VANCOUVER — More than 100,000 revellers gathered in Vancouver and in suburban Surrey Saturday to celebrate Vaisakhi, a celebration of the birth of Sikhism.
The morning drizzle did little to dampen spirits as colourfully-dressed people from all faiths and cultures streamed through Vancouver’s Main Street and Surrey’s 128 Street.
But the celebrations were mixed with political undertones.
In Surrey, portraits of the assassins of former Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi were displayed outside the Gurdwara Dashmesh Darbar Temple and were printed on T-shirts worn by young people, according to attendee Indira Prahst.
The portraits have been controversial in previous years with many saying they glorify violence.
Prahst, a sociology instructor at Langara College, said she is sensitive to the images, but has learned to understand why they are important to the Sikh community.
“This year, they did a lot more explanation in English about the human rights violations (against Sikhs),” she said. “I think there’s no doubt we have to understand different view points.”
“For me, it’s a bit personal because I was named after Indira Gandhi. My family revered Indira Gandhi so I’m very sensitive. But on the other hand, I’ve also been educated about it and Indira Gandhi did, during Operation Blue Star, go into the (Golden) temple and kill innocent people.”
Shoes were thrown at a cardboard image of an Indian government official believed to have been involved in Operation Blue Star, the 1984 Indian military attack on the Golden Temple in Amritsar that was aimed against Sikh separatists.
Meanwhile in Vancouver, a plane flew overhead with a banner that read “India should stop genocide against minorities.”
Yet, most revellers seemed more attuned to the joyful celebrations than to politics.
In the spirit of generosity and service to the community, free food flowed continuously through the day while traditional Indian music and drumming reverberated from sidewalk stages.
“I think it’s so wonderful that we live in a country where we can experience this cultural event,” said Vancouverite Elaine Cho, who was enjoying a plate of curry.
Restaurant owner Mana Tung, was busy doling out hot naan bread to a long line of people and estimated he would give away up to $3,000 worth of food.
“Everyone needs to enjoy themselves, that’s why I give free food,” said Tung.
Meanwhile, cousins Taylor and Reyah Sidhu joined family and friends in passing out candy in Vancouver.
“I just like how everyone gets together,” said Taylor, 19.
“And we’re accepting of different religions. You see all different races out here and everyone’s treated equally,” added Reyah, 16.
Ahead of the Vaisakhi parade in Vancouver, politicians from all three levels gathered at the Khalsa Diwan Society Temple in South Vancouver.
Surrey Mayor Dianne Watts also took part in the celebrations, after boycotting staged events last year when organizers could not promise that images of so-called Sikh martyrs would not be displayed.
This year, Sudager Singh Sandhu, president of Surrey’s Gurdwara Dashmesh Darbar Temple which organizes the parade, said there would be no such images.
