| Forty years after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the United States of America elected its first African-American president. According to an editorial published in The Wall Street Journal on the morning after Barack Obama’s historic election, “one promise of his victory is that perhaps we can put to rest the myth of racism as a barrier to achievement in this splendid country.” For Sikh Americans, the strength of that promise can be measured by the extent to which American voters are ready for a Sikh president. Will there be a Sikh American president in your lifetime? Since 1996, the staff and national volunteers of the Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund (SALDEF) have worked tirelessly to promote and protect the civil rights of Sikh Americans through education and advocacy. Our mission is to promote a fostering environment for future generations of Sikh Americans so that they might someday aspire to become the first Sikh American President of the United States. The keys to achieving this dream are education and advocacy, but SALDEF cannot continue its work without your support. A donation of just $10 or $20 dollars a month will help ensure that SALDEF remains on stable financial ground in 2009 and beyond. |
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| In 2008, the U.S. Department of Justice posted the SALDEF On Common Ground Sikh cultural awareness training video to its website. The video has been shown to over 43,000 TSA airport screeners nationwide and to innumerable state and federal law enforcement officials through SALDEF’s Law Enforcement Partnership Program (LEPP). |
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| In 2008, SALDEF collaborated with a private school and public school district in California on anti-bullying programs to ensure that Sikh students are protected from bullying and allowed to learn without fear of being harassed. |
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| In 2008, SALDEF was featured in a debate sponsored by Warner Brothers on the controversial film entitled Towelhead. SALDEF openly condemned the use of a racial slur as a film title and advocated for a more substantial representation of Sikh Americans in the U.S. film industry. |
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SALDEF in the News – 2008 In 2008, SALDEF brought Sikh American issues to the attention of several media outlets in the United States and countless internet blogs around the world. As a result, thousands of people have gained exposure to issues that are important to the Sikh American community:
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Defending Civil Rights
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Building Bridges
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Will there be a Sikh American president in your lifetime? Is the work of SALDEF important to you? Do you have any recommendations for 2009 and beyond? Do you want SALDEF to organize an educational workshop in your community? Please send an email to legal@saldef.org to share your thoughts. It goes without saying that we cannot do this work without your support. If you believe in the cause of educating and advocating for the Sikh American community for generations to come, please consider making a modest monthly donation today.
