Unsurprisingly, I’m seeing misinformation and erasure circulating around the Farmer Protest.

Many are repeating the Indian state’s anti-Sikh rhetoric in an attempt to discredit the largest protest in human history.

Others miss the point while “meaning well” and “advocating.”

The Indian state has a long history of violently oppressing and dehumanizing Sikhs. As a minority group comprising ~2% of the population, Sikhs have been persecuted for defending their fundamental rights - or just existing.

This context is key to understanding what’s happening.

Agriculture is a part of Punjabi identity; it is our lifeblood.

But Punjabi farmers have been systematically targeted by oppressive state policies and regulations for decades. These have left many of them marginalized - destitute, sick, and in crisis.

(Art by Baljinder Kaur)

This crisis isn’t new. Water scarcity driven by the problematic Green Revolution, absence of basic health and safety protections for workers, skyrocketing cancer rates, a growing drug crisis, repeated violent attacks, and farmer suicides are the backdrop of this protest.

The Indian state has delivered yet another blow. They have passed three laws that will benefit private corporations at the expense of farmers’ livelihoods.

Many are already struggling to make ends meet. These laws will be yet another blow - many view it as a death knell.

The Indian state, right wing Indians, & right wing members of the SA diaspora are relying on timeworn anti-Sikh rhetoric to control the narrative & silence dissent. Hindutva (Hindu nationalism) underpins their desire to silence Punjabi, & particularly Punjabi Sikh, dissent.

When the Indian state deems Punjabi Sikh solidarity protests around the world as “extremist gatherings,” they are calling on hate that fueled atrocities they still refuse to acknowledge.

Canadian news outlets repeating this rhetoric are complicit. https://thediplomat.com/2014/06/lessons-of-the-1984-sikh-massacre/

Over the next few days, I will share resources, links and articles that I find to be reliable on this thread.

I have one ask: PLEASE amplify Punjabi Sikh voices.

It doesn’t have to be mine. It’s not about me. There are plenty of powerful voices to choose from.

But if you lack the analysis, understanding, and lived experience, this is not your story to tell.