Overview

It can be hard to be in the minority anywhere. In America, turban-wearing Sikhs have discovered-especially since 9/11-that setting themselves apart by wearing a distinctive head covering can be downright dangerous. For many reasons, which the author explores, Sikhs in America and elsewhere in the West have been subject to harassment, job discrimination, and prejudice. The author, a turban-wearing Sikh, moved to the United States in 1967 for additional medical training (including at Harvard), eventually settling and practicing in West Virginia. At the time, few Americans had ever seen a turban-wearing Sikh. Though many were curious and friendly, others were uncomfortable and prejudiced toward him. Chattha's experience is not unique among Sikhs living in the United States. In this book, Chattha explores the history of the turban and how it came to be associated almost exclusively with Sikhism. He further explores the choices that the Sikh diaspora must make in their adopted homeland of America: do they keep the turban and the discrimination and prejudice that often accompanies it? Or do they remove it and choose to blend in with the majority? It is a personal choice, and Chattha examines the psychological and social forces that can shape the decision. As part of his research, Chattha conducted a survey of men raised Sikh and their choice of whether to keep the turban. Finally, Chattha examines the challenges to the long-term survival of the turban, including globalization, modernity, and politics.

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9781952932021

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Reviews

The Sikh turban is probably the most common way of recognizing Sikh males worldwide (though turbans are also worn, far less commonly, by Sikh females). In this book, Dr. Amrik Singh Chattha presents a well-informed and very readable overview of the history and meaningfulness of the turban-as a powerful religious symbol and source of identity for Sikh pride, and sadly also as an occasional marker for prejudice by some non-Sikhs. -Paul Michael Taylor, PhD Director, Asian Cultural History Program (and) Research Anthropologist Smithsonian Institution The title, The Sikh Turban in America: Pride & Privilege, is self-explanatory. The pride a turban-wearing Sikh has in Punjab, India, is quite opposite from the discrimination and hate crimes turban-wearing Sikhs face in the United States. These issues have been put together for the first time in this book. I congratulate Dr. Chattha and recommend this book to all Sikhs, with and without turban. -Harvinder Singh Sahota, MD My husband is Keshdhari devout Sikh, and we wanted our two boys to be Puran Sikhs, so they kept their hair till their early teens. Bullying in American schools was rampant and was the main cause for them removing their hair. Dr. Chattha has well documented school bullying of Sikh children and the discrimination Sikh communities face in the United States. I recommend a copy of this book be made available in all US schools for teachers and students to learn about Sikhism and about the turban as its identity. -Tripat Grewal This is the first well-researched book on the turban in America. For Sikhs the turban has been a symbol of identity since the time of the tenth Guru. Today, wearing one in the United States can lead to job discrimination and hate crime, but removing the turban has emotional repercussions. It is heartening to know that the Sikh community is navigating these issues well. I encourage all Sikhs, with or without the turban, to read this book, as well as teachers who must deal with the bullying of turban-wearing Sikh children in schools. -Ajit Singh Chattha While discrimination, hate crimes, and bullying in schools is an everyday story in the United States, this is the first book to address this important issue. Dr. Chattha has gone in-depth about his seventy years of experiencing turban pride in India and turban prejudice in the West. This is a must-read for all Sikhs and should be made available in schools to deal with school bullying. -Birjinder Singh Kochhar MD

Author Information

Amrik Singh Chattha was born September 1, 1937, in Chattha Chak No. 46, now located in Pakistan. His educational journey took him, in India, through Sikh National College, Qadian; Government Medical College, Patiala (where he met his wife, also a medical student); and Government Medical College, Amritsar; and in the United States, from Drake Memorial Hospital, Cincinnati, Ohio; New York Medical College, New York City; to Boston Children's Hospital and Mass General Hospital, Boston, both affiliated with Harvard Medical School, where he was a fellow in neurology (the only turban-wearing Sikh ever accepted into that program). He spent five years in Boston training in neurology. He and his family then moved to Weirton, West Virginia, where he practiced neurology for forty-one years, finally retiring to the San Francisco Bay Area. Since his marriage to Dr. Jaswinder Kaur Brar, in 1961, they have journeyed together. Professional Organizations: American Academy of Neurology Hancock County Medical Society, West Virginia Jefferson County Medical Society, Ohio Community Organizations: President, Sikh Council of North America, 1982 Founding member, Tristate Sikh Cultural Society (helped the build-ing of the Sikh Gurdwara at Pittsburgh; organized Sikh youth camps) Founding member of the alumni organization, Government Medical College, Patiala Founding member, Patiala Health Foundation Other: Author of Safar: A Child's Walk to Freedom During the Partition of India (2018) Member, Sikh Heritage Foundation, which created a Sikh exhibit at the Smithsonian (opened in 2004; now a traveling exhibit) Sponsor of two books: Sikh Heritage: Ethos & Relics and Sikhs: Legacy of the Punjab (developed by the Smithsonian) Endowed a chair in Sikh Studies at the University of Michigan (named in honor of parents: the Tara Singh and Balwant Kaur Chattha and Gurbaksh Singh and Kirpal Kaur Brar Sikh Studies Chair)

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