JULY 4TH & ARIZONA IMMIGRATION LAW - SB 1070

July 4th is Independence Day in the United States of America - that was the day the founding fathers adopted the Declaration of Independence on July 4th 1776 and declared this country independant from the Kingdom of Great Britain.

July 4th then, was an immensely happy ocassion for the fore fathers and the population. July 4th continues to be a day for joyous celebrations, great felicitations and of course, plenty of spectacular fireworks throughout the country.

America has always been welcoming towards immigrants from across the globe. This great nation continues to welcome new immigrants with open arms, particularly, if the process was conducted through legal means.

It is one of the greatest legacy of this vibrant country - giving new immigrants the opportunity to make something out of their lives, which otherwise may not have been possible in their countries of birth.

This rich legacy puts America in a unique position in the world and makes it stands out from the rest of the world. At the same time, immigrants living in this country have worked extremely hard and dedicatedly to help build this country. Immigrants have helped to put America on the pedestal as the greatest, most powerful nation in the world, almost untouchable.

Today, this same immigration policy has caused a rift among top political representatives of the country. There is the 'controversial' Arizona immigration law - SB 1070 - for which the Department of Justice (DOJ) has filed a lawsuit against the state from implementing it.

While states have the authority to pass laws in regards to same sex marriages, abortion rights, and other matters, immigration laws have always been an issue that the Federal Government has the jurisdiction to oversee.

The DOJ is arguing that the Arizona immigration law "interferes" with the US foreign policy. It also notes that a state should not "criminalize aliens whose presence is known and accepted by the federal government," (excerpts from an online article).

The State of Arizona is in a prime spot at the Mexican border where the people from Mexico can easily 'slip' over illegally in Arizona. According to the latest count, over half a million illegal Mexicans are in Arizona and over 12 million undocumented aliens are in America.

That is cause for pause. This is a big, hot button problem that the government has to tackle and fast. One can sympathize with Arizona. But, at the same time, if all the states are allowed to make their own immigration laws taylored to suit the individual states, this could create chaos among states and Federal Government, not to mention funding, resources, etc.

I will be speaking for millions of people when I say, let the immigration reforms be an issue that the Federal Government deals with. After all, Congress and the House have representatives from all the states and they will all be contributing their inputs to the immigration reforms, but please make it happen very soon.

Please remember that the immigration coin has two sides: country giving people new opportunities; people helping to build the political and socio-economic growth and development of this great nation.

We should call on our local representatives to come up with 4 or 5 criteria for the immigration reforms, like those undocumented who has been in the country for over 8 years (cut off date), have clean records, went for higher education, those with petitions, those with little children, etc. Simultaneously, seal the Mexican border as close as possible, as practical as possible.

The immigration problem needs to be solved. It would be impractical to send back the over 12 million illegal immigrants to their countries, excepting those who have criminal records. The best the government can do is to bring out reforms that will help the ones meeting the creteria to pay their fines and lead them to the path of legalization. This will help them live with dignity and stop them from being exploited by unscrupulous people.

And, to quote President Obama, "Yes, we can!" And we must solve the immigration problem sooner than later.

OUR VISIT TO THE GOLDEN TEMPLE IN VIRGINIA

Devotees of the Sanatan Dharma Mandir of New York took a bus trip to the Golden Temple - The New Vrindavan - in West Virginia in the second week-end of June. Long trip, tiring at times, but with plenty of beautiful sceneries on the way to re-invigorate the human spirit.

This spiritual retreat is located in the depth of huge mountains, covered with luscious trees and plants, far away from civilization as we know it.

Here's a contrast: while in regular communities, to a large extend, people live to satisfy all their material desires and wants, at the New Vrindavan community, the folks' lives are dedicated to serving the Supreme Consciousness, in the form of Lord Krishna.

Some observations: Devotees at the Golden Temple seems to eat, breathe, in essence, they live for Lord Krishna. They all have their jap malas and chant the Maha Mantra constantly, so their minds are focused on the Lord almost all the time. It's an amazing phenomenon.

They dress the Lord in beautiful, rich, elaborate clothing every day during lengthen ritual ceremonies, starting in the wee hours of the mornings, at 5:00 AM, behind the screens of the altars, (the public are not allowed to view this ritual and rightly so). Simultaneously, devotees who are present inside the mandir, are allowed to perform the Tulsi aarti with a Tulsi plant in the center of the mandir.

At the same time, other devotees of the temple (many of them are white Americans) started milking the cows, which is a special ritual. The cows at the temple are milked twice a day, in the mornings and at 6:00 PM in the afternoons.

Members also grow organic vegetables and herbs in two gardens on the compound, so, they are almost self-sufficient.

The New Vrindavan is a holy retreat where people can go and contemplate, meditate and relax, and at the same time, ponder on the true purpose of life, if they don't already understand it.

We had a marvelous time, with little sleep but hey, the upliftment of the human spirit is a priceless experience.

Some photos of our trip...

Beautiful Lord Krishna and Radha Rani on June 13th...

Breath-taking view from the Golden Temple.

The 'puran' leaves in a pond at the compound.

Radhe-Krishna, resplendant on June 12th...

Part of the group from Sanatan Dharma Mandir.

Beautiful swan floating with Radhe-Krishna in the night in the lake.

Some of the ladies, nicely dressed from the mandir



Perfect symmetry of reflection in water...

I sat on a memorial bench...

OBSERVANCE OF OUR EAST INDIAN ANCESTORS' EXPERIENCES IN GUYANA

Hey there everyone!

Howdy and hope all is well with everyone.

It's the month of May - a very unique month in the calendar. It means many things to many people, especially if you're of East Indian descent. For the East Indians from Guyana, Suriname, Trinidad and other West Indies countries, it means the celebration of the experiences of our Indentured Ancestors who were brought to sweat and toil in the sugar plantations in those colonial states over 171 years ago.

The first boat that brought our Indentured Ancestors to the shores of British Guiana at Highbury, East Berbice, was the Whitby, followed by Hesperus om May 5th 1838. After over three months of sailing in the sea and suffering tremendous hardships on the boat at the hands of the British, including the deaths of loved ones, they finally reached land. Thank God.

Then they were placed at different sugar factories throughout British Guiana to sweat and toil, for their mediocre living. Recounting their excrutiating painful experiences while working on the sugar plantations in B.G., is not an easy task. One can just image how they survive such extremely difficult living and working conditions. But, survive they did. They braved all challenges thrown at their footsteps and came out victorious. For this, I humbly bowed to my ancestors for keeping the memories alive. God bless their souls.

On another aspect of our history, someone pointed and asked me, why are celebrating May 5th as the East Indian Arrival Day? As a matter of fact, if truth be known, many of them were forced/lured into coming to work in the sugar plantations. It's not like they "arrive" as tourists or to enjoy a life of luxury and easy living.

Considering the unbearable circumstances they had to live through, which we all know, it sounds almost hypocritical that we, the direct descendants of our Indentured Labourers, are celebrating their arrival in the West Indies and on May 5th. Do we know what was going through the first batch of Indentured Labourers' mind? Can we describe their state of mind on that day when they landed at Highbury? Do we really understand the deep pain, anguish and suffering of the first batch of our Indentured Ancestors, starting on the boat?

What about those Indentured Labourers who came in subsequently after, in the following year, year after that, etc. How does the celebration of May 5th cover their 'arrivals' to toil on the sugar plantations? It's amost like a cheap lie, is it not?

Recall history, the Indentured process started in 1838 and went on until about 1920, when the system officially came to an end. That is what we should be celebrating - our FREEDOM from the draconian Indentured system, not our arrival to sweat and toil on the sugar planations at the mercy of the British landlords.

It's still not too tale to correct this mistake or injustice. We should open this dicussion for debate across all walks of life, not just let the political leaders of the day or East Indian leaders of the day speak and decide for all of us, without proper reseach in a matter of such importance.

Below are some images of the celebration in Highbury, East Berbice of last year's event. Photos courtesy Mr. Vince Ramsaroop.

The stage with the banner.

Lovely young ladies beautifully dressed in Indian garments.

Women at the forefront, marching ahead with replica of Whitby.

Section of the crowd, including the late Shri Prakash Gossai.

GOPIO SPEARHEADS THE BUILDING OF KOLKOTTA MEMORIAL & MUSEUM

GOPIO is leading the way in the building of the "Kolkotta Memorial & Museum" at the land site of the Bhowanipore Depot in Kolkotta, India, where thousands of East Indian laborers awaited their time to set sail to sugar plantations in the various British Colonies, including the West Indies.

The "Kolkotta Memorial & Museum" will be built in honor of our brave Indentured Ancestors who were lured by sugar planters to toil on sugar plantations across the British Colonies between 1834 and 1920 from the Calcutta Port.

Mr. Ashook Ramsaran, Executive Vice President of GOPIO International, Ms. Leela Sarup, popular historian and writer and Mr. Malay Misra, Hon Indian High Commissioner to Trinidad & Tobago, traveled to India in January 2010 to advocate the preservation of the land site.

Gopio is working towards acquiring the land, which is the first step to this project. The purpose of the "Kolkotta Memorial & Museum" is to honor our great ancestors and give their descendents a chance to pay proper homage to them for their pioneering spirits, indomitable courage and resilience, among other great qualities.

The team held meetings with appropriate Indian officials and took steps towards the establishment of the Global Indian Diaspora Heritage Society (GIDHS). Gopio has designated the newly formed GIDHS as a Kolkotta based organization with an internationally represented Kolkotta Memorial Project Committee that will be an international collaboration involving groups and persons where East Indians went as Indentured laborers to toil in the sugar colonies.

As this project progresses, it will be reported on this blog.

Sketches of the Bhowanipore Depot by Ms. Sarup


The team meeting in India in January 2010

OUR ANCESTORS HAD GREAT FAITH IN HANUMAN SWAMI

While a percentage of Hindus celebrated Hanuman Jayanthi on Monday, depending on their geographical locations and time zone, others within the USA observed this auspicious day on Tuesday, March 30th. Regardless of the difference in the day, Hindus globally love their Hanuman Swami. That is a fact. Hanuman Swami is the embodiment of Godliness and Ram Naam (chanting Shri Ram's name).

Throughout all the celebrations, which tallied over 171 years since our East Indian ancestors were brought to toil and sweat on the sugar plantations in British Guiana, two things were of paramount importance - and still are - their unconditional love and unflinching faith that they had in Hanuman Swami. These same values they passed onto their children and grand-children.

Today, we still love our Hanuman Swami and all that He represents: His unconditional love for Shri Ram, His selfless service to humanity, His humility, His strength, His power - in essence -Hanuman Swami's every words, thoughts and deeds - He lives, breaths and does everything for His Shri Ram. His devotion and love for Shri Ram cannot be described in words. That is why until this day, His glories and praises are sung. He is our everlasting hero.

In Guyana, all most all Hindu homes have a Jandha (red flag) proudly flying in their front yards, the red flag is a representation of Hanuman Swami. Most Hindus like to perform their annual Jandhi, where with the help of a pandit, they offer prayers and perform Puja for Hanuman Swami. This tradition was passed on to them by their ancestors. And, our folks brought this tradition to the USA. Take a drive through Richmond Hill and surrounding areas in Queens, you'll see many Hindu homes have their red flags flying highly.

When our ancestors came to British Guiana, their faith and believe in their religion kept them going throughout all the unspeakable hardships and struggles they endured on the sugar plantations. They secretly performed their Pujas, sang their chow-paees from the Ramayan and bhajans and kept their faith in their Lord Rama and Hanuman Swami. They took comfort and drew strength from Hanuman Swami.

He is so great that Saint Tulsidas penned the popular 40-verses Hanuman Chalisa, extolling His superlative qualities and praise this great servant of Shri Ram. For as long as Sanatan Dharma exists, Hanuman Swami's praises will be sung.


All of us needs to be more like Shri Hanuman Swami. May He bless us all.

(Online photos of Shri Hanuman Swami praying to Shri Ram)


Shri Ram told Hanuman Swami that He is as dear to Him as His brother Bharat..