Academic literature on the topic 'Sikh women – Canada'

Several North American Sikh millennials are creating online values-based fashion enterprises that seek to encourage creative expression, self-determined representation, gender equality, and ethical purchasing, while steeped in the free market economy. Exploring the innovative ways young Sikhs of the diaspora express their values and moral positions in the socio-economic sphere, one finds many fashionistas, artists, and activists who are committed to making Sikh dress accessible and acceptable in the fashion industry. Referred to as “Sikh chic”, the five outwards signs of the Khalsa Sikh—the “5 ks”—are frequently used as central motifs for these businesses (Reddy 2016). At the same time, many young Sikh fashion entrepreneurs are designing these items referencing contemporary style and social trends, from zero-waste bamboo kangas to hipster stylized turbans. Young Sikh women are challenging mainstream representations of a masculine Sikh identity by creating designs dedicated to celebrating Khalsa Sikh females. Drawing on data collected through digital and in-person ethnographic research including one-on-one interviews, participant observation, and social media, as well as fashion magazines and newsprint, I explore the complexities of this phenomenon as demonstrated by two Canadian-based Sikh fashion brands, Kundan Paaras and TrendySingh, and one Canadian-based Sikh female artist, Jasmin Kaur.

For decades, Sikhs have made the choice to migrate to the United Kingdom (UK), the United States of America (USA), or Canada, as these countries are held in high esteem by Sikh communities and appear to afford prestige in socio-cultural terms to those who settle in them. However, changes in border policies (among other considerations such as the greater difficulty of establishing themselves in other countries, the opening of borders by regularization processes in Spain, commercial business purposes, or political reasons) have compelled Sikh migrants to diversify their destinations, which now include many European countries, Spain among them. The first generation of Sikhs arrived in Spain as part of this search for new migratory routes, and there are now sizable Sikh communities settled in different parts of this country. All migrants need to follow a process of adaptation to their new living environment. Moreover, a novel living context may offer new possibilities for migrants to (re)negotiate old identities and create new ones, both at individual and collective levels. This article will explore a case study of a Sikh community in Barcelona to reflect on the forms in which Sikh men and women perceive, question, and manage their identity and their lives in this new migratory context in Spain. The present paper argues that adaptation to the new place implies identity negotiations that include the redefinition of gender roles, changes in the management of body and appearance, and, most particularly, the emergence of new forms of agency among young Sikh women. In addition, we argue that new forms of female agency are made possible not only by the opportunities offered by the new context, but also emerge as a reaction against the many pressures experienced by the young women and exerted by their male counterparts in Sikh communities, as the latter push against the loss of traditional values.

The present paper aims at exploration of Shauna Singh Baldwin’s specific technique implemented to present women predicament in selected stories from feministic point of view. The feministic point of view has developed out of a movement for equal rights and chances for women society. The present search is based on analytical and interpretative methods. Shauna Singh Baldwin is a writer of short fiction, poetry, novels and essays. Her ‘English Lessons and Other Stories’ explores the predicament of earlier neglected women of Sikh community by putting them in the context of globalization, immigration to West and consumerism at Indian modern society. “Montreal 1962” presents a Sikh wife’s attachment, love, determination, struggles and readiness to do anything for survival in Canada where her husband is threatened to remove his turban and cut his hair short to get the job. “Simran” presents the story of sacrifice of individual desire by a young Sikh girl because of her mother’s fundamentalist attitude. The title of story “English Lessons” presents injustice to an Indian woman who has married to an American, who compels her to become a prostitute and a source of his earnings in the States. The fourth selected story “Jassie” tells us about the timely need of religious tolerance in the file of an Indian immigrant old woman. Being a feminist writer, though Baldwin has never claimed directly to be, she has very skillfully presented the issues of feminism through her own technique of presentation. She has used technique of presenting absence or opposite to highlight it indirectly. Thus, true to her technique, though not explicitly declared, Baldwin is one of the feminist writers who skillfully deals with feminine concerns.

This article adopts a subjective and reflective voice to convey my emotional response (in Boler’s, 1999 terms) to the passing of a recent Bill in Quebec. The article explores the question: How does one reconcile a Sikh identity that is worthy, respected and admirable in Quebec, and by extension in Canada, in light of Quebec’s Bill 21? Further, through the lens of a racialized minority, that of a Sikh woman calling Canada home, and from the perspective of my family who have lived in Canada for several generations, I contest the recent legislation in Quebec’s Bill 21, for having erected a very strong, man-made cage that effectively bars anyone with a Sikh identity from working in the civil service.

In the last three decades, nurses have gone on strike in many countries including Canada, the UK, the US, Australia, Japan, New Zealand, Israel, Ireland, Denmark, Sweden, Poland, Portugal and South Africa. This article has a twofold purpose: first, to highlight oft-hidden patterns of nurse militancy through strike narratives; and second, to consider the contributions of nurse militancy to union renewal. It argues that the militancy of nurses speaks to many of the strategic threads in the union renewal project. It touches upon four themes: women’s militancy, rank-and-file militancy, coalition-building and community outreach, and professionals in the labour movement. In considering the militancy of women, this discussion genders the union renewal debate. At the same time, the article broadens the focus of the women and unions scholarship from issues of representation and leadership, constituency and cross-constituency organizing, and equity policy and bargaining to include workplace militancy. Au cours des trois dernières décennies, des infirmières sont parties en grève dans de nombreux pays, notamment au Canada, au Royaume-Uni, aux États-Unis, en Australie, au Japon, en Nouvelle-Zélande, en Israël, en Irlande, au Danemark, en Suède, en Pologne, au Portugal et en Afrique du Sud. Cet article poursuit un double objectif: tout d’abord, mettre en lumière le comportement souvent ignoré du militantisme des infirmières au travers du récit de grèves; ensuite, examiner la contribution de ce militantisme au renouveau syndical. Il montre que le militantisme des infirmières fait écho à bon nombre des axes stratégiques du projet de renouveau syndical. Il aborde quatre thèmes: le militantisme des femmes; le militantisme de la base; la construction de coalitions et le soutien de la communauté proche; le rôle des professionnels de la santé dans le mouvement des travailleurs. En examinant le militantisme des femmes, il intègre la dimension du genre dans le débat sur le renouveau syndical. Dans le même temps, l’article élargit à la problématique du militantisme sur le lieu de travail l’accent que la recherche sur les femmes et le syndicalisme met généralement sur les questions de représentation et de leadership, d’organisation catégorielle et intercatégorielle, ou de politique et de négociation sur l’égalité. In den letzten drei Jahrzehnten ist es in vielen Ländern zu Streiks von Krankenpflegerinnen gekommen, unter anderem in Kanada, dem Vereinigten Königreich, in den USA, in Australien, Japan, Neuseeland, Israel, Irland, Dänemark, Schweden, Polen, Portugal und in Südafrika. Dieser Beitrag verfolgt zweierlei Ziele: Einerseits soll er anhand von Streikberichten wenig sichtbare Strukturen des Aktivismus bei Krankenpflegerinnen aufdecken. Andererseits befasst er sich mit der Frage, welchen Beitrag dieser Aktivismus zur Erneuerung der Gewerkschaften leisten kann. Hier wird geltend gemacht, dass der Aktivismus von Krankenpflegerinnen viele strategische Schwerpunkte berührt, die Teil des Projekts zur Erneuerung der Gewerkschaften sind, insbesondere vier Themen: Aktivismus von Frauen, Aktivismus der Basis, Bündnisbildung und lokale Einbindung sowie Fachkräfte in der Arbeiterbewegung. Durch die Betrachtung des Aktivismus speziell von Frauen wird der Debatte über die Erneuerung der Gewerkschaften eine geschlechtspezifische Dimension verliehen. Gleich-zeitig wird der Fokus der wissenschaftlichen Literatur über Frauen und Gewerkschaften in Bereichen wie Vertretung und Führung, Organisation von Mitgliedern und gewerkschaftsferneren Personenkreisen sowie Politik und Verhandlungen zur Förderung der Gleichstellung um den Aspekt des Aktivismus am Arbeitsplatz erweitert.

This study used a qualitative descriptive case study approach (Yin, 1994) to examine the influences on Sikh Indo-Canadian student selection of entering the applied social sciences at the university level. Seven students in the last two years of their undergraduate academic program participated in the study. The study examined (a) factors that had affected their academic and career path, (b) their perception of supports and barriers in pursuing their academic and career choice, and (c) and how they managed barriers. An analysis was conducted using the social cognitive career theory of Lent, Hackett, and Betz (1994) as a theoretical base to understand the process by which Sikh Indo-Canadian young women made career decisions to enter the applied social sciences. Across the sample of participants', personal factors, such as interests and various forms of learning experiences, were cited as significant in forming an individual's career choices. Contextual factors, such as norms held by the family and ethnic community, and requirements of academic institutions, were cited as potential impediments to career choice implementation but were seen as manageable by the participants. Self-efficacy played an important role in moderating the participants' view of contextual factors and their ability to create various strategies of resistance or coping strategies to maintain their career choice. The educational decisions of these young women were influenced by factors such as parental influence, cultural expectations, and considering marriage and family plans. Salient findings of the study in support of the social cognitive career theory (Lent et al., 1994) that applied to all the young women were that early immersion with helping people within their ethnic community contributed to their current career interest. Based on early exposure to helping others within their ethnic community, the participants felt confident with exploring their interest helping people in settings outside of their ethnic community. The participants also had developed outcome expectations of making a personal, social and societal contribution through their work. The longer the young women persisted in the field their sense of self-efficacy grew and they would set higher outcome expectations for themselves. They also believed that their career choice was a reflection of their fate. Findings from this study that were contrary to the social cognitive career theory (Lent et al., 1994) were that despite contextual influences in the educational system, family and ethnic community to engage in their career choice being perceived as not fully supportive, they still persisted in their career choice. The social cognitive career theory (Lent et al., 1994) suggested that if contextual influences were perceived as low, the individual's commitment to pursuing that career goal would also be low. In this study, the participants' planning behaviour and career choice goals were maintained despite the barriers that participants perceived. Lent et al. also posited that a lack of role models in the field would contribute to having lower levels of self-efficacy. In the study, having a lack of Indo-Canadian role models in the field did not have an effect on their sense of self-efficacy to do well in their chosen line of work. Future studies are required to address how Sikh Indo-Canadian young women conceptualize fate, balance career, family, and marriage expectations, and make life-career decisions after completion of their academic program upon entrance into the world of work.
Graduate

Thesis (M. Ed.)--York University, 2002. Graduate Programme in Education.
Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 98-103). Also available on the Internet. MODE OF ACCESS via web browser by entering the following URL: http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/yorku/fullcit?pMQ71582.

A qualitative research design, based on Colaizzi's (1978) understanding of Husserl's transcendental phenomenology, was used to explore and describe the personal experiences of wife abuse for Indo-Canadian Sikh women. Eight women volunteered to take part in this research study. The women were recruited from a social service agency in the Greater Vancouver Regional District. Data were collected through in-depth personal interviews that were audiotaped and later transcribed. Data analysis was based on the guidelines proposed by Colaizzi (1978). Five themes were identified and developed during the data analysis: (1) "An Eroding Sense of Self", components of this theme included self-doubt, self-blame, and sense of worthlessness. (2) "Changing Face of Fear", for Indo-Canadian Sikh women, fear alternated from distress about safety to worries about poverty, abandonment, and alienation. (3) "Feeling Extremely Ambivalent"; concern for the children, lack of finances, an attachment to their husbands, and the hope that they would change contributed to the women's profound ambivalence about whether to salvage or end their abusive marriages. (4) "A sense of Overwhelming Entrapment"; this theme was comprised of cultural dictates such as izzat (family honour) and the sanctity of marriage. (5) "Reclaiming Personal Strength"; the women utilized multiple sources including their religious faith, support from friends and family as well as psychotherapy to help them to reclaim personal strength. Having financial assistance, support from their families, and a safe place to go were crucial factors that enabled some of the Indo-Canadian Sikh women to leave their abusive marriages. The women showed incredible strength as they met the challenges imposed by cultural dictates such as izzat and clash of values with the dominant culture regarding marriage and family life. Despite insurmountable challenges and barriers to care, these women continued to persevere in their struggle to free themselves from the abuse in their marriages. The findings of this study point to the need for more cultural sensitivity training for various legal and health care professionals in order to offer effective and culturally sensitive care for this group of women. The implications of the findings for clinical practice are discussed and recommendations for further research are provided.

This chapter focuses on a set of women's narrations regarding the patriarchal memorializations of Partition and uncovers a widely disavowed form of violence against women: the preemptive killing of women by their own male family members as part of preserving community honor. It begins with Krishna Mehta's recently republished memoir, Kashmir 1947, showing how a “woman's account” of such violence does not serve automatically to interrogate patriarchal memorializations. Yet, a close reading may demonstrate its potential to destabilize the narrative of “death before dishonor.” Against Mehta's Hindu and nationalist narrative, the chapter analyzes the minority perspective of Sikh Canadian writer Shauna Singh Baldwin's novel What the Body Remembers, which reveals how the dismembered body in the text figures an ideological continuity across competing communal patriarchies.