How acceptance came to Canada
Sikandar Singh Bhayee

The Sikhs in Canada: Migration, Races, Class and Gender.
by Gurcharn S. Barsan and B. Singh Bolaria. Oxford University Press, New Delhi. Rs 495. Pages 222.

HE Canadian social environment has come a long way from a totally exclusivist white-dominated closed society of the early 20th century to a rich mosaic of multicultural ethnic fabric.

While in 1913, the Vancouver Sun could have written about the Indians (termed Hindus) that: "We must not permit the men of that race to come in large numbers and we must not permit their women to come in at all... we have no right to imperil the comfort and happiness of generations that are to succeed us," the same province of British Columbia now has an Indian, a Punjabi of Sikh lineage, as its Prime Minister. Today, turbaned Sikhs occupy high positions; one sits in the Canadian Parliament, another is a Privy Councillor and yet another chaired the Visible Minorities Commission of the Federal Government.

Nations mature and evolve and, therefore, flourish and this should be true for all societies. Canadian society is one such example where the constituents struggle to grow and blossom with the rule of law attempting to provide all cultural/religious groups with a level playing field. Into this environment was injected the immigrant lot from Punjab, mostly Sikhs, the outer image of whom was at once alien and perceived threatening to the indigenous society.

The travails of the immigrants on board Komagata Maru were startling. However, over the decades, Sikhs became an integral part of the Canadian social milieu. In British Columbia, Punjabi is the second most spoken language and three universities offer courses in the Sikh History. The Sikhs, the code of conduct for whom is described as "democratic, egalitarian and progressive", found roots in a society where despite entrenched biases of race and religion, due respect is given to such fundamental values.

It was because of these considerations that a large number of Sikhs were attracted to Canada in the last two decades of the last century and many a youth found a haven there when the same values were eroding and diminishing in their homeland. It attracted both appreciation and criticism, but the fact remains that the Sikhs in Canada are now a recognised and respected entity.

Both authors are scholars of standing, as university Professors in Canada are a respected lot. They have gone deep and at length to document the trials and tribulations faced by the Sikhs in this land. The book dispassionately discusses and analyses this perception as an oppressed minority in their own homeland. In so doing, a large part of the book covers the historical evolution of the Sikh ethos and their problems, real and perceived, which they carry as a baggage from India. Overall, the book is a compendium of social and political situation of the Sikhs and their background in Canada.

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