SIGN THE PETITION:
As many of you know, I was born and raised in Montreal, in the French Canadian province of Quebec. This is a part of Canada and yet apart from much of the Canadians' ideals. I won't try to make sense of that right now. It's just too complicated. Enough to say that a group of four Sikhs were invited to speak at the Quebec Legislature talking about religious rights and freedom and the niqab. Make a note, they were invited guests. When they arrived, they were not allowed inside to testify because they were carrying their kirpans. I am not making this up!
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| Four Sikhs rejected from entering the Quebec Legislature |
Invited to Quebec legislature, Sikhs then barred for carrying kirpans
RHÉAL SÉGUIN
QUEBEC— From Wednesday's Globe and Mail
Last updated
They came to the National Assembly to support a woman’s religious right to wear a niqab in Quebec but four members of the World Sikh Organization of Canada were turned away because of another religious flashpoint – the kirpans they were carrying.The four Sikhs had been invited to appear before a legislative committee debating a bill that deals with the reasonable accommodation of religious minorities. But the group never got through the metal detectors at the entrance of the National Assembly building as security agents ruled the kirpans, or ceremonial daggers, they carried were a potential weapon...
Louise Beaudoin, the [Parti Québécois]’ designated critic on secularism, said, "...multiculturalism is not a Quebec value. It may be a Canadian one but it is not a Quebec one."Ms. Beaudoin supported the security agents’ decision to prohibit access to the four Sikhs when they refused to remove their kirpans.
Not satisfied in keeping Sikhs out of the Quebec Legislature, they are now trying to ban our kirpans in the Canadian Parliament. Clearly this is unacceptable to Sikhs everywhere. We must stand up and say a resounding NO! to this nonsense. One way to do this is to sign the petition
Say NO!! To Bloc's Call to Ban KIRPANS in ParliamentPlease, dear Gursikhs, help the Sikhs of Canada, your sisters and brothers preserve this right. We need your help now. Don't let us down!!
Please note that Jack Layton of the NDP (a proven friend to the Sikh community) supports our right to carry the kirpan, as does Liberal Party Leader Michael Ignatieff.The Conservatives have remained silent.
Photo Credit: CTV News
