Reports of Obama not visiting Golden Temple disappoint Sikhs

Lalit K Jha
Washington, Oct 23 (PTI) The influential American Sikh
community here has expressed its disappointment over reports
that US President Barack Obama has dropped Golden Temple from
his schedule during his November visit to India.
While no official announcement has been made on the
itinerary of Obama's trip, Sikh Coalition – a Washington-based
advocacy group – said that numerous news outlets, including
The New York Times, have indicated that he has cancelled a
scheduled trip to the Golden Temple over what headgear he
should wear in the shrine.
Sikh practice requires that any person who enter a
Sikh place of worship should cover the head.
News reports indicate there is a fear that the US
President may appear to be a Muslim and so face negative
political consequences in the United States if he appears at
the Golden Temple with a head covering, the group said in a
statement.
"If the reported reasons for the President's cancellation
are true, we're very disappointed," Education director of Sikh
Coalition, Manbeena Kaur said.
"The Golden Temple, at its core, welcomes people of
all backgrounds, religions, and cultures. The President's
visit would have been a great way to underscore the message of
respect for all. It is shame that this trip may not happen,"
she added.
Noting that since the 9/11 tragedy misperceptions
about this appearance have led to hate attacks and
discrimination against Sikhs across the country, the Sikh
Coalition said it has recorded over 900 incidents of biasness
against the community since the 9/11.
These incidents often occur because the perpetrators
believe Sikhs to be Muslim or of Middle Eastern origin, it
said.
"We hope the President visits the Golden Temple. His
visit would be an important 'teachable moment' in which the
President could demonstrate America's commitment to religious
pluralism and respect for all," Kaur said
Early this week, White House Press Secretary Robert
Gibbs said that Obama's India schedule has not been finalised
yet.
"Look, it's a big country. We would love to spend a
lot more than the three allotted days that we have in India.
This trip will focus our business in the cities of Mumbai and
New Delhi. But we pick where we're going to go on trips based
on what we hope to accomplish," Gibbs said on Wednesday.
"We pick sites on foreign trips based on what the
President wants to accomplish. We've not finalised the
schedule for Asia, including India, yet. We hope to do that
over the course of the next week," he had said. PTI