America Is Our Home
By Bakshleen Kaur
UNITED SIKHS Volunteer
“Go back to your country.”
Those words were directed at my father when he was physically attacked while working in New York City.My father proudly wears his Dastaar, or Sikh turban, and an unshorn, flowing beard. Keeping uncut hair, known as Kesh, is one of the five Sikh articles of faith.
My father is a citizen of this land. What country was he supposed to go back to? The country he calls home is America.
My family was not in America on September 11, 2001. We arrived afterward, building our lives in a country already changed by that day. We did not have to be here during the attacks to experience the prejudice that became part of their aftermath.
That remembrance also includes acknowledging the hate directed at Sikh and other communities in the years that followed. For my family, questions about safety and belonging became painfully personal.
The words directed at my father attempted to make him a stranger in his own country. They reduced a person with a family, responsibilities, and a life here to someone who supposedly did not belong. His citizenship made that demand especially absurd. Yet every person, regardless of citizenship or immigration status, deserves to live without being attacked or dehumanized.
As his daughter, I want my father to be able to move through this city with the same dignity and confidence with which he wears his Dastaar. I want his faith to be respected. No family should have to wonder whether a loved one’s visible identity could make them a target.
My Sikh identity also shapes my commitment to the city we call home. Through volunteering with UNITED SIKHS and helping distribute food to people in need, I practice Seva, or selfless service. Caring for our neighbors is one way I express my faith and my connection to this country. Our community’s story includes the ordinary, meaningful work of building a life here and helping others do the same.
In the years since 9/11, Sikh advocates have worked to bring Sikhi into classrooms and address bullying. That work gives me hope. My father’s experience reminds me how much remains to be done.
Over the next 25 years, I want Sikh children to see their history and identity reflected in what they learn about America. I want institutions to take discrimination seriously and neighbors to speak up when someone is targeted.
My father should never have been told to leave the place where he has built his life. No family should have to defend its right to belong because of its faith.
Our Sikh identity does not make us any less American, and it never will.
America is our country. America is our home.
