the school bus by other kids. One young girl points at him and chants “Terrorist! Terrorist!”

This event, and the video’s spread online, serves to illustrate the general ignorance

of Sikhism. So who are the Sikhs?

The Sikhs are a people from Northern India, who subscribe to the dictations of 10 important

Gurus. Their philosophy is encapsulated in the Guru Granth Sahib , which is the holy

book of Sikhism. In general: Sikhs believe in one god, equality among all, freedom of

religion and community service. The Sikh religion is independent from the other major monotheistic

religions, as well as Buddhism and Hinduism.

Sikhs are well known for a few distinct physical attributes. Men usually wear a specific type

of turban called a Dastaar. And both men and women often wear a steel or iron bracelet

called a Kara. A Sikh’s uncut hair and the bracelet are two of five articles of faith

that they are expected to wear at all times. The other articles include a wooden comb,

cotton undergarments and a stylized dagger. These five articles symbolize a Sikh’s commitment

to their faith.

Sikhism originated in the 15th century in the Punjab (pun-jab) region of what is now

northern Pakistan and India. Following the independence of the south asian colonies from

Britain in 1947, Punjab was split between Pakistan and India. This caused civil unrest

and violence for a long time, although tensions have cooled since the ‘90s. The most holy

Sikh gurdwara (goo-roo-dwa-RA), or place of worship, is the Golden Temple in India.

The Pew Research Center reports that Sikhism is the fifth largest religion worldwide, and

there are about 25 million adherents. The religion is considered the 5th largest internationally.

Nine out of ten Sikhs reportedly live in India, but there are large communities abroad, especially

in the UK, the US, and Canada.

In the video from the beginning, the original upload by the young Sikh boy included a description

saying, (quote) “Kids being racist to me and calling me an Afghani terrorist… If

u don’t know I’m not Muslim I’m Sikh” (end quote). Since the September 11th attacks,

there have been an increased number of hate crimes against Sikhs. Many people still don’t

know just how vastly different their religion is compared to Islamic extremism.

If you haven’t caught on to our new show Seeker yet, make sure you check out this video

about a single tiny village in India that is known for producing the best nightclub

bouncers

in New Delhi. You can click the link in the description to see that full video, and make

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