Border Patrol's Seizure of Religious Items from Sikh Migrants 'Egregious Violation' - Lawmakers

[appalachiablue]

- Daily Kos, Aug. 18, 2022. Ed.

U.S. border agents in the Yuma, Arizona sector have seized turbans from almost 50 Sikh asylum-seekers in recent weeks, civil rights advocates said in an alarming letter earlier this month. But volunteers with an immigrant advocacy group along the borderlands revealed the number could actually be into the 100s, and that these religious freedom violations have also stretched into the Tucson sector. - Lawmakers are now demanding answers in an Aug. 17 letter to the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) commissioner:

“We are greatly alarmed by continuing reports that people are being indiscriminately forced to give up their religious items and other possessions- which are then trashed in many cases. Multiple entities working directly with Sikh migrants said communication and cooperation with CBP officials on this specific to this issue has been difficult, making it even more urgent to address this situation as soon as possible.” After revelations earlier this month that border agents had seized, an refused to return, religious headwear belonging to Sikh migrants, CBP Commissioner Chris Magnus said that he was opening an investigation.

But since then, non-profit news organization Arizona Luminaria reported that abuses were more far-reaching than previously known, as lawmakers also noted in their letter. “Such actions constitute a violation of multiple Depart. of Homeland Security (DHS) policies and federal laws that protect religious freedom and an individual’s personal property while under custody,” Rep. Joaquin Castro, CA Rep. Judy Chu, and AZ Rep. Raúl Grijalva write. "Confiscating & discarding religious items, including Sikh turbans, is an egregious violation of an individual’s religious freedom and goes against the values of our nation.” “As you may be aware, many of the Sikhs making their way to the U.S. border are seeking asylum on the basis of religious persecution.”

They note that turbans carry “deep spiritual significance, and are mandated by Sikhs’ religious traditions and should not be forcibly removed or discarded.”

“Unfortunately, the confiscation or forced disposal of individuals’ personal property, including religious items, is a long-standing issue that has become more prevalent over the past year,” they said. Even though border agents are supposed to return personal items to migrants, they oftentimes just trash them. Religious items like rosaries have also been thrown away by agents. The American Civil Liberties Union of AZ said in its Aug. 1 letter to Magnus that agents have actually been confiscating turbans as far back as 2019, but that the seizures jumped this past June...https://m.dailykos.com/stories/2022/8/18/2117397/-Lawmakers-call-Border-Patrol-s-seizure-of-religious-items-from-Sikh-migrants-egregious-violation
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- Sikhs are people who adhere to Sikhism, a monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian Subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term Sikh has its origin in the word śiṣya, meaning 'disciple' or 'student."
From the from the day of their initiation known as Khalsa Amritdhari Sikhs, and they must at all times have on their bodies five Ks: kesh, uncut hair, which is kept covered usually by a dastār, also known as a turban; kara, an iron or steel bracelet; kirpan, a dagger-like sword tucked into a gatra strap or a kamar kasa waistband; kachera, a cotton undergarment; and kanga, a small wooden comb.

The Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent has been the historic homeland of the Sikhs, having even been ruled by the Sikhs for significant parts of the 18th and 19th centuries. Today, the Punjab state, India has a majority Sikh population, and sizeable communities of Sikhs exist around the world. Many countries, such as Canada and the United Kingdom, recognize Sikhs as a designated religion on their censuses, and, as of 2020, Sikhs are considered as a separate ethnic group in the United States...https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sikhs

[James48]

1. It's not the turban- it's the knife.

Sikh’s carry a knife called a kirpan for religious reasons. The 9th Circuit previously has held that they may be carried in some situations, but I have no idea if Border Patrol has a formal policy on it. TSA requires that they be packed in checked baggage and not worn.

[appalachiablue]

3. TX, I knew about the knives, not the regs.

[marybourg]

2. Pretty disingenuous not to mention the ceremonial knife

carried in the turban as the basis for these confiscations.

[appalachiablue]

4. # !, 3. I never heard that knives were in turbans, but carried on a belt, etc. as

mentioned in the wiki above.

[marybourg]

5. You are correct. Contemporary sources report that the

knife is worn in a sheath or belt under clothing. I believe that the practice formerly was to carry a small replica of a sword, or a knife, in the turban, and certainly many non-Sikhs believe this to be so, but contemporary Sikhs do not mention this. Nevertheless, ceremonial knives are carried and the article merely refers to them repeatedly as ceremonial objects or religious objects, never mentioning the nature of these objects.

[IbogaProject]

6. That knife is to defend all religions

It is a symbol that they are to defend all reasonable religions from violence not just their own.