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The Legacy of Bhagat Singh Thind
Inder Singh
He came to the US in 1913, joined
the US Army in 1918 and applied for citizenship which was granted
thrice. He extended the boundaries of his fight for citizenship by
challenging the forces of race and color. Unfortunately, even the
highest US court could not rise above the low level of skin color.
We remember Dr Bhagat Singh Thind at a time when the community has
much to learn to from the ideals he set.
In
the annals of Asians’ struggle for US citizenship, Bhagat Singh
Thind’s fight for citizenship occupies a prominent historical place.
Thind’s citizenship was rescinded four days after it was granted.
Eleven months later, he received his citizenship for the second
time. However, the Immigration and Naturalization Service appealed
to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals which sent Thind’s case to the
next higher court for ruling. Thind valiantly fought his case in the
Supreme Court but the judge revoked his citizenship simply due to
the color of his skin. The verdict in Bhagat Singh’s case, United
States v. Thind ensured that the rights and privileges of
naturalization were reserved for “Whites” only.
Indians in the United States were commonly called “Hindoos”
(“Hindus”) irrespective of their faith. Thind’s nationality was also
referred to as "Hindoo” or “Hindu" in all legal documents and the
media although he was a Sikh by faith and preserved his religious
beliefs and practices by keeping his beard, long hair on his head
and wore turban.
Bhagat Singh came to the US in 1913 to pursue higher education in an
American university. However, on July 22, 1918, he was recruited by
the US Army to fight in World War 1. A few months later, on November
8, 1918, Bhagat Singh, a turban wearing “Hindu”, was promoted to the
rank of an Acting Sergeant. He had not even served for a month in
his new position when the war was declared ended. He received an
“honorable discharge” on 16th of December, 1918, with his character
designated as "excellent". [Rashmi Sharma Singh: Petition for
citizenship filed on September 27, 1935, State of New York].
The
U.S. citizenship conferred many rights and privileges but only “free
white men” were eligible to apply. In the United States, many
anthropologists used Caucasian as a general term for "white.” Indian
nationals from the north of the Indian Sub-Continent were also
considered Caucasian. Thus, several Indians were granted US
citizenship in different states. Thind also applied for citizenship
from the state of Washington in July 1918.
He
received his citizenship certificate on December 9, 1918 wearing
military uniform as he was still serving in the US army. However,
the Immigration and Naturalization Service did not agree with the
district court granting the citizenship. Thind’s citizenship was
revoked in four days, on December 13, 1918, on the grounds that he
was not a “free white man.” Thind was trusted by the US to be a
soldier in the army and had all the rights and privileges like any
“white man.” He was worthy of trust to defend the US but his color
stood in his way for the US to trust him for citizenship.
Thind was disheartened but was not ready to give up. He applied for
citizenship again from the neighboring
state, Oregon on May 6, 1919.
The same Immigration and Naturalization Service official who got Thind’s citizenship revoked first time,
tried to convince the judge
to refuse citizenship to a “Hindoo” from India. He even brought up
 the issue of Thind’s involvement in the Gadar Movement, members of
which campaigned actively for the independence of India from the
British Empire. Judge Wolverton, believing Thind, observed, “He (Thind)
stoutly denies that he was in any way connected with the alleged
propaganda of the Gadar Press to violate the neutrality laws of this
country, or that he was in sympathy with such a course. He frankly
admits, nevertheless, that he is an advocate of the principle of
India for the Indians, and would like to see India rid of British
rule, but not that he favors an armed revolution for the
accomplishment of this purpose.” The judge took all arguments and
Thind’s military record into consideration and declined to agree
with the INS. Thus, Thind received US citizenship for the second
time on November 18, 1920.
The
Immigration and Naturalization Service had included Thind’s
involvement in the Gadar Movement as one of the reasons for the
denial of citizenship to him. Gadar which literally means revolt or
mutiny, was the name of the magazine of Hindustan Association of the
Pacific Coast. The magazine became so popular among Indians, that
the association itself became known as the Gadar party.
The
Hindustan Association of the Pacific Coast was formed in 1913 with
the objective of freeing India from the British rule. The majority
of the supporters and members were from the Punjabi community who
had come to the US for better economic opportunities. They were
unhappy with racial prejudice and discrimination against them.
Indian students, who were welcomed in the universities, also faced
discrimination in finding jobs commensurate with their
qualifications, on graduation. They attributed prejudice, inequity
and unfairness to their being nationals of a subjugated country. Har
Dyal, a faculty member at Stanford University, who had relinquished
his scholarship and studies at Oxford University, England, provided
leadership for the newly formed association and channelized the
pro-Indian, anti-British sentiment of the students for independence
of India.
Soon after the formation of the Gadar party, World War I broke out
in August, 1914. The Germans, who fought against England in the war,
offered the Indian Nationalists (Gadarites) financial aid for arms
and ammunition to enable Indian volunteer fighters to expel the
British from India while the British Indian troops would be busy
fighting war at the front. The Gadarite volunteers, however, did not
succeed in their mission and were taken captives upon reaching
India. Several Gadarites were imprisoned, many for life, and some
were hanged. In the United States too, many Gadarites and Germans
who supported Gadar activities, were prosecuted in the San Francisco
Hindu German Conspiracy Trial (1917-18) and some were convicted for
varying terms of imprisonment for violating the American Neutrality
Laws.
Thind like many other Indian students had joined the Gadar movement
and actively advocated independence of India from the British
Empire. Judge Wolverton granted him citizenship after he was
convinced that Thind was not involved in any “subversive”
activities. The Immigration and Naturalization Service appealed
against the judge’s decision to the next higher court – the Ninth
Circuit Court of Appeals which sent the case to the US Supreme Court
for ruling on the following two questions:
"1.
Is a high caste Hindu of full Indian blood, born at Amrit Sar,
Punjab, India, a white person within the meaning of section 2169,
Revised Statutes?"
"2.
Does the act of February 5, 1917 (39 Stat. L. 875, section 3)
disqualify from naturalization as citizens those Hindus, now barred
by that act, who had lawfully entered the United States prior to the
passage of said act?"
 Section 2169, Revised Statutes, provides that the provisions of the
Naturalization Act “shall apply to aliens, being free white persons,
and to aliens of African nativity and to persons of African
descent.”
In
preparing briefs for the Ninth Circuit Court, Thind’s attorney
argued that the Immigration Act of 1917 barred new immigrants from
India but did not deny citizenship to Indians who were legally
admitted like Thind, prior to the passage of the new law. The
purpose of the Immigration Act was “prospective and not
retroactive.”
Thind’s attorney gave references of previous court cases of some
Indians who were granted citizenship by the lower federal courts
which considered Indians as Caucasians and hence eligible for
citizenship. (U.S. v. Dolla 1910, U.S. v. Balsara 1910, Akhay Kumar
Mozumdar 1913, Mohan Singh, 1919). In 1922, in the case of a
Japanese immigrant, US vs. Ozawa, the highest court, the U.S.
Supreme Court officially equated “white person” with “a person of
the Caucasian race”. Judge Wolverton, in granting citizenship to
Thind, said, “The word “white” ethnologically speaking was intended
to be applied in its popular sense to denote at least the members of
the white or Caucasian race of people.”
Thind was convinced that based on Ozawa's straightforward ruling of
racial specification and many similar previous court cases, he would
win in the fight and his winning will open the doors for all Indians
in the United States to obtain US citizenship. Little did he know
that the color of his skin would become the grounds for denial of
the right of citizenship by the highest court in the US.
Justice George Sutherland of the United States Supreme Court
delivered the unanimous opinion of the court on February 19, 1923,
in which he argued that since the "common man's" definition of
“white” did not correspond to "Caucasian", which Indians were, they
could not be naturalized. Thus the Judge, giving his verdict, said,
“a negative answer must be given to the first question, which
disposes of the case and renders an answer to the second question
unnecessary, and it will be so certified.”
Shockingly, Justice Sutherland, the same judge who had equated
Whites as Caucasians in US vs. Ozawa, pronounced that Thind though
Caucasian, was not “White” and thus was ineligible for US
citizenship. The judge apparently decided the case under the
prevailing pressure by the forces of prejudice, racial hatred and
bigotry, not on the basis of precedent that he had established in a
previous case.
The
Supreme Court verdict shook the faith and trust of many Indians in
the American system of justice. The economic impact for land and
property owning Indians was devastating as they again came under the
jurisdiction of the California Alien Land Law of 1913 which
restricted ownership of land by persons ineligible for citizenship.
Some Indians had to liquidate their land holdings at dramatically
lower prices. America, the dreamland, did not offer the dream they
had come to realize.
Thind's citizenship was revoked and the INS issued a certificate in
1926 canceling his citizenship for a second time. The Immigration
and Naturalization Bureau also initiated proceedings to rescind
American citizenship of Indians and from 1923 to 1926, citizenship
of fifty Indians was revoked. The Barred Zone Act of 1917 had
already prevented fresh immigration of Indians. The continued shadow
of insecurity and instability compelled some to go back to India to
anchor their lives with their families and familiar environment. The
Supreme Court decision further lead to the decline in the number of
Indians to 3130 by 1930. [From India to America; Garry Hess, p 31]
There probably was little sympathy for treating “Hindu Thind”
shabbily but there was a concern for the poor treatment of “US
Veteran Thind.” Thus in 1935, the 74th congress passed a law
allowing citizenship to US Veterans of World War I, even those from
the 'barred zones'. Dr. Thind finally received his U.S. citizenship
through the state of New York in 1936, taking oath for the third
time to become an American citizen. This time, no official of the
INS dared to object or appeal against his naturalization.
Thind had come to the US for higher education and to “fulfill his
destiny as a spiritual teacher.” Long before his arrival in the US
or of any other religious teacher or yogi from India, American
intellectuals had shown keen interest in Indian religious
philosophy. Hindu sacred books
 translated
by the English missionaries had made their way to America and were
the “favorite text” of many members of the Transcendentalists’
society which was started by some American thinkers and
intellectuals who were dissatisfied with spiritual inadequacy of the
Unitarian Church. The society flourished during the period of
1836-1860 in the Boston area and had some prominent and influential
members including author and philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson
(1803-1882), poet Walter Whitman (1819 – 1892), and writer Henry
David Thoreau (1817-62).
Emerson’s writings reflected influence of Indian philosophy. In
1868, Walt Whitman wrote the poem "Passage to India." Henry David
Thoreau had considerable acquaintance of Indian philosophical works.
Bhagat Singh Thind had started delivering lectures in Indian
philosophy and metaphysics.
Thind, during his early life, was influenced by the spiritual
teachings of his father whose “living example left an indelible
blueprint in him.” During his formative years in India, he read the
literary writings of American authors Emerson, Whitman, and Thoreau
and they too had deeply impressed him. After graduating from Khalsa
College, Amritsar, Punjab, and encouraged by his father, he left for
Manila, Philippines where he stayed for a year. He resumed his
journey to his destination and reached Seattle, Washington, on July
4, 1913.
Thind
had gained some understanding of the American mind by interacting
with students and teachers at the university and with common people
by working in lumber mills of Oregon and Washington during summer
vacations to support himself while at UC Berkeley. Thus, his
teaching included the philosophy of many religions and in particular
that contained in Sikh scriptures. During his lectures, discourses
and classes to Christian audience, he frequently quoted Vedas, Guru
Nanak, Kabir, etc. He also made references to the works of Ralph
Waldo Emerson, Walt Whitman, and Henry David Thoreau to which his
American audience could easily relate to. He gave new “vista of
awareness” to his students throughout the United States and was able
to initiate “thousands of disciples” into his expanded view of
reality – “the Inner Life, and the discovery of the power of the
Holy Năm.” He never converted or persuaded any of his students to
become Hindu or Sikh but generously shared India’s mystical,
spiritual and philosophical treasures with them.
Thind
who had earned a Ph.D, became a prolific writer and was respected as
“spiritual guide.” He published many pamphlets and books and reached
“an audience of at least five million.” The list of his books
include Radiant Road to Reality, Science of Union with God , The
Pearl of Greatest Price, House of Happiness, Jesus, The Christ: In
the Light of Spiritual Science (Vol. I, II, III), The Enlightened
Life, Tested Universal Science of Individual Meditation in Sikh
Religion, Divine Wisdom in three volumes. [www.Bhagatsinghthind.com]
Thind
was working on some books when suddenly he died on September 15,
1967. He was born on October 3, 1892, thousands of miles away in the
village of Taragarh, tehsil Jandiala, district Amritsar, in the
state of Punjab, India. He was survived by his wife, Vivian, whom he
had married in March, 1940, daughter, Rosalind and son, David, to
whom several of his books are dedicated.
Thind never established a temple, Gurdwara or a center for his
followers but lived for a long time in the hearts of his numerous
followers. David Thind, long after his father’s death, has
established a website www.Bhagatsinghthind.com to propagate the
philosophy for which Dr. Bhagat Singh Thind spent his entire life in
the US. He has also posthumously published two of his father’s
books, Troubled Mind in a Torturing World and their Conquest, and
Winners and Whiners in this Whirling World and is working on some
others.
Thind extended the boundaries of his fight by challenging the forces
of race and color. Unfortunately, even the highest US court could
not rise above the low level of skin color.
Inder
Singh is chairman of Indian American Heritage Foundation, president
of Global Organization of People of Indian Origin (GOPIO
International), former president of NFIA and founder president of
FIA of Southern California
25 April,
2007
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