Current Events

Sikh-American Teens Camp Amongst California's Sequoias

by ROB KERBY

Fifteen U.S. boys, ages 13-16, all wearing Sikh turbans, recently spent 10 days at California’s Bhujangi Academy, a ten-day outdoor camp for at-risk teens.

The 15 were chosen carefully from Sikh-American families living in the U.S. that are worried their young teens are having problems with school or family, exhibiting low self-esteem or motivation, making poor peer or relationship choices, defying authority or responsibility, or experimenting with drugs or alcohol, say camp officials.

The camp is designed to instill Sikh traditions and provide life skills, goals, and expectations. A major goal is connecting Sikh boys - most whose families come from the Punjab area which straddles India and Pakistan - to their roots and heritage, according to organizers.

“This is a population no one connects with,” said Deep Singh, one of the camp creators and a founder of the Jakara Movement, a group that organizes projects and activities for the Sikh youth of California.

Most “Khalsa schools” that teach Sikh youth in America about their heritage and faith cater to children under 12, he said. Between 18 and 25, young Sikhs who have grown to be responsible adults become involved with Sikh student associations in universities, he said.

But it is in those early teenage years that “there is a critical gap that our community overlooks,” said Deep Singh, a former high school teacher.

Sikh parents often get frustrated with the cultural barrier and generation gap between them and their children - who are being raised in the matrix of U.S. culture, he said. The parents worry that they don’t have an effective means to convey Sikh culture and religion to the next generation.

So, for ten days this month in the Sequoia Mountains of Kings Canyon National Park, about one hour from Fresno, 15 young teenage boys are being immersed in Sikh heritage. The area is self-enclosed and has all the necessary facilities, said Deep Singh.

“Boys respond well to physical settings,” said staff member Amandeep Kaur Dhillon. “The program is structured with things they like, such as hiking. You have to have something that rings them in, so they do not realize that they are in session eight hours a day.

“Physical activities can be therapeutic,” said Amandeep Kaur. “They include bond-building exercises where the physical activity is structured to work with other boys, to recognize other peoples feelings. You take some and get some.”

“If effective, we hope to keep continuous contact with these young people and create life-long relationships,” Deep Singh said.

“There is a pattern in the younger generation, in high school, of behavioral problems,” said Amandeep Kaur. “They need basic intervention at an early state to develop coping skills so thoughts and feeling don’t become counterproductive.”

Some Punjabi boys can use anger management skills, she added. “Parents complain that they don’t talk to us, that they are snappy or disrespectful. But they are not aware that other factors are contributing to the outbursts of anger.”

Substance abuse also creates anger problems, she added. And if they fall into that pattern, they can spiral down and hit bottom.

“(Some) parents are not teaching the value of working. Their kids get everything. They live lavish lifestyles and expect them to excel in school, but the kids do not see the connection. They are not all ungrateful but it’s frustrating when parents expect something in return.”

[Courtesy: BeliefNet]

August 19, 2011

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