ਵਾਹਿਗੁਰੂ ਜੀ ਕਾ ਖਾਲਸਾ, ਵਾਹਿਗੁਰੂ ਜੀ ਕੀ ਫ਼ਤਿਹ

On August 12, 2019, I will be stepping down as the Executive Director of the World Sikh Organization of Canada (WSO) as I move on to a new endeavour.

This past week, at our annual Brampton Community Dinner and Ottawa Parliamentary Reception, we remembered the 35th anniversary of the Indian army invasion of the Darbar Sahib Complex, a direct attack on our identity and sovereignty (we will be hosting our Surrey Community Dinner later this week).

April was a tumultuous month.

We saw the WSO, gurdwara committees, and individuals across Canada raise their concerns, as a collective, about the Public Saftey Canada Terror Report, and how it maligned our community.

We cannot do this without you. 

Your ongoing support for the fearless third-party community advocacy found at the WSO ensures we can continue to unapologetically promote and protect Sikh interests in Canada and around the world.

What a year 2018 was.

With a new energized board, we worked hard to make a positive difference. The challenges 2018 presented provided us an opportunity to come together and fight back against the barrage of attacks on the Sikh community's image. Our organization showed how critical an effective advocacy group is for the community.

During the last weekend of January, the WSO's Executive Committee met in Calgary to discuss our strategy in 2019 and beyond.

Roughly 6 years ago we began what has become a very successful succession planning and transition, as we brought on more youth and women into the organization. It was around this time we also launched new initiatives like the Sikh Youth Leadership Institute. 

The Vancouver Sun has removed references to "Sikhs" in the January 4, 2019 article by Douglas Todd entitled “Half of Indian athletes who came to Canada failed to go home”.  WSO had written in to request the change.

Originally the piece included the following passages:

“While some Sikhs in Canada are unhappy with the way kabaddi athletes pay consultants to help them jump Canada’s visa and immigration queues, federal Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen says in a government document that the special visa program for the mostly Punjabi athletes “provides benefits” to Canada"

The new year is a great time to engage in introspection.

We had an active and busy 2018, and I truly believe the WSO was up to the challenge of providing a smart and sophisticated Sikh voice in Canada. 

What a year 2018 has been. We've seen the news articles, the constant barrage of attacks on the Sikh community's image and we've seen the work that an effective third-party advocacy group can do on behalf of the community. 

A little over 5 years ago the WSO embarked on a mission of renewal

We renewed the board.

We renewed our executive.

We renewed our initiatives and projects.