Current Events
Irony of Ironies:
French President Received by Turbaned Sikh Mayor on State Visit to Thomas Jefferson’s Montebello
JOSH LEDERMAN, et al
Celebrating the long-standing ties between their nations, President Barack Obama and French President Francois Hollande on Monday toured the sweeping Virginia estate owned by Thomas Jefferson, the former American president and famed Francophile. Obama's rare out-of-town trip with a foreign leader opened two days of events marking Hollande's state visit to the United States.
The two leaders arrived in Charlottesville, Virginia, on the afternoon of Monday, February 11, 2014, after a short flight from Washington.
The two Presidents were officially received by Charlottesville’s mayor, Satyendra Singh Huja, before Obama's armored limousine and the presidential motorcade then wound its way through the rolling hills toward the white and brick mansion, with its signature crowning dome.
The trip to Monticello was aimed at highlighting the deep ties between the U.S. and France. Jefferson, a Founding Father and former president, was also an early U.S. envoy to France and is honored with a statue on Paris' Seine River. Monday marked the first time a sitting president has visited Monticello with a current foreign head of state.
During their visit to the world heritage site, Obama also acknowledged that the house and its slave quarters represent "the complicated history of the United States."
"It's a reminder for both of us that we are going to continue to fight on behalf of the rights of all peoples, something I know France has always been committed to and we are committed to as well," Obama said.
The irony of the whole sequence of events that day, it is hoped, was not lost on the French President whose country openly discriminates against, inter alia, Sikhs because of their articles of faith, which include the turban.
There was no escaping from the embarrassing reminder for Hollande: Mayor Satyendra Singh was wearing a maroon turban as he welcomed the two Presidents to the city most closely associated with the author of the US Declaration of Independence, and two other famous Presidents (Monroe and Madison).
Charlottesville is listed on the very top of lists of US cities cited for, inter alia, their high living standards and quality of life.
Satyendra Singh Huja has been on its City Council since 2007 and was re-elected Mayor for a second term last January.
[Courtesy: AP. Edited for sikhchic.com]
February 13, 2014
Conversation about this article
1: Harmeet Singh (USA), February 13, 2014, 10:15 PM.
Did the French finally get a lesson in secularism?
2: Bhupinder Singh (New Delhi, India ), February 13, 2014, 11:43 PM.
It's been a very good week for the Sikhs with regards to representation in mainstream media. It's this visibility we should be striving for. Been seen in the right places with the right people is name of the game. Mayor Singh, Mr. Singh of the Axe ad and Roop Singh of UK who won 250K sterling in Deal/No deal. All happened in one week ...
3: Capt. Ramanreet Singh (Trumbull, Connecticut, USA), February 14, 2014, 8:33 AM.
The French have to face the reality of life and not forget history and its fights for freedom wherein thousands of Sikh soldiers fought in the World Wars and laid down their lives for that country. France should look around the world and not live in ignorance regarding Sikhs and Sikhism.
4: Sangat Singh (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia), February 17, 2014, 4:18 PM.
Satyendra Singh ji, you easily stand out and come with flying red colour. It now remains for the French President to get himself a new pair of glasses.