Interview with Satpreet Kaur

Tell us about yourself?

I'm a Bio student and currently treasurer of the Sikh students Association at CSUS. Many of my hobbies are changing right now, but I still love to read, listen to music, and travel to other countries. I never played any sports.... and the rest of my hobbies I'll not mention as those are bad ones I need to get rid of.

There are many problems Sikh Youth face in the west. However which would you recognize as the most important ones that we need to address immediately?

The most important problem to deal with first is the use of drugs and alcohol among the youth. The second problem is some of the youth feel they need to blend in with the crowd so they drop the things that make a Sikh distinguishable.

One can be tackling current social problems all day and never actually get to the core of the problem. Isn't it better to solve these problems at grass root level rather than try to help people who may well be a lost cause?

Indeed, many of the social problems need to be tackled from the roots. If we don't deal with the actual root of the problem we'll continue to have more problems. the ones who are considered a "lost cause" can be dealt with later and perhaps more easily once we reach the core of all problems

What do you think about Gurdwara sahib Managements around the world? do you think that they are doing all the best they can do for the Sikh community and for the youth?

First of all the Gurdwara management committee needs to be reformed. The people in the management team need to think of themselves as SEVADAR. However they always think of themselves as the President (or whatever the title is) . In some Gurdwaras around the world the management team shows up on "sangrand" and they count the money in the donation box. The rest of the month they rarely come and fulfill their duties. The second thing that needs to be reformed in the management is that they all need to be Amritdhari. When the Gurdwara management is all Amritdhari then so many things can turn to the positive end for khalsa panth.

My personal experience has been that the management committee has mostly failed to do all it can do for the Sikh communities and for the youth. Yes they have Sunday school to teach kids to read and write Punjabi . yes they collect money for needy people. But in all other areas things are vanishing from the Gurdwara because there is not enough parchar. Most importantly, they are not attracting the youth.

You spend little bit of your time online. what are your concerns on the growing number of Sikh youths spending lots of time using the IM services instead of on outdoor activities? Do you think internet helps youth?

The internet helped me more in 1 year than the local 5 Gurdwara did in 19 years. However, people need to remember to stay active and participate in sports. Unfortunately, many people are using the internet for other purposes and spending less time in outdoor activities.

Who is your role model?

My role model has always been my nanaji Bhai Mohan Singh Ji. He's my role model because he was the last person in my family who was Amritdhari and I look up to him because my goal is to be like him someday... to have what he had in him.

What do you think are some of the issues we should be concerned with when dealing with the youth?

when dealing with the youth keep in mind that a lot of us have turned our backs on the Gurdwara and Sikhi. We still go to the Gurdwara sometimes, but honestly we'd rather be hanging out with our friends at the movies or somewhere else. A lot of us I feel don't believe in Sikhi. Many of us have not been brought up in the "Gurmat" or "gursikhi" lifestyle... so we've grown up doing wrong things.

Whose responsibility is it to tackle the problems of young Sikhs on a broader level?

On a broader level, I think that responsibility belongs to the Gurdwara. In particular the people who are in the Gurdwara's committee as well as the Granthi Singh and bhai jees. Unfortunately, they are spending more of their time in the Gurdwara sahib fighting about who is in charge, who should be in charge, how the money should be spent... they hardly have any focus on the youth. However, that is not to say that parents have no responsibility. The gurdwara can be doing an excellent job but if the parents have led their astray... then that's not much help.

What is your message to our readers?

Remember that there are two types of dreams. One dream starts when you close your eyes... and it stops when you open your eyes. The second dream is this world that we live in. The day you wake up from this dream you will realize what your mission is and what you are actually supposed to do here with your life.

Thank you so much for taking the time to answer the above questions,
and we hope you can continue to carry the torch of Sikhi and inspire others alike.
UnitedSikhs.com Team