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40,000 Sikhs gather for Yuba City parade

This year's annual Sikh Parade in Yuba City was unlike any other over the past 21 years.

The legacy of September 11 was evident everywhere, from star-spangled head coverings to a sign that read "These we will defend" showing the American flag and the Sikh khanda side by side.

Everywhere one looked, the red, white and blue waved proudly alongside the portraits of gurus, floats portraying models of gurdwaras, and the Guru Granth Sahib.

An estimated 40,000 attended this year's parade. The number would have been more were it not for recent warnings of threats to California bridges, said Dr Jasbir Kang, a Yuba City gurdwara leader.

The parade commemorates the occasion when the tenth and final guru, Gobind Singh, gave the Sikhs the Guru Granth Sahib, the collection of Sikh scriptures.

This year, the parade also strongly displayed the patriotism that Sikhs feel for America as well as the pride they feel for their religion. "With what is going on in the world, it is painful for all Americans," said Kang. "The theme became a part of that."

What's more, the occasion was another opportunity for the Sikhs of Yuba City along with visitors who came from everywhere across the nation and the world to continue to educate the mainstream public about who Sikhs are.

That effort increased following the death of Balbir Singh Sodhi, a Sikh from Mesa, Arizona. "Because we dress differently, we are confused with people from Afghanistan," said Kang. But despite the large number of Punjabi Sikhs in the Yuba City area, no incidents of violence have been reported.

Before the Nigar Kirtan rolled out on to Tierra Buena Road, California Lieutenant Governor Cruz Bustamante addressed the Sikhs and brought to them a "message of unity". Bustamante, the highest-ranking politician to ever visit the gurdwara, talked about the importance of not letting stereotyping and ignorance divide Americans.

"Just because you wear a turban doesn't make you a terrorist," said Bustamante, his head covered in respect of Sikh principles. "What do we call an American who wears a turban?" asked Bustamante. "We call him an American."

The parade began in 1980 with 5,000 participants. It has grown steadily each year, but is always observed on the first Sunday of November following a month of continuous akhand paths (continuous chanting of religious scriptures) to mark the occasion.

All along the six-mile route, parade walkers are treated with tea, samosas and other treats, compliments of individuals who wish to extend their seva (service) beyond the gurdwara.

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