Sikhism in Canada
Encyclopedia
Canadian Sikhs are the largest religious group among Indo-Canadians. According to the 2001 census there are 278,410 Sikhs in Canada
. However, in 2004 the true number was revealed to be closer to 400,000.
In the 1890s and early 1900s up to about 1950-1960, all immigrants from India were indiscriminately called "hindoo" or "hindu" regardless of religious affiliation. The term "hindoo" was also sometimes used in a derogatory sense for anyone from that continent, despite over 98 % of South Asians at the time being Sikhs.
. Sikhs were one of the few Asian
immigrant communities who were loyal members of the British Empire. Sikhs found employment in laying the tracks of the Canadian Pacific Railway, in lumber mills and mines. Though they earned less than white workers, they made enough money to send to India and get relatives to immigrate to Canada. The first Sikh pioneers came to the Abbotsford
area in 1905 and originally worked on farms and in the lumber
industry.
By 1906, there were 1500 Sikh workers living in Canada. However, due to the large numbers of Japanese and Chinese Canadians, white workers were enraged at these immigrants, but their ill-will went toward the Sikhs since they had a distinct appearance through their beards and turbans. In 1907, Buckam Singh came to British Columbia from Punjab at the age of fourteen. Due to racism, all South Asians were known as Hindus, despite over 98 % of immigrants being Sikh. 90 % of these Sikhs lived in British Columbia. While Canadian politicians, missionaries, unions and the press did not want Asian labour, British Columbia
industrialists were short of labour and thus Sikhs were able to get an early foothold at the turn of the century in British Columbia. Of the nearly 5,000 East Indians in Canada by 1907, most of the Sikhs were retired British army veterans.
To further racism against the Sikhs, Punjabis were accused of having a caste system, an idea that goes against the foundations of Sikhism; they were accused of being riddled with trachoma and of being unclean in general. To enforce these racist comments, a song called White Canada Forever was created. This all eventually led to a boat of Sikhs landing in Vancouver being sent to Victoria. Punjabis avoided being in the Anti-Oriental Riots of 1907 by staying indoors. Sikh racism caused many troubles for the Canadian Government, as Punjabis were the most loyal soldiers that were British subjects from their Asian and African colonies. From 1907, enforcements were used to check immigration and prohibit Sikh employment. Due to these acts being illegal, all Indian immigration to Canada stopped. The Canadian Prime Minister, Sir Wilfred Laurier claimed that Indians were unsuited to live in Canadian climate. In a letter to the viceroy, Lord Minto, Sir Wilfred changed this opinion on the Sikhs and stated that the Chinese were the least adaptable to Canadian ways and that Sikhs, called Hindus due to racism, were the most adaptable. Nevertheless, 1072 Sikhs left for California in the year of 1907. It was also in the year of 1907, when the Khalsa Diwan society was organized in Vancouver with branches in Abbotsford, New Westminister, Fraser Mills
, Duncan Coombs and Ocean Falls.
In 1908, Indians were then politely asked by the Canadian Government to temporarily leave Canada and settle British Honduras
; as they had thought that the "Mexican" climate would better suit Indians. A Sikh delegate was sent to what is now Belize
and stayed in the British colony for some time before returning, upon his return, he told not only Sikhs, but other Indian religious groups, to decline, as the conditions were not suitable for Punjabis, but rather South Indians. In the year of 1908, 1710 Sikhs left British Columbia for California. The first plans to build a temple were made in 1908. After a property situated on a hill was acquired the settlers carried lumber from a local mill on their backs up a hill to construct a gurdwara
.
McKenzie King (not yet the Canadian Prime Minister) visited London
and Calcutta to show the Canadian view on Indian immigration. As a result, the Indian Government stopped advertising facilities and employment opportunities in North America. This invoked the provisions of Emmigration act of 1883 which stopped Sikhs from leaving Canada. The Canadian Government passed two laws, in one, an immigrant had to have 200 dollars, far more than the previous 20 dollars; the other authorized the Minister of the Interior to prohibit entry into Canada, unless they came from their birth-country by continuous journey and through tickets purchased before leaving the country of their birth or citizenship. These laws were directed at Punjabi's and their population, which stood over 5000 in 1911, dropped down to little over 25000.
The immigration act of 1910 came into scrutiny when a party of 39 Indians, Sikh majority, rode a Japanese vessel, the Panama Maru, and succeeded in obtaining habus corpus against the immigration departments order of deportation. The Canadian Government then passed a law that was to keep laborours and artisans, skilled and unskilled, out of Canada by preventing them from landing at any dock in British Columbia. As Canadian immigration became stricter, more Indians, Sikh majority, went South to the United States of America. The Gur Sikh Temple opened on February 26, 1911; Sikhs and non-Sikhs from across British Colombia attended the ceremony and a local newspaper reported on the event. It was the first Gurdwara in not only North America, but also the world outside of South Asia and has since become a Canadian historical landmark and symbol, the only Gurdwara to be a symbol and historical landmark outside of India. The Khalsa Diwan Society then built Gurdwara's in Vancouver and Victoria.
Though the objects of the Khalsa Diwan Society were religious, educational and philanthropic, problems connected to immigration and racism loomed in its proceedings. Alongside the Sikh Diwan, other organizations opened to fight Immigration Authorities. The United India League operated in Vancouver and the Hindustani Association of the Pacific Coast opened in Portland, Oregon
. Gurdwaras became storm centers of political activity. The Ghadar Party
, was founded in America in 1913 by Sikhs who had fled to California from British Columbia due to Canadian immigration laws. Despite originally being directed at the racism of Sikhs in the Sacramento Valley
and Sacramento
itself, it eventually moved to British Columbia. Thousands of Ghadar journals were published with some even being sent to India.
When the ship arrived at Canada, it was not allowed to dock. The Conservative Premier of British Columbia, Richard McBride
, gave a categorical statement that the passengers would not be allowed to disembark. Meanwhile a "Shore Committee" had been formed with Hussain Rahim and Sohan Lal Pathak involved. Protest meetings were held in Canada and the USA. At one, held in Dominion Hall, Vancouver, it was resolved that if the passengers were not allowed off, Indo-Canadians should follow them back to India to start a rebellion (or Ghadar). The shore Committee raised $22,000 dollars as an instalment on chartering the ship. They also launched a test case legal battle in the name of Munshi Singh, one of the passengers. On July 7, the full bench of the Supreme Court gave a unanimous judgement that under new Orders-In-Council, it had no authority to interfere with the decisions of the Department of Immigration and Colonization. The Japanese Captain was relieved of duty by the angry passengers, but the Canadian government ordered the harbour tug, Sea Lion to push the ship out on its homeward journey. On July 19, the angry passengers mounted an attack. Next day the Vancouver newspaper The Sun reported: "Howling masses of Hindus showered policemen with lumps of coal and bricks... it was like standing underneath a coal chute".
The Komagata Maru arrived in Calcutta, India on September 26. Upon entry into the harbour, the ship was forced to stop by a British gunboat, and the passengers were placed under guard. The ship was then diverted approximately 17 miles to Budge Budge, where the British intended to put them on a train bound for Punjab. The passengers wanted to stay in Calcutta, and marched on the city, but were forced to return to Budge Budge and reboard the ship. The passengers protested, some refusing to re-board, and the police opened fire, killing 20 and wounding nine others. This incident became known as the Budge Budge Riot. Gurdit Singh managed to escape and lived in hiding till 1922.
While recovering from his wounds in England, Private Buckam Singh contracted tuberculosis and spent his final days in a Kitchener Ontario military hospital, dying at age 25 in 1919. His grave in Kitchener Ontario is the only known WWI Sikh Canadian Soldier’s grave in Canada. Despite being forgotten for ninety years and never getting to see his family again, Buckam Singh is now being celebrated as not only a Sikh hero, but a Canadian hero.
In 1943, twelve man delegation including members of the Khalsa Diwan Society presented the case of South Asian voting rights to Premier Hart. They said that without the ability to vote, in Canada they were nothing more than second class citizens. The Premier then made it so that South Asians in British Columbia that had fought in World War II would be granted voting rights, this law was passed in 1945. By 1947, all South Asians had the right to vote due to the Sikh Khalsa Diwan Society.
. They would sometimes be met by opposition by Hindus and went generally unnoticed by the Canadian Government. " Ujjal Dosanjh
, a moderate Sikh, spoke against Sikh Extremist and faced a "reign of terror".
Air India Flight 182
was an Air India
flight operating on the Montréal
-London
-Delhi
-Bombay route. On 23 June 1985, the airplane operating on the route was blown up in midair by a bomb in the coast of Ireland. In all, 329 people perished, among them 280 Canadian nationals, mostly of Indian birth or descent origin, and 22 Indian nationals.
It is said to be a revenge against attack on Golden Temple by Indian Govt.
The main suspects in the bombing were the members of a Sikh
separatist group called the Babbar Khalsa
and other related groups who were at the time agitating for a separate Sikh state called Khalistan in Punjab, India. In September 2007, the Canadian commission investigated reports, initially disclosed in the Indian investigative news magazine Tehelka
that an hitherto unnamed person, Lakhbir Singh Brar Rode
had masterminded the explosions.
on July 26 of 2002. It is the only gurdwara declared a national historic landmark outside of South Asia. In 2007 the temple was completely renovated and reopened. In 2011, the Gur Sikh Temple in Abbotsford celebrated its one hundredth birthday. To celebrate, the Government of Canada is funding the building of a museum dedicated to Canadian Sikhism. During the anniversary celebration, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper
gave a speech to the Punjabi Community as to how the Gur Sikh Temple is a shrine to all immigrants into Canada, not just Sikh ones.
Ever since the year 1900, Sikh members started to contribute to the Canadian economy. However, it was not until the year 2000 that this contribution was noticeable. Sikhs have made significant contribution to the Canadian economy in terms their professional and business advances. The Sikh community is represented in all professional fields; medical, legal, technological, academic, etc. Sikhs are driven by their desire to enhance themselves and their communities.
that they had estimated there to be at least 800,000 Sikhs living in the Greater Toronto region alone, however, he did not mention the population in the other provinces of Canada.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. However, in 2004 the true number was revealed to be closer to 400,000.
In the 1890s and early 1900s up to about 1950-1960, all immigrants from India were indiscriminately called "hindoo" or "hindu" regardless of religious affiliation. The term "hindoo" was also sometimes used in a derogatory sense for anyone from that continent, despite over 98 % of South Asians at the time being Sikhs.
Early Immigration
Sikhs have been in Canada since at least 1887. One of the first Sikh soldiers arrived in Canada following Queen Victoria's Diamond JubileeDiamond Jubilee
A Diamond Jubilee is a celebration held to mark a 60th anniversary in the case of a person or a 75th anniversary in the case of an event.- Thailand :...
. Sikhs were one of the few Asian
Asian people
Asian people or Asiatic people is a term with multiple meanings that refers to people who descend from a portion of Asia's population.- Central Asia :...
immigrant communities who were loyal members of the British Empire. Sikhs found employment in laying the tracks of the Canadian Pacific Railway, in lumber mills and mines. Though they earned less than white workers, they made enough money to send to India and get relatives to immigrate to Canada. The first Sikh pioneers came to the Abbotsford
Abbotsford, British Columbia
Abbotsford is a Canadian city located in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia, adjacent to Greater Vancouver. It is the fifth largest municipality in British Columbia, home to 123,864 people . Its Census Metropolitan Area, which includes the District of Mission, is the 23rd largest in Canada,...
area in 1905 and originally worked on farms and in the lumber
Lumber
Lumber or timber is wood in any of its stages from felling through readiness for use as structural material for construction, or wood pulp for paper production....
industry.
By 1906, there were 1500 Sikh workers living in Canada. However, due to the large numbers of Japanese and Chinese Canadians, white workers were enraged at these immigrants, but their ill-will went toward the Sikhs since they had a distinct appearance through their beards and turbans. In 1907, Buckam Singh came to British Columbia from Punjab at the age of fourteen. Due to racism, all South Asians were known as Hindus, despite over 98 % of immigrants being Sikh. 90 % of these Sikhs lived in British Columbia. While Canadian politicians, missionaries, unions and the press did not want Asian labour, British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
industrialists were short of labour and thus Sikhs were able to get an early foothold at the turn of the century in British Columbia. Of the nearly 5,000 East Indians in Canada by 1907, most of the Sikhs were retired British army veterans.
To further racism against the Sikhs, Punjabis were accused of having a caste system, an idea that goes against the foundations of Sikhism; they were accused of being riddled with trachoma and of being unclean in general. To enforce these racist comments, a song called White Canada Forever was created. This all eventually led to a boat of Sikhs landing in Vancouver being sent to Victoria. Punjabis avoided being in the Anti-Oriental Riots of 1907 by staying indoors. Sikh racism caused many troubles for the Canadian Government, as Punjabis were the most loyal soldiers that were British subjects from their Asian and African colonies. From 1907, enforcements were used to check immigration and prohibit Sikh employment. Due to these acts being illegal, all Indian immigration to Canada stopped. The Canadian Prime Minister, Sir Wilfred Laurier claimed that Indians were unsuited to live in Canadian climate. In a letter to the viceroy, Lord Minto, Sir Wilfred changed this opinion on the Sikhs and stated that the Chinese were the least adaptable to Canadian ways and that Sikhs, called Hindus due to racism, were the most adaptable. Nevertheless, 1072 Sikhs left for California in the year of 1907. It was also in the year of 1907, when the Khalsa Diwan society was organized in Vancouver with branches in Abbotsford, New Westminister, Fraser Mills
Fraser Mills
Fraser Mills is a neighbourhood and formerly separate village municipality in the southwestern part of Coquitlam, British Columbia.Located on the northern shore of the Fraser River, the area was originally the site of a sawmill. The mill was known at first as the Ross McLaren Mill and opened in...
, Duncan Coombs and Ocean Falls.
In 1908, Indians were then politely asked by the Canadian Government to temporarily leave Canada and settle British Honduras
British Honduras
British Honduras was a British colony that is now the independent nation of Belize.First colonised by Spaniards in the 17th century, the territory on the east coast of Central America, south of Mexico, became a British crown colony from 1862 until 1964, when it became self-governing. Belize became...
; as they had thought that the "Mexican" climate would better suit Indians. A Sikh delegate was sent to what is now Belize
Belize
Belize is a constitutional monarchy and the northernmost country in Central America. Belize has a diverse society, comprising many cultures and languages. Even though Kriol and Spanish are spoken among the population, Belize is the only country in Central America where English is the official...
and stayed in the British colony for some time before returning, upon his return, he told not only Sikhs, but other Indian religious groups, to decline, as the conditions were not suitable for Punjabis, but rather South Indians. In the year of 1908, 1710 Sikhs left British Columbia for California. The first plans to build a temple were made in 1908. After a property situated on a hill was acquired the settlers carried lumber from a local mill on their backs up a hill to construct a gurdwara
Gurdwara
A Gurdwara , meaning the Gateway to the Guru, is the place of worship for Sikhs, the followers of Sikhism. A Gurdwara can be identified from a distance by tall flagpoles bearing the Nishan Sahib ....
.
McKenzie King (not yet the Canadian Prime Minister) visited London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and Calcutta to show the Canadian view on Indian immigration. As a result, the Indian Government stopped advertising facilities and employment opportunities in North America. This invoked the provisions of Emmigration act of 1883 which stopped Sikhs from leaving Canada. The Canadian Government passed two laws, in one, an immigrant had to have 200 dollars, far more than the previous 20 dollars; the other authorized the Minister of the Interior to prohibit entry into Canada, unless they came from their birth-country by continuous journey and through tickets purchased before leaving the country of their birth or citizenship. These laws were directed at Punjabi's and their population, which stood over 5000 in 1911, dropped down to little over 25000.
The immigration act of 1910 came into scrutiny when a party of 39 Indians, Sikh majority, rode a Japanese vessel, the Panama Maru, and succeeded in obtaining habus corpus against the immigration departments order of deportation. The Canadian Government then passed a law that was to keep laborours and artisans, skilled and unskilled, out of Canada by preventing them from landing at any dock in British Columbia. As Canadian immigration became stricter, more Indians, Sikh majority, went South to the United States of America. The Gur Sikh Temple opened on February 26, 1911; Sikhs and non-Sikhs from across British Colombia attended the ceremony and a local newspaper reported on the event. It was the first Gurdwara in not only North America, but also the world outside of South Asia and has since become a Canadian historical landmark and symbol, the only Gurdwara to be a symbol and historical landmark outside of India. The Khalsa Diwan Society then built Gurdwara's in Vancouver and Victoria.
Though the objects of the Khalsa Diwan Society were religious, educational and philanthropic, problems connected to immigration and racism loomed in its proceedings. Alongside the Sikh Diwan, other organizations opened to fight Immigration Authorities. The United India League operated in Vancouver and the Hindustani Association of the Pacific Coast opened in Portland, Oregon
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
. Gurdwaras became storm centers of political activity. The Ghadar Party
Ghadar Party
The Ghadar Party was an organization founded by Punjabi Indians, in the United States and Canada with the aim to liberate India from British rule...
, was founded in America in 1913 by Sikhs who had fled to California from British Columbia due to Canadian immigration laws. Despite originally being directed at the racism of Sikhs in the Sacramento Valley
Sacramento Valley
The Sacramento Valley is the portion of the California Central Valley that lies to the north of the San Joaquin-Sacramento Delta in the U.S. state of California. It encompasses all or parts of ten counties.-Geography:...
and Sacramento
Sacramento
Sacramento is the capital of the state of California, in the United States of America.Sacramento may also refer to:- United States :*Sacramento County, California*Sacramento, Kentucky*Sacramento – San Joaquin River Delta...
itself, it eventually moved to British Columbia. Thousands of Ghadar journals were published with some even being sent to India.
The Komagata Maru Incident
In 1914, Buckam Singh moved to Toronto. Also in 1914, from Sarhali, Amritsar, was a well-to-do businessman in Singapore who was aware of the problems that Punjabis were having in getting to Canada due to exclusion laws. He initially wanted to circumvent these laws by hiring a boat to sail from Calcutta to Vancouver. His aim was to help his compatriots whose journeys to Canada had been blocked. In order to achieve his goal, Gurdit Singh purchased the Komagata Maru, a Japanese Vessel. Gurdit Singh carried 340 Sikhs, 24 Muslims, and 12 Hindus in his boat to Canada.When the ship arrived at Canada, it was not allowed to dock. The Conservative Premier of British Columbia, Richard McBride
Richard McBride
Sir Richard McBride, KCMG was a British Columbian politician and is often considered the founder of the British Columbia Conservative Party. McBride was first elected to the provincial legislature in the 1898 election, and served in the cabinet of James Dunsmuir from 1900 to 1901...
, gave a categorical statement that the passengers would not be allowed to disembark. Meanwhile a "Shore Committee" had been formed with Hussain Rahim and Sohan Lal Pathak involved. Protest meetings were held in Canada and the USA. At one, held in Dominion Hall, Vancouver, it was resolved that if the passengers were not allowed off, Indo-Canadians should follow them back to India to start a rebellion (or Ghadar). The shore Committee raised $22,000 dollars as an instalment on chartering the ship. They also launched a test case legal battle in the name of Munshi Singh, one of the passengers. On July 7, the full bench of the Supreme Court gave a unanimous judgement that under new Orders-In-Council, it had no authority to interfere with the decisions of the Department of Immigration and Colonization. The Japanese Captain was relieved of duty by the angry passengers, but the Canadian government ordered the harbour tug, Sea Lion to push the ship out on its homeward journey. On July 19, the angry passengers mounted an attack. Next day the Vancouver newspaper The Sun reported: "Howling masses of Hindus showered policemen with lumps of coal and bricks... it was like standing underneath a coal chute".
The Komagata Maru arrived in Calcutta, India on September 26. Upon entry into the harbour, the ship was forced to stop by a British gunboat, and the passengers were placed under guard. The ship was then diverted approximately 17 miles to Budge Budge, where the British intended to put them on a train bound for Punjab. The passengers wanted to stay in Calcutta, and marched on the city, but were forced to return to Budge Budge and reboard the ship. The passengers protested, some refusing to re-board, and the police opened fire, killing 20 and wounding nine others. This incident became known as the Budge Budge Riot. Gurdit Singh managed to escape and lived in hiding till 1922.
World War One
Buckam Singh enlisted with the Canadian Expeditionary Force in the spring of 1915. Buckam Singh was one of the earliest known Sikhs living in Ontario at the time as well as one of only 9 Sikhs that is known to have served with Canadian troops in WWI. Private Buckam Singh served with the 20th Canadian Infantry Battalion in the battlefields of Flanders during 1916. Here, Buckam Singh was wounded twice in the battles he participated in. One of the interesting discoveries included the fact that after being shot Private Buckam Singh received treatment at a hospital run by one of Canada's most famous soldier poets the Doctor Lt. Colonel John McCrae.While recovering from his wounds in England, Private Buckam Singh contracted tuberculosis and spent his final days in a Kitchener Ontario military hospital, dying at age 25 in 1919. His grave in Kitchener Ontario is the only known WWI Sikh Canadian Soldier’s grave in Canada. Despite being forgotten for ninety years and never getting to see his family again, Buckam Singh is now being celebrated as not only a Sikh hero, but a Canadian hero.
Growing Government Support
Due to immigration restrictions, South Asians were not able to bring over their family relatives from India over to Canada. Therefore, they went to means illegal to bring them to Canada. This was through the Washington-British Columbia border. When the Canadian Government became aware of the happenings along the borderline, they tightened immigration regulations and South Asian men who stayed even three days longer outside of Canada were denied entrance for violating the three-year limit. In 1937, a controversy surfaced with there being almost three-hundred illegal South Asian immigrants in BC. The case was investigated by the RCMP who had eventually solved the case. The Canadian government, however, decided to take this as an opportunity to negotiate with India and refused to deport illegal Sikh immigrants. In fact, the Canadian government pushed the Sikhs into gaining residency in Canada. During the 1940's, South Asians in Canada began to establish their livelihoods despite deep social and economic disturbances. Unemployment was common and the average British Columbian's wage had dropped over 20 percent. White employers were willing to accept Asian workers, this produced insecurities amongst the mainstream community of British Columbia. The result of this was a British Columbia minimum wage law, a law that was ultimately flawed. 25 percent of the employees would be paid 25 percent less and these were invariably Asians. South Asians continued to live under one roof and in extensive family's, this support helped them during the Depression period.In 1943, twelve man delegation including members of the Khalsa Diwan Society presented the case of South Asian voting rights to Premier Hart. They said that without the ability to vote, in Canada they were nothing more than second class citizens. The Premier then made it so that South Asians in British Columbia that had fought in World War II would be granted voting rights, this law was passed in 1945. By 1947, all South Asians had the right to vote due to the Sikh Khalsa Diwan Society.
Settling
In the 1960s and 1970s tens of thousands of skilled Sikhs, some highly educated, settled across Canada, especially in the urban corridor from Toronto to Windsor. As their numbers grew, Sikhs established temporary gurdwaras in every major city eastward to Montréal. These were followed in many instances by permanent gurdwaras and Sikh centres. Most cities now have several gurdwaras, each reflecting slightly different religious views, social or political opinions. Through them Sikhs now have access to a full set of public observances. Central among these are Sunday prayer services, and in many communities the prayers are followed by langar (a free meal) provided by members of the sangat (governing council of holy men) and the congregation.Operation Bluestar
Many Sikhs also came to Canada after the attack on the Golden Temple (The holiest shrine of Sikhs) by the Indian Government in 1984 in search for a new life and to escape persecution by the Indian Government. This attack caused hatred between the majority Sikh Population and the minority Hindu Population, with extremists "...threatening to kill thousand of Hindus by a number of means. Sikhs started asking for Independent nation called KhalistanKhalistan
Khalistan refers to a global political secessionist movement to create a separate Sikh state, called Khālistān , carved out of parts mostly consisting of the Punjab region of India, depending on definition....
. They would sometimes be met by opposition by Hindus and went generally unnoticed by the Canadian Government. " Ujjal Dosanjh
Ujjal Dosanjh
Ujjal Dev Singh Dosanjh, PC, QC, is a Sikh Canadian lawyer and politician. He served as 33rd Premier of British Columbia from 2000 to 2001 and as a Liberal Party of Canada Member of Parliament from 2004 to 2011 including a stint as Minister of Health from 2004 until 2006 when the party lost...
, a moderate Sikh, spoke against Sikh Extremist and faced a "reign of terror".
Air India Flight 182
Air India Flight 182
Air India Flight 182 was an Air India flight operating on the Montreal–London–Delhi route. On 23 June 1985, the airplane operating on the route a Boeing 747-237B named after Emperor Kanishka was blown up by a bomb at an altitude of , and crashed into the Atlantic Ocean while in Irish airspace.A...
was an Air India
Air India
Air India is the flag carrier airline of India. It is part of the government of India owned Air India Limited . The airline operates a fleet of Airbus and Boeing aircraft serving Asia, Australia, Europe and North America. Its corporate office is located at the Air India Building at Nariman...
flight operating on the Montréal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
-London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
-Delhi
Delhi
Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
-Bombay route. On 23 June 1985, the airplane operating on the route was blown up in midair by a bomb in the coast of Ireland. In all, 329 people perished, among them 280 Canadian nationals, mostly of Indian birth or descent origin, and 22 Indian nationals.
It is said to be a revenge against attack on Golden Temple by Indian Govt.
The main suspects in the bombing were the members of a Sikh
Sikh
A Sikh is a follower of Sikhism. It primarily originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region of South Asia. The term "Sikh" has its origin in Sanskrit term शिष्य , meaning "disciple, student" or शिक्ष , meaning "instruction"...
separatist group called the Babbar Khalsa
Babbar Khalsa
Babbar Khalsa , also known as Babbar Khalsa International , is a Sikh armed organisation based in India. Many consider the Babbar Khalsa a Resistance movement, and it played a prominent role in the Punjab insurgency. Babbar Khalsa International was created in 1978, after a number of Sikhs were...
and other related groups who were at the time agitating for a separate Sikh state called Khalistan in Punjab, India. In September 2007, the Canadian commission investigated reports, initially disclosed in the Indian investigative news magazine Tehelka
Tehelka
Tehelka is an Indian weekly political magazine under the editorship of Tarun Tejpal known for its undercover exposé style of journalism. Its cover price is Rs 20 per issue. The publication began in 2000 as a news website, Tehelka.com...
that an hitherto unnamed person, Lakhbir Singh Brar Rode
Lakhbir Singh Brar Rode
Lakhbir Singh Brar Rode is the nephew of Sikh leader Sant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, and currently heads the banned International Sikh Youth Federation , which has branches in over a dozen countries in western Europe and Canada. Lakhbir is also affiliated with the Khalistan Zindabad Force...
had masterminded the explosions.
2000's - Present
Sikhs have maintained a good image in the eyes of the public and the new immigrants have adapted to the Canadian lifestyle quite well. In the Lower Mainland communities, Sikhs have been come to be known as Punjabi, symbolizing them as part of the Sikh Culture. In 2002, the Gur Sikh Temple was designated a national historic landmark by prime minister Jean ChrétienJean Chrétien
Joseph Jacques Jean Chrétien , known commonly as Jean Chrétien is a former Canadian politician who was the 20th Prime Minister of Canada. He served in the position for over ten years, from November 4, 1993 to December 12, 2003....
on July 26 of 2002. It is the only gurdwara declared a national historic landmark outside of South Asia. In 2007 the temple was completely renovated and reopened. In 2011, the Gur Sikh Temple in Abbotsford celebrated its one hundredth birthday. To celebrate, the Government of Canada is funding the building of a museum dedicated to Canadian Sikhism. During the anniversary celebration, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper
Stephen Harper
Stephen Joseph Harper is the 22nd and current Prime Minister of Canada and leader of the Conservative Party. Harper became prime minister when his party formed a minority government after the 2006 federal election...
gave a speech to the Punjabi Community as to how the Gur Sikh Temple is a shrine to all immigrants into Canada, not just Sikh ones.
Ever since the year 1900, Sikh members started to contribute to the Canadian economy. However, it was not until the year 2000 that this contribution was noticeable. Sikhs have made significant contribution to the Canadian economy in terms their professional and business advances. The Sikh community is represented in all professional fields; medical, legal, technological, academic, etc. Sikhs are driven by their desire to enhance themselves and their communities.
Sikh Population
The Sikh Population in Canada according to the 2001 Census. It is estimated that by 2017, there will be about 440,000 Sikh's living in Canada. However, this should be inaccurate as the number of Sikhs in Canada in the year 2004 was about 400,000. In 2011, the Canadian Government revealed, in a poll led by Michael IgnatieffMichael Ignatieff
Michael Grant Ignatieff is a Canadian author, academic and former politician. He was the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada and Leader of the Official Opposition from 2008 until 2011...
that they had estimated there to be at least 800,000 Sikhs living in the Greater Toronto region alone, however, he did not mention the population in the other provinces of Canada.
| Province Provinces and territories of Canada The provinces and territories of Canada combine to make up the world's second-largest country by area. There are ten provinces and three territories... |
Sikhs |
|---|---|
 British ColumbiaBritish Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858... |
135,310 |
 OntarioOntario Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa.... |
104,785 |
 AlbertaAlberta Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces... |
23,470 |
 QuebecQuebec Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level.... |
8,225 |
 ManitobaManitoba Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other... |
5,485 |
 SaskatchewanSaskatchewan Saskatchewan is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of . Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dakota.... |
500 |
 Nova ScotiaNova Scotia Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the... |
270 |
 Newfoundland and LabradorNewfoundland and Labrador Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400... |
135 |
 YukonYukon Yukon is the westernmost and smallest of Canada's three federal territories. It was named after the Yukon River. The word Yukon means "Great River" in Gwich’in.... |
100 |
 New BrunswickNew Brunswick New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only province in the federation that is constitutionally bilingual . The provincial capital is Fredericton and Saint John is the most populous city. Greater Moncton is the largest Census Metropolitan Area... |
90 |
 Northwest TerritoriesNorthwest Territories The Northwest Territories is a federal territory of Canada.Located in northern Canada, the territory borders Canada's two other territories, Yukon to the west and Nunavut to the east, and three provinces: British Columbia to the southwest, and Alberta and Saskatchewan to the south... |
45 |
 Prince Edward IslandPrince Edward Island Prince Edward Island is a Canadian province consisting of an island of the same name, as well as other islands. The maritime province is the smallest in the nation in both land area and population... |
0 |
 NunavutNunavut Nunavut is the largest and newest federal territory of Canada; it was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the Nunavut Act and the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement Act, though the actual boundaries had been established in 1993... |
0 |
 Canada |
278,415 |
Prominent Canadian Sikhs
- Navdeep Singh Bains - MP
- Gurbax Singh Malhi - MP
- Tim UppalTim UppalTim Uppal, PC, MP is a Canadian politician, who was elected as a Member of Parliament for Edmonton—Sherwood Park in the 2008 federal election...
- MP - Ujjal DosanjhUjjal DosanjhUjjal Dev Singh Dosanjh, PC, QC, is a Sikh Canadian lawyer and politician. He served as 33rd Premier of British Columbia from 2000 to 2001 and as a Liberal Party of Canada Member of Parliament from 2004 to 2011 including a stint as Minister of Health from 2004 until 2006 when the party lost...
- MP - Pamela RaiPamela RaiPamela Leila Rai is a former freestyle, butterfly swimmer from Canada, who competed for her native country at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California. There the resident of Delta, British Columbia won a bronze medal in the 4x100m Medley Relay, alongside Anne Ottenbrite, Reema Abdo, and...
- 1984 Olympic bronze medallist, swimming
See also
- Multani v. Commission scolaire Marguerite‑Bourgeoys
- Guru Gobind Singh Children's FoundationGuru Gobind Singh Children's FoundationThe Guru Gobind Singh Children's Foundation is a Foundation run by children/youth with a vision to help other children meet their basic needs, while adding meaning to their lives, and carrying out the work in the spirit of the teachings of Sikh Gurus....