Thursday, 22 May 2003
BERKELEY, Calif.
The first time I came across the word "underserved," I misread it as "undeserved." There I was, wondering why Sikh farmers were undeserved of assistance.
Last year, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Risk Management Agency contacted us about the possibility of our conducting outreach to Sikh farmers in California's Yuba and Sutter counties. We followed up with a grant proposal and are now working with the USDA and Sikh farmers on lowering environmental and health risks. We also present marketing workshops to help them reduce their costs and further their success.
In retrospect, I can't thank the USDA enough for approaching us about assisting our farmers. Yuba and Sutter counties are largely agrarian, and Sikh farmers have been there for three generations, with tremendous success in orchard farming, primarily peaches and plums. All sectors of the economy are struggling right now, and agriculture is no exception. This year, Sikh farmers in Yuba and Sutter counties are expecting to have 68,000 tons of uncontracted fruit -- that means fruit that will go to waste! What a tremendous loss.
Thimmakka's Resources is partnering with four interns at the University of California at Berkeley, one intern at UC-Davis, the USDA RMA, and several agricultural nonprofits to research what can be done with the Sikh farmers' produce regionally, nationally, and internationally. All literature and marketing workshops will be available equally in Punjabi and English.
So far, we have gotten the literature translated into Punjabi and I have downloaded the Gurumukhi font (the Punjabi script; Gurumukhi literally means "from the words of the teacher"). Today, I'll be typing it on my computer and making hundreds of copies. On Sunday, May 25, we will go to the Baisakhi festival -- the festival celebrating the harvest of the Sikhs -- and will talk to Sikh farmers there. They have imported a very famous singer from India for the occasion. The dance of the Sikhs is called bhangra, and it is the happiest dance in the world! Sikh men are known for their strength and for their amazing dancing. If you say "men don't know how to dance," you've never the seen the proud Sikh dancing! I know of no Sikh man who says, "I don't dance."
The Sikhs are a proud race, a race of quiet warriors. If you visit their farms, they'll give you a tall glass of lassi, a traditional Indian summer drink made from yogurt and water, with foam on top and a garnish of burnt cumin. Or you might get a glass of sugarcane juice. They are known for their loyalty and their generosity; they would give you the shirts off their backs. My mother was known to say, "You will never see a Sikh begging. They will work, however menial the task, but their pride and their religion forbids them from asking anyone for financial help." In India, I would sooner trust a Sikh man late at night walking down the street alone than I would anyone else.
To the Sikhs, two things are important above all else. The first is religion in action. I say action because Sikhs believe in charity, they believe in donating their time and skills, and the first lines of their prayer read "Ek Onkar, Satnam karta purakh, nir-bhau, nir-veir," which means: "There is one God, and the name of that God is truth (God is truth, truth is God); truth is the doer, it is without fear, and without prejudice." The second most important thing to the Sikhs is family. Their lives revolve around caring for their spouses and children.
In the dance of the Sikhs, the bearded men wear turbans, white shirts, and colored lungis (bottom skirts) in red, yellow, and green. They stand on each other's shoulders and dance. They jump in the air and come running. The musical instruments are large drums called Dhol; it is a percussion dance. They throw their hands in the air and dance with glee, with joy. It is impossible not to smile when you are dancing and when you watch them dance. To me, it is impossible to look upon them and not have my chest swell with pride -- for them, for my people of many faces, many tongues, many religions.
A chance to help my Sikh brothers and sisters when they are in need? I'd jump at it.
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