Students Rail Scrutiny of Sikh

Fifty students flocked to Crossroads Dining Commons last night to protest dining staff who tried to kick out a Sikh student for carrying his ceremonial dagger while eating his lunch last week.

Dozens of students donned the daggers to rebuff the dining staff's actions, which they called discriminatory and an attack on civil liberties.

Last Friday, freshman Mansheel Singh was told to remove his Kirpan-a ceremonial dagger devout Sikhs are required to wear at all times-by two Crossroads staff members.

The dining staff told Singh he would not be allowed inside the DC until he removed his 7-inch Kirpan, even after he explained that it was a religious article he could not take off, Singh said.

"Telling me to take off my Kirpan is like telling somebody to give up their religion," Singh said. "As a baptized Sikh, I can't part with it."

The incident riled dozens of students-including members of the Sikh Student Association, Muslim Student Association, and several ASUC CalSERVE senators-who sat down to eat dinner at Crossroads yesterday to bring more attention to religious freedom on campus, which they said is sometimes jeopardized.

There are no rules prohibiting students from wearing Kirpans or other religious articles in the dining commons, according to UC Berkeley' General Residence Hall Conduct Policies.

Cal Dining Director Shawn LaPean took full responsibility for the actions of the staff.

"I will do everything within my authority to ensure that something like this never happens in our facilities, to anyone, ever again," LaPean said. "We welcome people from all walks of life in our facilities."

The students said they will push for sensitivity training for Cal Dining staff, said Camille Pannu, a student on the Chancellor's Task Force on Hate and Bias.

"I'm surprised they don't have it already," Pannu said.

Singh said the incident at Crossroads was the first time in Berkeley he had trouble because of his religion.

"I got called ‘bin Ladin' almost every day at my high school-but this is Berkeley," Singh said. "Coming here, I thought this would be a really open-minded place."

The students wanted to voice their support for removing discrimination on campus.

"It's a statement of solidarity from a collection of people that don't just represent the Sikhs," said senior Gagandeep Singh Rajpal, Singh's brother.

The students also said this incident incited them to push for a federal law that would protect the Sikhs' right to wear Kirpans and other religious articles.

"This is a starting point," said Jhujhaar Singh, a fifth-year student who came to Crossroads to show support for Mansheel Singh.

After Sept. 11, the U.S. Department of Transportation ruled that Kirpans cannot be worn in airports.

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