions course in Modesto City Schools District) supported the Sikh request for teaching about Sikhism.   

The Committee painstakingly examined the narrative portion of the Curriculum Framework and revised the Course Descriptions thoroughly. The final draft of the Course Description now includes Sikhism in the ninth grade elective, Survey of World Religions. Besides, it includes references to the following: Boy with Long Hair by Pushpinder Singh; Dalip Singh Saund (the first Asian American to be elected to the United States Congress); Shri Guru Nanak; United States vs. Bhagat Singh Thind (1923), which denied him citizenship; and Cheema vs. Thompson (Freedom of Religion).   

This pleasant development is the result of untiring efforts of Dr Onkar Singh Bindra of Sacramento since 2007, and the active support of the Sikh Coalition, the Sikh Council of Central California, Stockton & Sacramento Gurdwaras, and many Sikh activists from the San Francisco Bay Area, Tracy, Fremont, Fresno, Madera, San Jose and Sacramento. It included Sikh students, parents, teachers and University Professors.   

10 June  2009
 

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