Indianexpress.com : comments : 'US pilot refuses to fly with Sikhs onboard'

'US pilot refuses to fly with Sikhs onboard'

New York : Three eminent Sikh religious musicians were thrown out of a US Airways flight after the pilot refused to fly with them onboard in California, a leading US-based Sikh group alleged on Wednesday. The three -- Gulbag Singh, Davinder Singh and Iqbal Singh -- had boarded the plane in Sacramento on ....Read more

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51 Comments |

Really....By: Rohan Shitole | Friday , 15 May '09 12:27:41 PM Reply | Forward I am Indian but I am catholic I have been working for american eagle airlines as a first officer for 3 years I see no discrimination.....

Sikh-HindusBy: Amit | Monday , 29 Dec '08 5:19:21 AM Reply | Forward this is a complete insult to asians everywhere especially to those of a faith which has itself been the victim of islamic oppression. To those who question the religiousness, loyalty, and capability of manmohan singh you have no idea, this is the man who was the architect of the indian economic miracle and is in firm control of india and her economy. As a hindu sikhs are my brothers in faith, ppl who have fought side by side against foreign oppression and whose guru died to protect my faith. 1984 was an absolute tragedy but those who colour all hindu sikh relations with this brush are whitewashing 300 years of brotherhood. I certainly hope united airlines pays a heavy price for this insult. They have already lost me as customer.

u.s. airways pilotBy: roger | Friday , 26 Dec '08 14:57:56 PM Reply | Forward Does anyone know who the pilot was? Are there any passengers around who were on that flight who can shed more light on why the men were suspect? Were flight attendants "fearful" as well?

Discrimination against SikhsBy: C S Jacob | Thursday , 25 Dec '08 18:19:17 PM Reply | Forward Incidents like this, either due to ignorance or due to racial profiling, is humiliating to the victims. But it is not only in the USA or in France this kind of treatment happens but in India as well , to its own citizens. In this very edition there is a report on how Dalits defied a ten yr ban for entry in a temple with police protection and the Dist Collector's intervention. The treatement meted out to Muslims, by denying houses for lease/purchase in certain towns/ localities is of the same nature. So the mindset is the same whether it is in India or in the USA; only the actors and the the victims vary.

RascismBy: M.Mani | Thursday , 25 Dec '08 7:10:17 AM Reply | Forward Pseduo secularists of India! See what the westeners preach about human rights to other countries, they wont follow for themselves.

Sikhs not MuslimsBy: Indian | Thursday , 25 Dec '08 2:16:35 AM Reply | Forward This is obviously a problem of confusion - the pilot thought that the Sikhs were Muslim terrorists. The Americans badly need an educational program, showing them the difference between the various ethnicities and their way of dressing etc.

Sikhs or MuslimsBy: Roger | Friday , 26 Dec '08 13:52:51 PM Reply | Forward Either way they should not be discriminated against. Most Muslims aren't terrorists either. What made the pilot think they were terrorists of ANY kind? Fear and ignorance.

xBy: x | Tuesday , 2 Dec '08 0:24:13 AM Reply | Forward as a muslim, i can truly say i know how it feels. i hope the sikh organizations band together and go after this stupid airway and i hope it goes bankrupt. what an idiotic thing to do at a time like this.morons.

there is hopeBy: just a girl | Friday , 28 Nov '08 21:57:29 PM Reply | Forward I am american, and i agree with most of your thoughts on our country, and its people. However what you must realize it is the fault of our government and our media that this sad trend of discrimination is happening. Our government no longer does what the people want, Their rich, and powerful, become more rich and powerful and we can do nothing.they own the media and only tell us lies, we must rely on foreign news sources to get truth. There is a large group of americans who are sick of this and are spreading the message every day.Our government relies on putting fear into the people in order to control them, we are working to restore truth, Google "ron paul" to find out more about these people.not all of us are stupid, but we can't compete with the corruption in power in our country.Peace and equality to all!

India and her current problemsBy: Shankar | Friday , 28 Nov '08 21:33:21 PM Reply | Forward India has everything. Brains, right attitude to nature (chipko movement, worshiping trees, not plundering forests and other life forms), kindness (vegetarianism, Jain, Buddhist and Hindu reverence for all life), tolerance to all religions, optimism (movies, color, noise, festivals), resources (richness of soil, weather, coastal areas, himalayan heights). What we lack is the knowledge that we are indeed cultured when we consider the best in ourselves. But we also have a dark side that is in ascendancy for some time now. We lack will and national confidence. We do not know we have the strengths. We have to go back and trust our heritage and be a little quieter, more willing to listen to others, kinder to each other everywhere in our daily lives, a behave with dignity and elen even under pressure. We need to resist being like others and genuinely give up our discriminatory (caste-based, hierarchy minded) , subservient (read colonial) mindset. May we be more serene

Discrimination is blindBy: Giovanni Lombardi | Friday , 28 Nov '08 7:20:57 AM Reply | Forward Obviously the pilot himself is not the only one to blame. Yes he's the one that instigated the situation but the other employees who allowed for this discrimination to carry out are of equal blame. Apparently even the dumb interpreter, who was Sikh, told the the three gentlemen that the pilot wasn't going to fly with them onboard. When applying to become an interpreter was he stripped of all common sense? As an American Airways employee I would have contacted management if I was aware of the situation. While these employees have their own view of human rights they should remember who they work for. American Airways itself does not condone this type of discrimination and the employees will be dealt with and fired.

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