For the fourth Year teams from the Major Leagues will host annual Sikh Heritage Nights.
NBA Teams have been hosting Sikh Heritage Nights since April 2014, when the Sacramento Kings hosted their first "Kaurs Singhs and Kings". This was followed by Los Angeles Clippers Kaurs Singhs and Clippers in January 2015, Detroit Pistons in April 2015 and Tampa Bay Buccaneers in November 2015.
This year a new addition, NHL's San Jose Sharks will on March 2nd 2017 host their local Sikh Community when they take on Vancouver Canucks. For NHL's San Jose Sharks this will be their first Sikh Heritage Night - Kaurs Singhs and Sharks and word is that it is already sold out.
Detroit Pistons who will host their third Annual Sikh Night - Kaurs Singhs and Pistons are also anticipating a huge community presence for their Game with Toronto Raptors. It will be interesting to know how many Canadians actually join in with the Sharks and Pistons for their celebration of Sikh Heritage because the opponents in both cases are Canadian teams - Canucks (Vs Sharks) and Raptors (Vs Pistons).
To close out NBA's 2016/17 season Phoenix Suns will celebrate their Second Vaisakhi on April 9th 2016 with a half time Bhangra performance for the second Annual Sikh Heritage Night -"Kaurs Singhs and Suns".
K3 International, a group which has been promoting South Asian Culture on the Main Stage for over 3 decades began the initiative to celebrate for Sikh Heritage under the banner "Kaurs Singhs and "in partnership with the Major US and Canadian Sports franchises.
The first event was on April 13 th 2014, the Sacramento Kings held the first ever Sikh Heritage Night - Kaurs Singhs and Kings with Pre-Game and Half Time Punjabi Folk Dances.
The date "April 13th" is highly relevant to Sikhs in that April 13 th commemorates the birth aniversary of Sikhism.
Since this first Sikh Heritage event, K3 International has partnered with Detroit Pistons, Phoenix Suns, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, San Antonio Stars, San Jose Sharks. This collaborative project with USA and Canadian Sports Franchises began following a survey of Sikh Americans published in 2006 by Harvard University which revealed that 83 percent of Sikh respondents either personally experienced or knew someone who experienced a hate crime or hate incident on account of their religion - http://pluralism.org/affiliates/kaur sidhu/We Are Americans Too.pdf
Young Sikh children also experience a disproportionate amount of hate crimes, because of their appearance.
As pointed out by many researchers and community activists there is no one solution for addressing problems of hate within our communities or our schools. The solutions require interaction as well as education and assertive action from those in authority. Recently A group of Sikhs were harassed and nearly prevented from attending a San Diego Chargers Vs Denver Bronos Game at Qualcomm Stadium.
In the process of education there is one approach which involves inclusion and engagement, this is being promoted and pursued by K3 International (K3).
The recent shooting of two Indian Software engineers working for Garmin in Kansas by a Navy Veteran. Highlights the need for these events and Enterprising teams eager to service their local fan base have been a great source of inspiration for this project. K3 is working with sports franchises to engage sports fans and community members in promoting not only the Sikh identity but the identity of other minority communities has resulted in K3 working with other teams to host similar events.
Anyone who wants to participate in these upcoming events should email [email protected]. As we are experiencing with the recent wave of Hate speech and Hate crimes our American Cultural and Social Fabric is being torn to shreds. These events and others like them will help our American Communities to re-weave our cultural and social fabric with understanding, knowledge, care and compassion. In this regard any sports team groups sales, Fan Experience or Entertainment professional who wants to venture out and help rebuild the America. The America that Martin Luther King Dreamed about. Please email [email protected].
Coming up for this season are:
- "Kaurs Singhs and Sharks" on March 2nd 2017
Tickets SOLD OUT - "Kaurs Singhs and Pistons" on March 17th 2017
Tickets available from: https://billetebox.com/PistonsAndRaptors/ - "Kaurs Singhs and Suns" April 9th 2016
Tickets available from: https://billetebox.com/KaursSinghsSuns/
One significant outcome of these heritage night events has been the awareness of the diverse culture which constitutes their neighborhoods. Many fans respond with excitement as they rise to appreciate the entertainment presented to them as part of the heritage nights. A video showcasing the recent Garba "Gujrati Folk Dance" during the Sacramento Kings "Salute to India" event went viral with over 18,000 views within a couple of days.
This cultural immersion may only be impacting a small populace of sports fans within the USA. But the point to note is that these people will take back and experience which will not only expose them to a culture from among their neighbors, but also enlighten them and make them aware of the diversity which makes America the nation where people choose to live with equality, freedom, liberty and justice for all.