Our Growing Legal Work— With Your Support

Dear Supporter ji,

My name is Sahel Kaur, and I serve as a Senior Staff Attorney here at the Sikh Coalition. I’m also the newest addition to our legal team, having joined the organization in January. 

As you consider your end-of-year giving this month, I wanted to reach out on behalf of our organization to share a little bit about what our team of attorneys has been working on this year—because we know that many of you contribute your dasvandh specifically in support of our work to provide free legal aid to sangat members in need across the country.

Throughout this year, the Sikh Coalition has fielded more than 220 legal “intakes,” or requests for help. Some of these requests are cases that we just can’t take, because they fall outside of our area of expertise as civil rights lawyers; we refer many of them out to attorneys we know are experts in other fields, from gender-based discrimination in the workplace to immigration processes and paperwork. 

But many of these asks for assistance do end up being part of our case work—and they include a wide range of problems. 

One person we helped this year was a Sikh man who was told to leave a gun store simply because he was wearing his dastaar. The store owner insisted they had a “dress code” that prohibited “hats” of any kind, and it ultimately took us arguing before a state human relations commission in order to secure a victory on our client’s behalf—including a direct order for the business to stop discriminating against religious minorities.

We also pressed forward with some of our few longer-term cases, from filing a complaint on behalf of a Sikh prisoner whose articles of faith were severely disrespected by guards to advocating for Sikh paramedics who were wrongfully dismissed from their jobs. Litigation like this can take years to move forward, and requires a careful attention to detail and a legal team big enough to juggle multiple competing priorities.

Finally, many different sangat members came to us seeking assistance in maintaining their articles of faith in various settings. Sikhs in a wide range of professions needed help maintaining their kesh, from flight school applicants to nurses. One young Singh sought to maintain his kirpan at school, and another older man was turned away from his gym for wearing his—we helped both get accommodations. And even articles of faith like karas can require legal intervention, like the case of a young Kaur who sought to wear hers while playing in a soccer league.

Every case, big and small, feeds into the same overarching theory: our community has the right to practice our faith freely in all walks of life. When you give to the Sikh Coalition, you are contributing to making that basic idea a reality. No one should have to enlist attorneys to help them in the face of bias or discrimination—but many people do, and that’s where we are proud to step in and help!

Thank you for your continued support. We look forward to continuing to fight for our community’s rights in 2025 and beyond!

Chardi Kala,

Sahel Kaur
Senior Staff Attorney
The Sikh Coalition