☀️ JOIN SPN MOBILE
Forums
New posts
Guru Granth Sahib
Composition, Arrangement & Layout
ਜਪੁ | Jup
ਸੋ ਦਰੁ | So Dar
ਸੋਹਿਲਾ | Sohilaa
ਰਾਗੁ ਸਿਰੀਰਾਗੁ | Raag Siree-Raag
Gurbani (14-53)
Ashtpadiyan (53-71)
Gurbani (71-74)
Pahre (74-78)
Chhant (78-81)
Vanjara (81-82)
Vaar Siri Raag (83-91)
Bhagat Bani (91-93)
ਰਾਗੁ ਮਾਝ | Raag Maajh
Gurbani (94-109)
Ashtpadi (109)
Ashtpadiyan (110-129)
Ashtpadi (129-130)
Ashtpadiyan (130-133)
Bara Maha (133-136)
Din Raen (136-137)
Vaar Maajh Ki (137-150)
ਰਾਗੁ ਗਉੜੀ | Raag Gauree
Gurbani (151-185)
Quartets/Couplets (185-220)
Ashtpadiyan (220-234)
Karhalei (234-235)
Ashtpadiyan (235-242)
Chhant (242-249)
Baavan Akhari (250-262)
Sukhmani (262-296)
Thittee (296-300)
Gauree kii Vaar (300-323)
Gurbani (323-330)
Ashtpadiyan (330-340)
Baavan Akhari (340-343)
Thintteen (343-344)
Vaar Kabir (344-345)
Bhagat Bani (345-346)
ਰਾਗੁ ਆਸਾ | Raag Aasaa
Gurbani (347-348)
Chaupaday (348-364)
Panchpadde (364-365)
Kaafee (365-409)
Aasaavaree (409-411)
Ashtpadiyan (411-432)
Patee (432-435)
Chhant (435-462)
Vaar Aasaa (462-475)
Bhagat Bani (475-488)
ਰਾਗੁ ਗੂਜਰੀ | Raag Goojaree
Gurbani (489-503)
Ashtpadiyan (503-508)
Vaar Gujari (508-517)
Vaar Gujari (517-526)
ਰਾਗੁ ਦੇਵਗੰਧਾਰੀ | Raag Dayv-Gandhaaree
Gurbani (527-536)
ਰਾਗੁ ਬਿਹਾਗੜਾ | Raag Bihaagraa
Gurbani (537-556)
Chhant (538-548)
Vaar Bihaagraa (548-556)
ਰਾਗੁ ਵਡਹੰਸ | Raag Wadhans
Gurbani (557-564)
Ashtpadiyan (564-565)
Chhant (565-575)
Ghoriaan (575-578)
Alaahaniiaa (578-582)
Vaar Wadhans (582-594)
ਰਾਗੁ ਸੋਰਠਿ | Raag Sorath
Gurbani (595-634)
Asatpadhiya (634-642)
Vaar Sorath (642-659)
ਰਾਗੁ ਧਨਾਸਰੀ | Raag Dhanasaree
Gurbani (660-685)
Astpadhiya (685-687)
Chhant (687-691)
Bhagat Bani (691-695)
ਰਾਗੁ ਜੈਤਸਰੀ | Raag Jaitsree
Gurbani (696-703)
Chhant (703-705)
Vaar Jaitsaree (705-710)
Bhagat Bani (710)
ਰਾਗੁ ਟੋਡੀ | Raag Todee
ਰਾਗੁ ਬੈਰਾੜੀ | Raag Bairaaree
ਰਾਗੁ ਤਿਲੰਗ | Raag Tilang
Gurbani (721-727)
Bhagat Bani (727)
ਰਾਗੁ ਸੂਹੀ | Raag Suhi
Gurbani (728-750)
Ashtpadiyan (750-761)
Kaafee (761-762)
Suchajee (762)
Gunvantee (763)
Chhant (763-785)
Vaar Soohee (785-792)
Bhagat Bani (792-794)
ਰਾਗੁ ਬਿਲਾਵਲੁ | Raag Bilaaval
Gurbani (795-831)
Ashtpadiyan (831-838)
Thitteen (838-840)
Vaar Sat (841-843)
Chhant (843-848)
Vaar Bilaaval (849-855)
Bhagat Bani (855-858)
ਰਾਗੁ ਗੋਂਡ | Raag Gond
Gurbani (859-869)
Ashtpadiyan (869)
Bhagat Bani (870-875)
ਰਾਗੁ ਰਾਮਕਲੀ | Raag Ramkalee
Ashtpadiyan (902-916)
Gurbani (876-902)
Anand (917-922)
Sadd (923-924)
Chhant (924-929)
Dakhnee (929-938)
Sidh Gosat (938-946)
Vaar Ramkalee (947-968)
ਰਾਗੁ ਨਟ ਨਾਰਾਇਨ | Raag Nat Narayan
Gurbani (975-980)
Ashtpadiyan (980-983)
ਰਾਗੁ ਮਾਲੀ ਗਉੜਾ | Raag Maalee Gauraa
Gurbani (984-988)
Bhagat Bani (988)
ਰਾਗੁ ਮਾਰੂ | Raag Maaroo
Gurbani (889-1008)
Ashtpadiyan (1008-1014)
Kaafee (1014-1016)
Ashtpadiyan (1016-1019)
Anjulian (1019-1020)
Solhe (1020-1033)
Dakhni (1033-1043)
ਰਾਗੁ ਤੁਖਾਰੀ | Raag Tukhaari
Bara Maha (1107-1110)
Chhant (1110-1117)
ਰਾਗੁ ਕੇਦਾਰਾ | Raag Kedara
Gurbani (1118-1123)
Bhagat Bani (1123-1124)
ਰਾਗੁ ਭੈਰਉ | Raag Bhairo
Gurbani (1125-1152)
Partaal (1153)
Ashtpadiyan (1153-1167)
ਰਾਗੁ ਬਸੰਤੁ | Raag Basant
Gurbani (1168-1187)
Ashtpadiyan (1187-1193)
Vaar Basant (1193-1196)
ਰਾਗੁ ਸਾਰਗ | Raag Saarag
Gurbani (1197-1200)
Partaal (1200-1231)
Ashtpadiyan (1232-1236)
Chhant (1236-1237)
Vaar Saarang (1237-1253)
ਰਾਗੁ ਮਲਾਰ | Raag Malaar
Gurbani (1254-1293)
Partaal (1265-1273)
Ashtpadiyan (1273-1278)
Chhant (1278)
Vaar Malaar (1278-91)
Bhagat Bani (1292-93)
ਰਾਗੁ ਕਾਨੜਾ | Raag Kaanraa
Gurbani (1294-96)
Partaal (1296-1318)
Ashtpadiyan (1308-1312)
Chhant (1312)
Vaar Kaanraa
Bhagat Bani (1318)
ਰਾਗੁ ਕਲਿਆਨ | Raag Kalyaan
Gurbani (1319-23)
Ashtpadiyan (1323-26)
ਰਾਗੁ ਪ੍ਰਭਾਤੀ | Raag Prabhaatee
Gurbani (1327-1341)
Ashtpadiyan (1342-51)
ਰਾਗੁ ਜੈਜਾਵੰਤੀ | Raag Jaijaiwanti
Gurbani (1352-53)
Salok | Gatha | Phunahe | Chaubole | Swayiye
Sehskritee Mahala 1
Sehskritee Mahala 5
Gaathaa Mahala 5
Phunhay Mahala 5
Chaubolae Mahala 5
Shaloks Bhagat Kabir
Shaloks Sheikh Farid
Swaiyyae Mahala 5
Swaiyyae in Praise of Gurus
Shaloks in Addition To Vaars
Shalok Ninth Mehl
Mundavanee Mehl 5
ਰਾਗ ਮਾਲਾ, Raag Maalaa
What's new
New posts
New media
New media comments
New resources
Latest activity
Videos
New media
New comments
Library
Latest reviews
Donate
Log in
Register
What's new
New posts
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
Welcome to all New Sikh Philosophy Network Forums!
Explore Sikh Sikhi Sikhism...
Sign up
Log in
Discussions
Interfaith Dialogues
A Sikh Change Comes To Houston’s Finest
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="Admin" data-source="post: 206302" data-attributes="member: 1"><p><em><span style="font-size: 15px">A uniform change at the Harris County Sheriff’s Office is fostering a new sort of interfaith dialog. </span></em></p><p></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px">Navdeep Nijjar was 14 when he moved to Houston from India. Two years later, he was riding in a Honda Accord with a friend’s family in Jersey Village when the other boy’s mother, distracted by the commotion in the backseat, swerved and slammed into a car parked on the side of the street.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px"></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px">[ATTACH=full]19834[/ATTACH] </span></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px"></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px">Nijjar, now 29, remembers the crash vividly, because it was the first experience he’d had with a police officer in the U.S. “Instead of yelling and screaming at us for it being our fault, he just helped us out—asked us if we were all right,” he says today. “That inspired me a lot.” From that point on, Nijjar knew what he wanted to do with his life: join Houston’s finest. There was just one problem. Nijjar is a Sikh.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px"></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px">Sikhism, which originated in 15th-century India, emphasizes tenets including: the equality of all humans, the rejection of discrimination on the basis of gender, creed or caste, the importance of charitable works and acts of service, and the outward display of a Sikh’s articles of faith, which must be worn at all times.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px"></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px">For men, this means wearing hair uncut, under a turban, and growing out their beards, as well as carrying a short dagger, or <em>kirpan</em>, at the hip. This can be a problem for Sikhs wishing to join law enforcement, as many U.S. police forces have strict grooming codes that require officers to keep their hair short and faces closely shaven.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px"></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px">In Houston, the Sikh community hasn’t always had a great relationship with police. In 2008, for instance, a Sikh family accused Harris County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) deputies of harassment after they called the cops to report a burglary. The family said that instead of taking a report on the incident, deputies handcuffed them and pointed tasers at them, and one told them he “knew about Muslims.” (Because of the turbans Sikhs wear, they have often been confused for Muslims, although the two religions are not related.)</span></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px"></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px">After Adrian Garcia’s election to the post of sheriff in 2009, he made outreach to the Sikh community a priority, visiting local <em>gurdwaras</em>—Sikh houses of worship—and educating his deputies about Sikhism, explaining, among other things, that the dagger isn’t used for violence.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px"></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px">Then, two years ago, Nijjar applied for a job with the HCSO, asking that, if hired, he be allowed to wear his beard, turban and dagger. The request resulted, the following year, in now-former Sheriff Garcia signing off on a policy change to allow practicing Sikhs to wear their articles of faith while serving on the force, something the current sheriff has continued to support.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px"></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px">Sandeep Dhaliwal, a Sikh deputy who had been serving on the force for six years at the time without displaying those articles, was the first to benefit from the new policy. Nijjar, meanwhile, completed his training at the sheriff’s academy last November and is now field-training with an officer in northwest Houston, where most of the city’s approximately 5,000 Sikhs live. A third Sikh deputy has come on board, as well.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px"></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px">Nijjar thinks their ranks could swell, as more Sikh kids see people who look like they do serving on the force. He’s currently advising an eager Sikh high school student interested in a career in law enforcement.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px"></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px">At a recent Sikh summer camp, Nijjar showed up in his uniform and talked to 100 curious kids about what it’s like to be a cop. “They wanted to know everything. Have I shot anybody? Do I actually carry a real gun or a fake gun? Somebody asked me that,” Nijjar says, smiling. And, to his surprise, they asked him if he was treated differently because he was a Sikh.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px"></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px">“Not even close,” he remembers telling them. “That was not even in the picture for me, from the start. We’re brothers and sisters, so they don’t see me any differently. That’s who I am to them.”</span></p><p><span style="font-size: 15px"></span></p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Admin, post: 206302, member: 1"] [I][SIZE=4]A uniform change at the Harris County Sheriff’s Office is fostering a new sort of interfaith dialog. [/SIZE][/I] [SIZE=4]Navdeep Nijjar was 14 when he moved to Houston from India. Two years later, he was riding in a Honda Accord with a friend’s family in Jersey Village when the other boy’s mother, distracted by the commotion in the backseat, swerved and slammed into a car parked on the side of the street. [ATTACH=full]19834[/ATTACH] Nijjar, now 29, remembers the crash vividly, because it was the first experience he’d had with a police officer in the U.S. “Instead of yelling and screaming at us for it being our fault, he just helped us out—asked us if we were all right,” he says today. “That inspired me a lot.” From that point on, Nijjar knew what he wanted to do with his life: join Houston’s finest. There was just one problem. Nijjar is a Sikh. Sikhism, which originated in 15th-century India, emphasizes tenets including: the equality of all humans, the rejection of discrimination on the basis of gender, creed or caste, the importance of charitable works and acts of service, and the outward display of a Sikh’s articles of faith, which must be worn at all times. For men, this means wearing hair uncut, under a turban, and growing out their beards, as well as carrying a short dagger, or [I]kirpan[/I], at the hip. This can be a problem for Sikhs wishing to join law enforcement, as many U.S. police forces have strict grooming codes that require officers to keep their hair short and faces closely shaven. In Houston, the Sikh community hasn’t always had a great relationship with police. In 2008, for instance, a Sikh family accused Harris County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) deputies of harassment after they called the cops to report a burglary. The family said that instead of taking a report on the incident, deputies handcuffed them and pointed tasers at them, and one told them he “knew about Muslims.” (Because of the turbans Sikhs wear, they have often been confused for Muslims, although the two religions are not related.) After Adrian Garcia’s election to the post of sheriff in 2009, he made outreach to the Sikh community a priority, visiting local [I]gurdwaras[/I]—Sikh houses of worship—and educating his deputies about Sikhism, explaining, among other things, that the dagger isn’t used for violence. Then, two years ago, Nijjar applied for a job with the HCSO, asking that, if hired, he be allowed to wear his beard, turban and dagger. The request resulted, the following year, in now-former Sheriff Garcia signing off on a policy change to allow practicing Sikhs to wear their articles of faith while serving on the force, something the current sheriff has continued to support. Sandeep Dhaliwal, a Sikh deputy who had been serving on the force for six years at the time without displaying those articles, was the first to benefit from the new policy. Nijjar, meanwhile, completed his training at the sheriff’s academy last November and is now field-training with an officer in northwest Houston, where most of the city’s approximately 5,000 Sikhs live. A third Sikh deputy has come on board, as well. Nijjar thinks their ranks could swell, as more Sikh kids see people who look like they do serving on the force. He’s currently advising an eager Sikh high school student interested in a career in law enforcement. At a recent Sikh summer camp, Nijjar showed up in his uniform and talked to 100 curious kids about what it’s like to be a cop. “They wanted to know everything. Have I shot anybody? Do I actually carry a real gun or a fake gun? Somebody asked me that,” Nijjar says, smiling. And, to his surprise, they asked him if he was treated differently because he was a Sikh. “Not even close,” he remembers telling them. “That was not even in the picture for me, from the start. We’re brothers and sisters, so they don’t see me any differently. That’s who I am to them.” [/SIZE] [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Discussions
Interfaith Dialogues
A Sikh Change Comes To Houston’s Finest
This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register.
By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our use of cookies.
Accept
Learn more…
Top