Study Reveals How To Communicate Sikhism In America

american_flagWASHINGTON DC, USA—After a year of painstaking work, the National Sikh Campaign has released the historic report: Sikhism in the United States: What Americans Know and Need to Know. The report was the first comprehensive study ever conducted on Sikhism.

This groundbreaking report allows Sikh-Americans to scientifically understand, for the first time in the Sikh community’s 100+ year history in the United States, the specific facts, images and stories about Sikhism that resonate with the broader American public. We now have a clear roadmap to give our fellow American’s a firm understanding of our identity and values

The report found Sikh-Americans can make SIGNIFICANT improvement in building their image and changing their perceptions in the United States IF we effectively communicate key elements of our faith such as Sikhism’s commitment to equality, relating our values to American values, and the articulating the meaning of the turban.

Americans, regardless of race, religion, gender, political orientation, were extremely receptive to the Sikh message. It is up to us to tell our story.

By following the recommendations in the report we now know what we need to be communicating and whom we need to be communicating with to build Sikh awareness – which is critical because our future in America hinges on our ability to communicate our values.

If we allow the “foreignness’ of the Sikh image to persist over generations, the viability of maintaining the proud Sikh image will decline. We should be able to proudly declare ourselves as Sikhs, and have our fellow Americans know who we are and what we stand for.

If we invest resources in strategically communicating the information outlined in this upcoming report and ultimately raise awareness, we will build a new future for Sikhs in America.

You can read the report here and the executive summary here:

Below is a summary of the report:

Main Points from the Sikhism in the United States study:

1.    Recognize that most Americans know little to nothing about Sikhs. Many Americans have never heard of Sikhism or met someone who is Sikh

2.    There is enormous potential to enhance positive feelings toward Sikh Americans by communicating the messages below and DEMPHASIZING the messages of discrimination and bullying. In our post-messaging exercise, feelings towards Sikhs improved by double digits in EVERY demographic for an overall improvement of 17.5 percent.

3.    Tell the Sikh Story in Familiar Positive Terms. Americans are more likely to feel warm toward others who they see as similar to themselves.

4.    Show that Sikh Values are American Values. Americans who know little or nothing about Sikh Americans are unlikely to associate Sikhism with American values. Draw parallels between America’s founding principles and values and those valued in the Sikh faith (particularly equality).

5.    Highlight the Value of Equality. Equality and the belief that all people are equal proved to be the tenet of Sikhism that resonates most with the American public. Among women-an important outreach target-Sikhism‘s value of equality is especially powerful.

6.   Explain the Meaning of the Turban. Educate Americans about the symbol of the turban by describing it as an expression of Sikh (and hence, American) values and answer their broader, more basic questions about the Sikh faith.

 

The study includes a combination of sophisticated qualitative and quantitative research techniques and incorporates knowledge from past conducted by the Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund (SALDEF) and Sikh Coalition.

The facts, images and stories about Sikhs that we tested in the study were gathered in unprecedented collaboration with leading Sikh organizations and advocates such as: Kaur Foundation, United Sikhs, Sikh Coalition, SikhNet, Sikh Council on Religion and Education (SCORE), Valarie Kaur, Kamal Kalsi, and Prabhjot Singh.

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