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| Photograph credit: SS Minnesota, June 23, 1913. Washington State Historical Society, Tacoma, WA. |
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Seek? Sike? Sick? Even in a city as cosmopolitan as Seattle, it's hard to find anyone who can pronounce the word correctly, let alone find someone who is knowledgeable about the world's fifth largest organized religion, Sikhism, or its followers, Sikhs (pronounced "siks," and usually mispronounced as "seks").
Today, 26 million people worldwide identify themselves as Sikhs. A half million Sikhs live in the United States, and about an equal number in Canada. Approximately 20,000 Sikhs live in greater Seattle. Yet if you mention that Sikhs wear turbans and have beards, you're more than likely to hear someone casually mention, "Oh you mean like Arabs?" and even an occasional, "Like Osama bin Laden and those terrorists from the Taliban?"
But Sikhs aren't Arabs, nor are they terrorists, nor are they part of the Taliban. In fact, our region's own Sikh community traces its start back over a century ago, back when the city was just growing from its logging town roots and McKinley was president. Since that time, Sikhs have made and continue to make positive contributions to the Pacific Northwest, in ways as varied as their presence in our area - from professionals leading technology companies to youth influencing hip-hop culture with bhangra music. To understand the history of the Sikh community in the Pacific Northwest is to find a perspective where the spiritual and worldly matters of life converge.
Although Sikhs have been living in the United States and Canada for over a century, the general public understands little about the Sikh faith and the community's long-standing roots in the Pacific Northwest. The first Sikh immigrants arrived in this region in the late 1800s, working in lumber mills and constructing railroads. Immigrants arriving since the 1960s have been professionals, businesspeople, and entrepreneurs. Despite their rich contributions to this region, Sikhs have been the targets of racism and discrimination, especially amplified in the United States since the tragic events of September 11, 2001.
The Sikh Community: Over 100 Years in the Pacific Northwest exhibition at the Wing Luke Asian Museum features historic and educational materials, artifacts, photographs, oral history collections and multimedia of the Sikh community in the Pacific Northwest. Public programming will also be scheduled throughout the duration of the exhibit. This exhibition seeks to educate the general public about the Sikh faith and the history and heritage of the Sikh community in the Northwest. |
