| Spring 2001 - The Penn Sikh Organization was founded in the Spring of 2001 by Harvin Singh Vig '03. Penn Punjabi Professor, Dr. Amrit Gahunia, was an essential source of support for the early stages of the Organization. The first meeting comprised of 15 students with a goal to increase awareness of Sikhism at the University of Pennsylvania and the Philadelphia community. The Penn Sikh Organization was first registered with the Office of Student Life at this point. The Organization's first few events were limited to gurudwara trips to Upper Darby and prayer meetings. 2001-2002 - The following school year, the tragedy of September 11th occurred and Sikhs were targeted in a vicious spree of hatecrimes across the country. The pennsikhorg yahoogroup was ironically created on September 10, 2001. The day after altered the life of every American. Sikhs became the targets of backlash simply due appearance with the turban and beard. Members of the Organization made every possible effort to educate the community about Sikhs and ensure the safety of local Sikhs. Sikhs around the community were handed flyers by the Organization to inform mainstream America about Sikhs. The Organization also participated in several interfaith panels and discussions on hatecrimes and various other religious events. 2002-2003 - The school year of 2002-2003 brought many new opportunities to members of the organization. The Organization was recognized and affiliated with PRISM, a Penn umbrella group sponsoring and promoting religious, interfaith, and spirituality matters. During this year the membership also grew very rapidly with the addition of several undergraduate and graduate Sikh students as well as increasing numbers of students involved from neighboring universities. On April 5th, the Organization plans held its first large-scale Vaisakhi workshop, entitled Hatecrimes and Lovecrimes: An Interfaith Discourse. The goal of the workshop was to discuss barriers of faith on the college campus, from hatecrimes to interfaith/interracial relationships. A diverse group of panelists has been invited and the workshop will present the first official screening in Philadelphia of the widely-acclaimed documentary "Mistaken Identity: Sikhs in America." |
| PSO HISTORY |