2020 Census will help Sikhs identify their place in US society

2020 will be a landmark year for Sikhs and the Census. For the first time, Sikh Americans will be able to identify themselves as Sikhs in the 2020 Census questionnaire.

"I'm so grateful to the United States that has given us a warm welcome to be part of their society, part of their culture, but we are misidentified as somebody else," said Vikas Singh, chairman of Guru Gobind Singh Sikh Center in Plainview, New York. "Right now, [when] somebody looks at me, 95% of the time people think I'm a Muslim because I wear a turban."

Some Sikhs have faced hate crimes as a result, he added, particularly after the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

"Sikh" will be included as a distinct detailed population group within the "Asian" racial category, and not classified as "Asian Indian" as it was in the 2010 Census when it was viewed solely as a religious preference.

According to the Census Bureau, anybody who writes "Punjabi" will be aggregated as part of the "Asian Indian" tabulation category. Both "Sikh" and "Punjabi" will ultimately be included in the "Asian" count.

Before 2020, the representation of Sikhs in America has not been correctly represented through census information gathering. Without this true record of Sikhs, the community will be underserved, underrepresented and be counted OUT of the $675 billion of annual federal funding that can be earmarked for Sikh communities. This funding could assist with including, civil infrastructure, schools, educational programs, and any other important public needs in the growing Sikh population.

After extensive research and demand over the past decade; the Census Bureau has made considerable updates to the race and ethnicity code list. For the first time in United States history the US Census will include “Sikh” as a population group within the Asian racial category. With this opportunity to be heard, Sikhs living in the United States now have an opportunity to advocate for their own communities by simply being counted.

The census is prohibited by law from soliciting information on a person's religion. Sikhs, however, fall into a category similar to the Amish, The ethno-religious category is where a person's religion is intertwined to become more of a cultural identity.

Satjeet Kaur, executive director of the Manhattan-based Sikh Coalition, an advocacy group, said in an email: "For any community, the option to be able to self-identify is critical — and that applies to Sikhs as well. Additionally, the ability to get specific about populations can create the potential for distinct community needs to be met."

“We cannot realize our nation’s promise of equal representation without being represented in the Census, which includes allocating funds for dozens of federal grant programs, including grants for minority business and industry development loans, natural disaster recovery, education, public health services, and Medicaid and supplemental nutrition programs,” said Manvinder Singh, United Sikhs legal director.