Pax Christi protest of Elizabeth Detention Facility, Oct 2008

On February 17, millions of Christians will observe Ash Wednesday by attending church and wearing an ashen cross on their forehead throughout the day. For millennia, ashes have been used to express mourning or repentance. The meaning of Ash Wednesday has changed over the centuries and across Christian traditions. Today, Ash Wednesday is generally meant to focus believers on their own mortality and to take to heart the call to repent their individual sins. This Ash Wednesday, a group of close to 100 observers will use this time to repent their own sins as well as repent for the sins of their generation for how we treat immigrant detainees in the US. Nuns, priests, community leaders, students, immigrant advocates and family members of detainees will march from Ellis Island to the Elizabeth, NJ, Detention Center to remind America that “Ellis Island is Closed!”

Pax Chrisit Summit

The march is organized by New Jersey Chapter of Pax Christi Summit, an organization committed to “bringing about non-violent social change through prayer, study and action.” Part of the national Catholic peace movement, Pax Christi Summit promotes Christian nonviolence across a wide array of issues including immigration reform, disaster relief, nuclear disarmament, demilitarization, and racial justice.

Kathy O’Leary, the New Jersey Coordinator for Pax Christi Summit and the lead organizer for the Ash Wednesday march, believes that there is a lot for which we need to repent. “Our ancestors benefitted from open door immigration policies,” O’Leary says. The descendants of these immigrants are treating those who want the same opportunities today like criminals: “Preventing future generations that same access that they enjoyed is something for which we should atone,” says O’Leary.

Until 1924, Ellis Island was an immigration processing center for millions of immigrants coming to the New World. From 1924 to 1954, it was used as a detention center. In 1954, Ellis Island was closed and converted to a museum and permanent monument to America’s open doors.

Inhumane Detention Centers

It doesn’t stop there for O’Leary, Pax Christi Summit, and over 20 other religious and advocacy groups involved in today’s march. They are also protesting the treatment of immigrants at the detention centers. Persons held at detention facilities are typically awaiting hearings regarding deportation or their political asylum claims. Individuals can be held for years while awaiting adjudication on their claims. Conditions at these facilities rival the worst jailhouses in third world countries. The majority have no record of criminal activity, yet are confined and treated worse than criminals. Housing more than 400,000 detainees nationwide, reports state that these immigration detention facilities have cells crawling with insects, while detainees complain of sexual harassment and molestation by guards. The devout are prevented from practicing their faith while money and belongings of value are stolen by guards.

This system includes poorly run private facilities interested in turning a profit and state and federal penal systems which rent out space in the jails which also house violent criminals. Taking in immigrant detainees is a multi-million dollar business in which these human beings are commodified like cattle and are treated no better than animals.

The Detention Center in Elizabeth, NJ

Conditions at the Elizabeth Detention Center in New Jersey in particular have been criticized for years. Brutal beatings, inadequate medical care, lack of access to attorneys or even telephones have been routine complaints. In 1995, hundreds of detainees at the Elizabeth facility protested the inhumane living conditions for more than 6 hours through a take over of the facility. The 300 individuals and families, from more than 40 countries, felt they were not being heard including months of requesting an investigation into the living conditions and treatment by guards. More than 200 police were sent in to squash the rebellion.

In 2007, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was sued for drugging immigrants while deporting them. The lawsuit, filed by the American Civil Liberties Union on behalf of former detainees who alleged that they were injected with psychotropic drugs to keep them docile during deportation. It is against the law, and against ICE’s own detention standards, to administer medication to an individual without the patient’s consent, without a court order, or without an urgent medical need. Ahilan Arulanantham, the ACLU attorney representing the class action plaintiffs stated “it would be torture to give a powerful anti-psychotic drug to somebody who isn’t even mentally ill…But here, it’s happening on U.S. soil to an immigrant the government is trying to deport.”

One of the plaintiffs, a Christian minister from Indonesia, Raymond Seoth, was injected with a drug hours before his deportation without his consent and despite non-combative, verbal protest. Another plaintiff, Amadou Diouf of Senegal, was drugged as he was escorted onto the plane, despite his non-combative, verbal protest that he had a stay of his deportation. As part of the ensuing investigation, Senator Lieberman uncovered that at least 1,073 detainees had similar so-called medical escorts since 2003.

There have been 5 reported cases of death during detention at the Elizabeth Detention Center. In an investigation by the ACLU and the New York Times, evidence of widespread cover up of death and mistreatment of immigrants was revealed. Their investigation, for example, “found that jail medical personnel had falsified a medication log to show that the detainee, a Salvadoran named Nery Romero, had been given Motrin. The fake entry was easy to detect: When the drug was supposedly administered, Mr. Romero was already dead.”

In 2007, ICE’s spokesman for the Northeast region, Michael Gilhooly, responded to the New York Times’ request for information on an African detainee who had been inflicted with skull fractures at the Elizabeth, NJ detention center by saying that without the full name and alien registration number of the individual, he could not look up any information. In fact, the investigation later uncovered records which showed that Gilhooly not only knew exactly to whom the Times reporter was referring, but had already filed a report warning managers about sharing information with the press about that same injured individual.

In this particular case, the individual was a Guinean tailor, Boubacar Bah, who was put in isolation and left unattended and without medical attention for 13 hours after suffering a skull fracture in detention. The Times reported: “While he lay in the hospital in a coma after emergency brain surgery, 10 agency managers in Washington and Newark conferred by telephone and e-mail about how to avoid the cost of his care and the likelihood of “increased scrutiny and/or media exposure.”

After causing the life threatening injuries in the first place and reducing chances of a recovery by willful neglect of delaying medical care, they explored options of pawning off the cost of his long term care:

One option they explored was sending the dying man to Guinea, despite an e-mail message from the supervising deportation officer, who wrote, “I don’t condone removal in his present state as he has a catheter” and was unconscious. Another idea was renewing Mr. Bah’s canceled work permit in hopes of tapping into Medicaid or disability benefits. Eventually, faced with paying $10,000 a month for nursing home care, officials settled on a third course: “humanitarian release” to cousins in New York who had protested that they had no way to care for him. But days before the planned release, Mr. Bah died. (The New York Times)

These particular deaths at the Elizabeth detention facility were only discovered through intense investigation and political pressure. It is unknown how many more deaths have actually occurred on the grounds or how many other deaths were caused by the conditions at the center, but took place elsewhere. There is evidence to show that in cases where death was inevitable, the centers would release the individual to family or quickly deport to avoid cost and media exposure.

Today’s March

In addition to the initial crimes of unsafe conditions and neglectful care, the repeated cover ups of misconduct lays many misdeeds at the doorstep of ICE and those who run the detention facilities. It is these conditions and that the Ash Wednesday marchers will be protesting. “Our immigration laws and policies must be aligned with our humanitarian values,” says O’Leary.

Marchers start at 11 am with a press conference and prayer service at Liberty State Park in-front of the Ellis Island foot bridge. At 11:30am, they will begin the journey towards the Elizabeth Detention Center and stop at houses of worship along the way including a Catholic and a Lutheran church, a synagogue, and mosque.

By 6pm, the group will arrive at the Elizabeth Detention Center in time for the annual Ash Wednesday Vigil.

Marchers will be able to receive ashes at Grace Community Lutheran Church in Newark and at the end at the prayer service at the Elizabeth Detention Center.

Hope for a Brighter Future

In August 2009, the Obama administration announced plans to reconceptualize the immigration detention system. The Director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, John Morton, stated that in three to five years, ICE would like to transfer noncriminal immigrant detainees to smaller settings which are less like prisons. They would work to meet federal guidelines including providing access to pro bono attorneys, adequate medical care and a system for addressing grievances. “We need a system that is open, transparent and accountable,” Morton said. “With these reforms, ICE will move away from our present decentralized jail approach to a system that is wholly designed for and based on civil detention needs and the needs of the people we detain.”

Without continued pressure from the media and immigrant advocacy groups, however, substantial change is not likely. Many changes were promised after the 1995 uprising at the Elizabeth detention center. After the 2007 lawsuit about medical neglect, there were assurances that an internal investigation would improve the situation. Though in both cases some changes have been made, they are not enough when considering that these facilities are housing real human beings who are someone’s parent, child, sibling, or life partner.

The Ghosts of Immigrants Past

Changes to the system are underway. The media and immigrant advocacy groups work hard keep pressure on ICE to create better conditions for future immigrants. But what about the ones that have already passed through this system? What about the ones who have been dragged through the bowels of the detention and deportation process and in the process lost nine years of their life? Or had their life expectancy lowered due to poor health care? Or lost a loved one to an unexplained death?

What about the more subtle losses? The kinds of losses which cannot be quantified or cannot be solved with monetary compensation. What about the self respect of a woman to whom chastity and purity were at the core of her identity– how does she view herself now that she has been molested by a guard? Or the mother who needlessly witnessed her child suffering from repeated asthma attacks because her son was not allowed a simple inhaler –how does she feel about her ability as a parent to protect her children? Or the husband who sees his pregnant wife being mistreated, but is unable to act for fear of further beatings– how does this experience change how he conceptualizes his own manhood?

It is one thing to improve conditions for future detainees, but there is a cosmic price for the crimes of our collective (and recent) past. There are hundreds of thousands of individuals who came to the US with dreams of American freedoms only to be repeatedly traumatized by a byzantine immigration system and bottomless pit of bureaucracy. Even after the facilities shut down or the people are transferred or deported, will we always see the ghosts of immigrants past?

Today’s combination protest and asking of forgiveness is a meaningful step towards helping those who have been wronged by this system rebuild their spirits. The organizations supporting this march invites anyone who wishes to participate to join them from the start, from a point along the way, or at the end.
Schedule of Events

11-11:30am
Press Conference and Prayer Service (Location: At the Ellis Island Foot Bridge)

11:30am
March, stops along the way include :

Approx. 12:00pm
Mosque : The Islamic Center of Jersey City, NJ (17 Park Street, Jersey City, NJ; (201) 433-5000)

Approx. 12:30pm
Synagogue : Temple Beth-El‎ (2419 John F Kennedy Boulevard, Jersey City, NJ‎; (201) 333-4229‎)
Catholic Church: Assumption All Saints School (301 Whiton Street, Jersey City, NJ; (201) 433-6087)
Lutheran Church: Grace Community Lutheran Church (7 Wilson Avenue, Newark, NJ; (973) 465-2259)

6:00pm
March ends at Elizabeth Detention Facility in time for Ash Wednesday Vigil (625 Evans Street, Elizabeth, NJ; (908) 352-3776)

Today’s March is Supported by the following organizations:
Pax Christi, NJ
St. Joseph’s Social Service Center
St. Patrick’s/Assumption/All Saints Church
Sisters of St. Joseph of Philadelphia
Justice Office of Sisters of Mercy Mid-Atlantic
Lutheran Office of Governmental Ministry – NJ
IRATE & First Friends
ACLU, NJ
American Friends Service Committee (AFSC)
Middlesex County Coalition for Immigrant Rights
National Association of Social Workers – NJ Chapter
NJ Forum for Human Rights
New Jersey Immigration Policy Network (NJIPN)
People’s Organization for Progress
SAALT
International Institute of NJ
Ironbound Community Corp
Casa Esperanza
Haiti Solidarity Network of the Northeast
Highland Park Reformed Church
Jornaleros Unidos of Passaic
Wind of the Spirit

For more information contact:
Kathy O’Leary, Coordinator – Pax Christi NJ
Chapter Coordinator – Pax Christi Summit
(Local Chapter of Pax Christi USA)
Tel: 908-273-0751
Email: kolearypcnj@gmail.com
Blog: www.paxsummit.blogspot.com

Today, better known as Sid, Khosla is the singer/songwriter frontman for indie sensation Goldspot. In their cover story on Goldspot, the Sunday Times called them “[o]ne of the best bands to come out of America in years.”  Named after the carbonated orange drink Sid drank on his visits to India, Goldspot has been in effect since 1999. Critics and rock musicians have heaped praise on Goldspot in the U.S., UK and India.

Goldspot’s hit single “Rewind”

www.youtube.com/watch?v=9pS-ilSiVi8

The vocal range and depth that Siddharth had developed from a young age along with the love for music his parents nurtured in him served him well as he began blending the two traditions he knew and loved: Indian and Western. As a child, Khosla grew up listening to old Bollywood greats: Mohammed Rafi, Kishore Kumar, and anything composed by legendary Indian composer of the 1950s, 60s, and 70s, SD Burman. “They all have inspired me ever since I could sing my first note,” Khosla recalls.  Later in middle school and high school, friends introduced him to the Beatles and there began another musical love affair for Khosla.

So beloved is Kishore Kumar that in 2003 India released a postal stamp to honor his memory

Sid is very clear, however, that though his early Indian influences were strong and instrumental, his music is not fusion or “world music” by any stretch. It is pure rock. songs. There are no sitars or  tabla. Instead, you can hear the Bollywood influence in the instrumentation of the interludes in some of the tracks such as “Rewind.”

“Our sound not a blend or fusion, but more like if Kishore Kumar himself had an indie rock band in the U.S….and was playing today, this is what it would sound like.”

With an eclectic blend of rock, a hip a whimsical soulfulness, with a slice of Bollywood mood, Goldspot hits a nice balance between fresh and comfortable.

The band's name is inspired from a popular Indian orange soda. Gold Spot was the first orange soda introduced in India. In 1993, upon Coca Cola's re-entry into the Indian market, they bought out and replaced Gold Spot with Fanta. Though Gold Spot can now only be found in remote villages where Coke's tentacles have not penetrated, Indians still have fond childhood memories of the tasty fizzy drink.

Sid is the child of Indian immigrants who came to the US in 1976. His father, Dinesh Khosla, is professor of law at CUNY Law School. His mother, Savita, is a doctor. Part of the wave of  highly educated Indians that came to the U.S. in the late 1960s and 1970s when the U.S. was inviting professionals from other countries in droves, Dinesh and Savita made a home for Sid in Northern Jersey.

Sid started Goldspot in 1999 in LA with high school chum and now brother-in-law, Sanjay Sethi, who left the band a year later. Sid continued on and collected other bandmates with similar sensibilities. In 2005, Goldspot independently released their debut album, “Tally of the Yes Men.” Though popular among initial hardcore fans, Goldspot’s LA fan base grew considerably after LA DJ Nic Harcourt played their single “Rewind” regularly on his KCRW show and then proceeded to play all the songs on the album.

DJ Nic Harcourt - "Tastemaker"

Until 2008, Harcourt, known as an international “tastemaker,” was KCRW’s music director  He was responsible for the discovery of other sensations such as Norah Jones, Coldplay and Dido. Described by music journalist Mark Weingarten as “the most influential DJ in America,” Harcourt’s enthusiastic support of Goldspot helped the band get the kind of toehold exposure which can otherwise take years or can never happen at all.  The band quickly turned the tenuous toehold to a full two foot standing through magnetic live performances and winsome personalities.

The exposure led to attention from labels big and small. “After Nic got behind the record, a bunch of major labels were taking us out for lunches and dinners,” Sid recalls.  But having a non white / non black front person for any endeavor in America is never easy- there is always the concern about perception, likability, marketability in a way that has little to do with the music. “So many major labels loved the record and the show but didn’t want to market an Indian front man,” says Sid.  He remembers the president of one label saying quite frankly that though they loved their music, style, and shows, they were apprehensive about taking on a band with a brown frontman.

It may have been just as well not to sign with labels that put marketing ahead of talent. Goldspot eventually signed with the indie label Union Records. Later, the UK division of Mercury Records bought out Goldspot’s contract.  “It was the opposite situation in the UK. Mercury actually saw my ethnicity as making us more marketable.” says Khosla.

When they signed with Mercury UK in 2007, Khosla made a deal to get  financial support including for some higher budget features to re-release their debut album.

And Mercury UK put their money where their mouth was -- for the re-release of Goldspot’s “Tally of the Yes Men,” Mercury UK sent Sid and producer Jeff Peters to Chennai to work with the orchestra of Bollywood musical heavyweight A.R. Rahman.

“When we first did the album, I had visions of sweeping orchestral sections, but we didn’t have the budget for it,” remembers Khosla. “We got by with xylophones and other things like that, which of course have their own charm.”

The collaboration of the two with Srinivas Murthy, orchestral director of Rahman’s AM Studio in Chennai, was the breath of life that was needed for the second incarnation of “Tally of the Yes Men.” The three redid the arrangements for “Friday,” “Rewind,” and the “The Guard” to get an old Hindi, “filmy,” orchestral sound.

The title for their first album “Tally of the Yes Men” came from a time in Sid’s life when making it in the music business meant having an unrelated day job. In a gut wrenchingly boring meeting, Sid began keeping count of the number of times a particular colleague replied “yes” to his manager. In a span of a couple of hours, the word was uttered by this man some 55-60 times- and thus, “Tally of the Yes Men” was conceptualized.

Their debut album has had a good spate of exposure. Their first music video, “Time Bomb,” first landed on MTV Desi’s Top 10, and later the song was featured on the popular teen drama The O.C. Goldspot’s “Rewind” was well received with a feature on the Emmy nominated CBS hit comedy, “How I Met Your Mother.” Its video played on VH1 for weeks in 2007. Goldspot’s “Tally” made it to #10 in the alternative charts.

Goldspot Hit “Friday”

In the UK, the single “Friday” was BBC Radio 2′s record of the week and made it to #22 in the UK.  The video for “Friday” was in regular rotation on MTV, VH1, “The Hits”, “The Box”, Q, and Sky television networks. It was listed as the #4 album of 2007 in the Sunday Times “Top Albums of 2007.”

www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_hfh2k8p6o

The Hindi version of “Friday” doesn’t lose anything in translation and reached #4 in the BBC Asian Network charts. As evidence of the broad appeal of their music, Sid sings their hit “Friday” in Hindi for an audience of birds.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oagqcllaidk

Their sophomore album, “And The Elephant is Dancing,” is produced by Beach Boys engineer Jeff Peters and Khosla as well. Peters and Khosla have been making music together for the past seven years and have a strong relationship of trust.  IndieLondon hails the new album, “a winning mix of psychedelia-laced Beatles, West Coast coolness and Bollywood touches.” It is available for fans on iTunes and at their shows, available digitally for purchase online worldwide.

This second album finds Sid older and wiser. Though released only a couple of years after the first album, the time in between was one of rebirth and reevaluation of his core through a difficult time in Khosla’s personal life.

This new album shows the band decidedly walking away from the punk influence apparent in their first album. “And The Elephant is Dancing” has a more early 60′s Beach Boys and Beatles sound seated on a skein of old Indian film vibe.

Sid says, “earlier, I didn’t have the guts to make this kind of record,” but having had personal upheaval while simultaneously going through a crash course in the record business through their first album experience, Khosla could now shed the shackles of writing specifically for the pop charts. “This album is completely from the heart.”

TONIGHT -- November 22, 2009

Goldspot’s debut performance in Washington DC tonight featured guest appearance by Dave Sharma, better known to his fans in NY night clubs as “Sharmaji” -- percussionist and DJ extraordinaire.  After a mind numbing stint in New York City government, Dave went for broke to pursue his passion for music.  Dave was a lead percussionist in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s “Bombay Dreams,” on Broadway and regularly lights up the stage in NY with his funky brand of dhol, tabla, and whatever else he can get his hands on to make a groovy beat. He’s recorded with the likes of Jennifer Lopez, Taylor Dayne and performed with Cheap Trick, among others.

Sharmaji’s main passion these days is Sub Swara,which he describes as a “mix of intense dance music, mostly dubstep and midtempo glitch, with live tabla and electronic percussion.”

With fiery red hair, one would never guess there was any desi in Sharmaji, but sure enough, the son of an Indian immigrant from Punjab and a lovely woman of Scottish and German descent, he does his dual heritage proud. Bhangra beats from the villages of Punjab are infused with a hip rock sensibility.

His father, Sansar Sharma, is a professor of Neuroopthamology at New York Medical Center. His mom, Janet Sharma, is the Executive Director of the Volunteer Center of Bergen County. Both parents share a love for the Beatles. Like Sid, Sharmaji’s parents’ love of  Hindi music was an early influence. “I was fascinated by the old Mukesh tunes my dad would play and how much he adores the lyrics,” Dave recalls. On the other end of the cultural spectrum, Dave is influenced by the rhythms and beats of reggae as well as punk rock ska band Fishbone.

Sid and Dave recently reconnected after Goldspot’s last drummer, Ramy Antoun, moved on. Back in high school, “Sharmaji,” Sid, and former Goldspot member, Sanjay Sethi, were in a band named the “The Hip Hop Hindus and the Jumping Jew.” (The Jew of their group, another David—David Roth- DID jump as part of his style at the time, though friends could never pinpoint why).

Sharmaji played all the percussion instruments in their DC show, except xylophone which was taken care of by Jake Owen. Jake also plays guitar and keyboards and pitches in on vocals as does the rest of the band. James Gabbie was on guitar and Paul Jenkins on bass.

Goldspot plays Black Cat, DC (11/22/09)

They played from their new album as well as classics from their first album such as “Rewind” and “Friday.” The riveted crowd clearly did not want to let the band leave, but were comforted by the mention that DC would be on their tour list in the future. A group of five young female fans had driven 7 hours to see them perform. A clear indication that they need to return to DC.

Who: GOLDSPOT & THE BLACK FORTYS

Where: Black Cat, near U St Metro, 1811 14th St NW, Washington DC, (202) 667-4490- 18 to enter, 21 to drink, Handicap accessible.
When: 9pm
How Much: $10

Goldspot shared the stage with The Black Fortys, an indie rock band heavily influenced by Bob Dylan, Miles Davis and poet T.S. Eliot.

Shivali welcomes your posts, comments, questions, and requests for topics to be covered. She may be reached at shivalishah@thefastertimes.com

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mw4S-4_apiY

Obama addresses audience with clips from performances (PBS)

Performers for the evening included Gloria Estefan, Marc Anthony, Los Lobos of of “La Bamba” fame, José Feliciano, Mexican diva Thalía, the reggaetón singer Tito El Bambino, and percussionist Pete Escovedo. The band was led by Sheila E. and Mr. Escovedo’s daughter.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=iFZXJb32iqQ

In Performance at the White House: Fiesta Latina, (Associated Press)

Latina sensation Thalia even got a few rounds on the dance floor out of Obama after she asked: “Mr. President, with all due respect, will you dance with me?”

George Lopez did a stand up bit that audience members rolling in the aisles. The mood was so light last night that Lopez even remarked that the President was really Latino without knowing it :

“He’s living in a house that’s not his…

Says he’s going to change, but nobody believes him…

He’s left his house white because he can’t decide what color to paint it…

Very Latino.”

Observation of Hispanic Heritage Month began in the Johnson administration with a one week period starting September 15. September 15 was originally selected to kick off celebrations because the week following encompasses Independence Day for seven Latin American countries. Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua all declared independence from Spain on September 15, 1821. The day also marks the five political bodies incorporated the Federal Republic of Central America, also known as the United Provinces of Central America.

While free from Spain, the Republic was soon annexed by the Mexican empire. It was a republican democracy until 1840 when civil war and a lack of national identity forced the political factions to dissolve the union.

Mexico’s independence from the Spanish is celebrated a day later on September 16 every year. Chile observes independence on September 18.

During the Reagan administration, observation of Hispanic Heritage expanded to cover an entire month: from September 15 to October 15. Over the years, however, most institutions, colleges, and television networks simply celebrate it in the month of October.

According to an AP report, Puerto Rican virtuoso guitarist and composer, Jose Feliciano, said that while it was great that Latin music was being honored, Latin performers should be “part of the whole” and not just brought out for Hispanic Heritage celebrations.  “It’s about time. After all, the only time that Latinos are called upon is when the elections are around,” Feliciano said.

Feliciano’s sentiment echoes a frequent (and legitimate) complaint of the Hispanic community : they are only trotted out like show ponies each election season. For example, George W. Bush made sky high promises to the Hispanic community during his first presidential campaign about immigration reform. Touting a compassionate conservatism, his message of hope for legalization had certain portions of the Hispanic community in a frenzy. Bush made promises, such as instituting a more compassionate and flexible guest worker program and legalization for undocumented immigrants. While these were goals that many in the immigration community would welcome, even liberals were skeptical that such change could happen as quickly as Bush led Hispanic communities to believe.

After winning in 2000, while policies with words such as “amnesty” and “legalization” were being negotiated and later dying on the House and Senate Floors, not a peep was heard from President Bush. While understandably Bush cannot legislate from his executive branch of the American tree, there are ways in which he could have demonstrated support and sustained interest after he was done shaking Hispanic hands and kissing bambinos during election season.

Furthermore, the policies instituted during his administration took a disproportionately high amount of funding away from programs which assist immigrant communities. Republican budget cuts gutted immigrant advocacy and immigrant rights groups non-profit organizations which relied on government funding. According to the Census Bureau, at fifteen percent of the country’s population, the various Hispanic communities collectively comprise the United States’ largest minority group and largest immigrant population.. The blows to immigrant community support was a direct slap in the face to the Hispanic community.

This example illustrates one of many ways in which America needs to do more than celebrate Hispanic culture for a few weeks per year. To Michelle Obama’s credit, “In Performance at the White House: Fiesta Latina” is the third installment of White House events to celebrate the richness of American music. The series was launched by the First Lady and has already celebrated jazz and country music. Western classical music is scheduled for November 4^th.

The inclusion of Latin music as part of the celebration of America’s musical heritage speaks volumes about a new turn in our country. This is a refreshing change after an administration punctuated by a frenzy to build a wall between Mexico and the United States. Frightened citizens were egged on to send bricks to their representatives in Washington DC to symbolize their desire to get construction of the border wall underway.

Kudos to Michelle Obama and everyone else involved in the event last night. Let’s hope this is not the last time the Hispanic community is remembered before midterm elections.

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Shivali Shah, Esq. welcomes your posts, comments, questions, and requests for topics to be covered. She may be reached at shivalishah@fastertimes.com.

A Gujarati woman wears a traditional "Chaniya Choli" while participating in Dandiya Raas during Navratri

Saturday, September 19 marks the beginning of the Hindu festival of Navratri. Navratri is celebrated in a myriad of ways by different communities throughout India, but the most energetic and lively are the dances called Garba and Dandiya Raas from the Western state of Gujarat.  I encourage any non-Indian who loves to go clubbing, salsa dancing, swing, or line dancing, to try something new this year and find a Navratri celebration near you.

Indian communities throughout the U.S. and in other parts of the Hindu diaspora eagerly await this time of year. Based on the lunar cycle, Navratri falls sometime in September or October in the Gregorian calendar. In 2009, the nine nights of Navratri (nav meaning nine, ratri meaning night) officially begins on September 19 and ends on September 28. The parties in the U.S. start on Friday, September 18.  In India, Navratri kicks off the major holiday season which ends in Diwali, the Hindu New Year. Most schools are closed for an entire month so that everyone can participate. It is the busiest time of year for tailors who are busy sewing colorful outfits in the latest styles with heavy embroidery, beadwork, and mirrors.

Dandiya Raas

The featured dance of the evening is the Dandiya Raas. Dancers swirl round in two concentric circles in patterned step hitting each other’s twelve inch long decorated sticks (dandiya means stick) to mimic battles or comemorate the harvest.  Wooden sticks are distributed to everyone.  You will strike these in rhythmic patterns. There are many variations of the dance. Observe a group dancing a little bit before jumping in. Once in, just follow the others in time. It is one of the best workouts you can get.

Celebrated in the Diaspora

Decades ago, young Gujarati communities in the U.S. celebrated in their basements or rented small church halls. Only other members of the Gujarati community attended.

Today, first and second generation South Asians of all religions and communities participate in the Gujarati style celebration of Navratri. Various South Asian organizations vie for the best community halls, high school auditoriums, and sports centers to hold their Navratri parties. Indians from all parts of India organize their friends and families to attend these raucous dance parties.  With turnouts ranging from 300 to 5,000, crowd control is a definite concern.

Not Just for Indians Anymore

On college campuses across the U.S., the South Asian student organization’s Navratri event is one of the most popular events they program each year. Twenty years ago, the only white faces you may seen at these campus Navratri events were the sensitive white guys dating the South Asian co-eds. Not anymore. With the mainstreaming of bhangra and remixed Bollywood songs into the American night club scene, these days you see more and more non-Indians going to any and all Indian dance events. Add in creative DJs and some of the parties catering to the younger generations even mix in some funky hip hop and R&B beats later in the evening.

Now with a sizeable second generation of Indian Americans, we see more of their non-Indian friends attending these events. Aneta Wierzynski of Washington DC, an American of Polish descent, went for the first time in Navratri 2008. When an Indian friend invited her, she was excited to learn something new. “I had seen garba in Bollywood movies and was psyched to try it,” Aneta says. She was, however, a bit apprehensive. “At first, I was afraid that it was going to be a very communal event and that I would be intruding on their space,” Aneta recalls. She didn’t want people to stare at her. Much to her relief, it turned out that no one paid her much attention at all and she fit right in.

Kalyan Pathak, a Chicago based Indian and Western percussionist has been leading people into a frenzy on the dance floor since he was 8 years old.  “Back in the early 90s, the only white person I would see at these garba/ dandiya events of 5000 people would be my wife, Liz, Kalyan remembers. “Now I see not just white people, but Phillipinos, African Americans, people of all creeds and colors attending these parties.”

Even though now he has expanded his repertoire from the Indian dhol and tabla to the Western drumset and African drums, Kalyan says that not a year has gone by since he was eight that he did not perform in a Navratri event. As we speak, he is getting ready for his trip to Huntsville, Alabama and Munster, Indiana, to perform in the local Dandiya Raas events.

Origin of the Dandiya Dance: Goddess Worship

Various legends are associated with this celebration. In one legend, the evil demon, Mahishasura, worshipped Lord Shiva and obtained the power of immortality.  Mahishasura then began rampant murder and mayhem throughout the earth. To defeat him, the holy trinity of the Hindu faith, Lords Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva combined their powers to create a divine being: the Warrior Goddess known as Shakti or Durga,. Mahishasura was enraptured by her beauty and sought to marry her. Goddess Durga agreed to marriage on the condition that the evil demon defeat her in battle. The battle took place over nine nights. On the 9^th night, the divine goddess beheaded the evil demon. In this interpretation, the dance symbolizes the fight between Goddess Durga and the evil demon.

Goddess Durga, also known as the Mother Goddess, Shakti, and Amba Mata

Another variation on the war theme has the raised sticks clashing in rhythm harkening the dancers back to the battle between the army of Lord Rama and the evil demon Ravana in the epic tale of the Ramayana.  Rama wanted to secure the release of his wife, Sita, who had been abducted by the demon-king Ravana. Rama prayed to the Goddess Durga for strength. The war is said to have taken place for nine nights and on the tenth day Rama beheaded Ravana, won the battle, and rescued his beloved Sita.

Yet another interpretation has the dandiya sticks representing the sickles used in the fields. This version is based on the idea that Navratri originated as a celebration of the harvest.

How Other Parts of India Celebrate Navratri

In parts of North India, Navratri is observed by fasting during the nine days and through the worship of the Mother Goddess, also known as Shakti and the Goddess Durga.

In West Bengal the ceremonial worship of the Goddess Durga, or Durga Puja, takes place in the last four days is the largest festival of the year for the state. Beautifully decorated life-size clay figurines of the Goddess Durga depicting her victory over the the demon Mahisasura are displayed.  These representations of the Goddess are worshipped for four days and immersed in the river in an elaborate ceremony on the fifth day.

In the southern Indian states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala, people set up a tiered display of handcrafted figurines of major deities, known as golu. The golu is displayed in the home depicting mythological scenes or stories. When visitors come to see the golu, they are offered small gifts blessed by the gods.

In Gujarat and other Western Indian states, Navratri is celebrated by thousands of families in their finest outfits packing dance halls for nine long nights of dancing revelry.

The Gujarati diaspora has been doing Dandiya Raas and Garba style dancing since they first left India. In recent decades other Indian communities will observe their more sedate observation of the holiday in their homes and temples and then go out for a night of Garba and Dandiya Raas. From Sydney, Australia to Johannesburg, South Africa, to Edison, NJ, community centers and high school auditoriums have accommodated tens of thousands of revelers dancing in rhythm for nine nights in a row as the name of the holiday suggests, or just on the weekends.

Big bands from India fly in on their short-term performers’ visas to tour the U.S. They  play in all the areas of with a sizeable Indian population. Nowadays, that is pretty much every major and minor metropolitan area in the U.S.

“Gujarati Line Dancing”
Both dances Dandiya Raas and Garba are simple to learn. Dr. Vinnie Juneja, Bethesda, MD, calls it “Gujarati line dancing.” He and his wife, Shareen Joshi, look forward to it every year though neither of them is Gujarati. Because it is a folk dance, by necessity it has to be simple enough for anyone to pick up. This is not a dance for trained dancers. This is a community dance that anyone from the eight year old to the eighty year old can enjoy.

There are choreographed versions done in cultural performances and competitions such as at

Dandiya World Fest 2008

www.youtube.com/watch?v=HEtPzOiU5KA

Dirty South Dandiya at University of Texas, Austin

www.youtube.com/watch?v=2c1CqaY1MMY

and the Durga Puja in Hong Kong

www.youtube.com/watch?v=vHKm9N8Vngw

This looks complicated- can I really do this?
Don’t be scared off by the stylized performances done by groups in the video clips above- they have been practicing for weeks. There is the community folk version which is less crisp and less athletic, but extremely fun. It is the community folk version that you will find when you attend a local Navratri celebration.

Many non-Indians report that the steps are not so difficult to pick up. There are varying levels of complexity from the simple to fanciful to downright athletic.

There are two base steps: the 5-step and the 12-step.  Both have the beginner’s version and countless more complex variations. Kalyan says that the new variations from Mumbai or Baroda sometimes don’t even reach the U.S. for 3-4 years.

Once a beginner learns the basic 5 step, she can join in any group doing the 5-step. Even if the others in the group are doing a more complex version. As long as you can keep a beat, you can ramp up your own level of complexity at your own pace.

If you have Indian friends, take them with you. Even if you don’t have Indian friends, you will find that people at these events will be friendly and helpful. They will just be happy that you were interested enough to attend. You can learn by observing the steps or just jumping in.  Go to the event, watch some folks do it and then join in. Scope out a family or a couple or some young women and ask them to show you. Trust me, there will be many Indian teenagers and young adults who also are unsure of what to do. Many of these events have tutorials at the beginning of the events as well as groups that are going slower or doing the simpler steps. Or just pull an aunty who looks like she is gossiping too much and ask her to show you how.

What to Expect:
A brief ceremonial worship, or puja, is performed to honor the Mother Goddess, Durga. This takes place either in the beginning of the evening or sometime in the middle while the band is taking a break. The puja is taken care of by the event organizers while attendees observe. At the end of it, a small lamp may be passed around, called an “aarti.” This is for each individual to receive the blessings from the puja. Observe what everyone else does and follow suit if you would like, otherwise, say “no thank you.”  Sweets or prasad is distributed. If you receive any into your hand, it should be your right hand and you should eat all of it. Throwing any of it away would be bad form.

What to Expect:

The evening typically starts with a slower stick-less dance called Garba. Not unlike American night clubs and high school dances, it is the women who start the dancing such as in this event in Leicester, UK.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9U8k42FqrA

Slowly the men begin screwing up their courage and join in as in this event with performer Falguni Pathak in the U.S.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=goeOJX2xkLA

You’ll notice in these videos that not everyone already knows what to do but are keeping a keen an eye on their neighbors or the person in front of them to keep in sync.

The pace picks up over the course of the evening once the Dandiya Raas begins.  The dandiya, or sticks, are distributed- two to each person, or just one if there is a huge turn out. Traditionally, the dandia sticks were made of bamboo. Today, they are made from wood, acrylic, a plastic composite, and some from metal. Some are coated in silk or have bells hanging from the tips.

Dandiya, which literally mean "sticks", come in all colors and materials. These are distributed as the Dandiya portion of the evening commences.

One can purchase very pricey dandiya sticks in India or make their own from half inch dowels purchased at your local Home Depot. Some people will paint their sticks for extra pizzazz. But for those to whom showmanship is of the utmost importance, they will buy the ultimate in dandiya- the electronic ones with batteries that flash different colored lights and effectively blind your fellow dancers.

At many events, there is a dance lesson or demonstration before or when the live band is taking a break. These lessons are for all the new comers which includes not only non-Indians, but the Indian young adults, teenagers, and children.

The dancing starts out slow such as in this performance of Dholida O Dholida in Leicester, UK.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=KK6b2e5aV94

In graceful swirls and twirls, two concentric circles of dancers. One circle moves clockwise, the other circle moves counterclockwise. Each time you repeat your pattern of steps, you face a new partner, perform your steps, and move in the direction of your circle.  You repeat this until you are breathless or need a gasp of air. Then after taking a break, drinking some water, you jump back in with a partner or find another group doing a variation on the steps you were just doing for a change of pace.

Depending on the vibe of the dance hall, sometimes splinter groups form from the large group for those who want to either kick it up a notch and go faster or do fancier step. Some create smaller groups just to solidify the steps or to dance at a slower pace.

“I was surprised how much exercise it was . You’re dressed up nicely, but it’s a cardio workout,” says Aneta.

How to find a Navratri celebration in your area:

• Use any search engine and type in “your city name” and one or a combination of these key words: “navratri” “garba” “dandia” “dandiya” “raas”
• Check the ads in the free newspapers available at Indian restaurants and grocery stores
• Search under your city at Sulekha

What to Wear:

Professional performers wear beautiful rich patterns heavily decorated with intricate mirror work.

Professional male performer's outfit | Photo Courtesy of Rajesh Joshi

For a sense of the clothing typically worn by regular Navratri goers, take a look at the links to the community events.

If you don’t own Indian clothes and don’t have Indian friends from whom to borrow clothes, not to worry. Once you get there, you’ll see a lot of the younger generation wearing comfortable American clothing as well.

Men:  Wear long pants and a dress shirt, casual shirt, or anything with a collar. No need to tuck the shirt into your pants. Avoid T-shirts and shorts.

Women: Wear a long flowing skirt with gathering or pleats -- something that looks nice when you twirl. You will have the most fun in that kind of skirt. Bring a matching scarf. Wear bright or pastel colors if you can. Wear your most fun and vibrant jewelry. Long earrings, lots of bracelets, and anklets if you own any.

Avoid short skirts, tight skirts (A-line, pencil skirts), black or dark clothing, heels.

As you can see in the video clips, anything goes. You’ll notice there are plenty of women and men decked out wearing lovely traditional clothes, next to the guy who looks like he just came from his golf game or basketball practice. Just wear comfortable clothes.

Footwear:

This is not a place to show off your Jimmy Choos.  Most of the time they will be sitting in a heap with 400 other pairs of shoes at the entrance.

This dance is done barefoot so remember, so, ladies, make sure your outfit is not one where the shoes make or break the outfit. Also make sure that once you take off your shoes that your skirt is still high enough that you won’t be tripping over it once your heels are off.

Some halls do allow shoes, so just in case bring a comfortable pair of flats- you will not last in heels for any amount of time.

I encourage any non-Indian who has not participated in this tradition to give it a go.

For the ones that do it well, they look smooth and graceful. For those who are just learning or who are not naturally imbued with rhythm, they may look like they are belting out an aerobics routine. Whatever you do and however you look, it won’t matter, because no one is looking at you. Everyone is just there to have fun, socialize, and get a good workout.

“In our country,” he said, “we can’t accept women imprisoned behind a mesh window, cut off from all social life, deprived of any identity. That is not the French Republic’s idea of women’s dignity.”

France is home to the largest Muslim population in Europe—about 5 million people—and the burqa ban, if it goes into effect, will have a huge impact on the approximately 100,000 women in France who currently wear some version of it.

Secretary of State for Urban Affairs Fadela Amara (both a French feminist and Muslim herself) immediately came out in favor. A prominent advocate of the ban, she called the burqa a “coffin that kills individual liberties” and the women who wear it “victims”. Many also think that the ban will send a message to the growing number of Islamic fundamentalists in France that they are not welcome on French soil.

On the other side are people like Mohammed Moussaoui, leader of the moderate, quasi-governmental organization French Council of Muslim Faith, who fears that the ban will further isolate the Islamic community from mainstream French society and tarnish France’s reputation as a tolerant society, as well as the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB), an umbrella group of more than 500 Muslim organizations in the UK, that demanded Sarkozy cease “promoting divisive politics” that could “lead to an Islamaphobic reaction.”

“It is patronizing and offensive to suggest that those Muslim women who wear the burqa do so because of pressure or oppression to their male partners or guardians,” said Dr. Reefat Drabu, the MCB’s assistant secretary general.

Where do I stand on the debate? As a feminist, I agree with Amara and feminist Muslim journalist, Mona Eltahawy, who writes that the burqa “deprives a woman of identity” and is complicit in the “erasure” of a woman’s personhood. Extreme forms of veiling, such as those that obscure a woman’s face, are antiquated and have no place in modern society. Not to mention that the few times I have had to wear one, I nearly overheated.

But as an immigrant rights lawyer, I have to come out in opposition whenever majority cultures legislate the practices of a minority when there is no threat of physical harm.

Some thoughts:

Sarkozy is No Friend to Feminists

While Sarkozy plays the role of feminist when it comes to “liberating” the women of immigrant communities, he can hardly be considered a friend to the women of France.  Though he courted women’s votes during France’s election in 2007, feminists criticize his steps backwards on a variety of women’s issues. His predecessor, Francois Mitterrand, spearheaded women’s rights in 1981, at the time making France a leader among European countries on women’s issues. Meanwhile, Sarkozy has been in office since May 2007 and has yet to set up a ministry for women’s issues or assign a secretary of state on the issue–the first time either position has been missing from French government in three decades.

Back when he was interior minister, Sarkozy effectively declared war on immigrant prostitutes by enacting a law which created vague parameters around which prostitutes could be arrested and then deported. Later, he refused cooperation for companion provisions that would aid in ending the sex trafficking that unwittingly brings many foreign prostitutes to French shores. France’s deportation of prostitutes was strongly criticized by the United Nations and the International Organization for Migration (IOM). “If you are talking about victims of trafficking, then deporting them is probably the worst thing you can do,” said IOM spokesman Jean-Philippe Chauzy. “If you just return these women (to their home countries), without any reintegration assistance, there’s a very high probability they will be trafficked again.”

The Burqa is Not the Same as Female Genital Mutilation

Another issue that has been hotly debated in the U.S. and European countries is female genital mutilation (FGM). In the case of FGM, where there is a threat of physical harm to minors, the state’s role changes—its job is to protect those within its borders from physical harm inflicted by others, particularly when the majority of those who are subjected to this practice are below the legal age of consent.

In situations where I have had to teach the laws surrounding FGM to Western audiences, I will not allow students their typical knee-jerk reaction in thinking that cultures which practice it are crazy, barbaric, and evil. We try to understand the practice in its cultural context and its role and symbolism in those societies. We then balance a community’s right to its individual practices with the concept of universal human rights.

Meaning that unlike the case of FGM, the lack of physical harm in wearing a burqa means that a secular state has no right to intervene.

Burqa Bans Will Only Make Women More Isolated

Sarkozy’s obliviousness to immigrant women’s issues as seen in his treatment of immigrant sex traffickers points to his lack of understanding of immigrants in general.

As interior minister, he championed forced integration policies for immigrant communities, particularly Muslim communities. During his presidential campaign, he called for the creation of a ministry to uphold traditional French values. In an interview in 2007, Sarkozy stated “I am saying that the immigrants who come here have to sign up to the national identity. Is that shocking?”

But if Sarkozy really understood France’s Muslim community, he would realize that this ban will only facilitate further isolation. No one will be seeing middle-aged Muslim women parading around the streets, tossing their burqas and setting them on fire a la the feminist bra burnings of the 1970s.  Instead, women who are members of orthodox Islamic families which insist on veiling when in the company of non-related males will now be prevented from leaving their houses altogether.

True, many women will be forced to remove their burqas for practical purposes—to go to work, attend school, get medical treatment, etc. But there will be a sizeable segment of the burqa-wearing Muslim population which will not be going outdoors again. Welcome to France.

Veiling May Not Have Been Islamic, But It Is Now

Sarkozy defended the ban’s anti-religious pallor by claiming that “the burqa is not a sign of religion, it is a sign of subservience. He pointed out that, since veiling isn’t a Muslim tradition, but rather an old Bedouin custom, there was no need to protect the burqa as a religious right.

But even though it may be a cultural practice which has been conflated with religion over time, for many Muslim women, it is a religious issue. Santa Claus, the Christmas tree, and the Easter Bunny have nothing to do with the Jesus Christ. Instead they have roots in pre-Christian pagan rituals which welcome spring and honor fertility. But for millions of people, these technically cultural rituals are how they choose to practice their religion in the Christian faith.

The line between the cultural and the religious is a moving target that is different for each individual. For the French state to dictate what is and is not legitimate religious practice erodes France’s claim to separation of church and state.

Whether the burqa is authentically Muslim or arises from pre-Islamic practices is immaterial if a particular person is wearing the burqa as part of their faith. Particularly for immigrant communities, cut off from so many other cultural and religious aspects of daily life which they would have had in their home countries, reinventing and recategorizing practices to shape their community abroad or individual identity is essential to them.

Of course, in many cases women are *required* to don the burqa, wear a headscarf, not leave the house without a niqab, or simply dress modestly. And of course, there are women among them who, if given a real choice without punitive consequences, would opt out of the requirement entirely.  But to presume that every woman who veils is oppressed is paternalistic.

Muslims around the world have been divided on the burqa issue themselves, evident in the variations of modesty that exist. If Muslims can’t agree on how much veiling makes a person Muslim, then how can Sarkozy presume to know the answer?

Restrict the Burqa as a Public Safety Issue Instead

One option is to ban the burqa when it obscures facial features in the same context that you would restrict the wearing of masks.

A few days before Sarkozy’s comments, the Supreme Court of Michigan ruled that a judge could regulate the attire of witnesses in a case in which a Muslim woman refused to lift her niqab to testify. In 2002, the Florida Department of Motor Vehicles revoked a veiled woman’s driver’s license after she refused to let herself be photographed without her face covering. Women are also required to show their faces to have their passport photographs taken.  In these situations, seeing a woman’s face was essential to her interaction with the state. Reading a witness’s facial expressions is crucial to assessing the trustworthiness of someone testifying under oath, just as photographing a person’s face is necessary to creating a government-issued identification card.

If you want to ban the burqa, do it for reasons which do not set a precedent of colonialist proportions. Do it for reasons which do not hammer another nail in the coffin of the Sarkozy France’s status as a secular state.

I would welcome a ban on restrictive clothing that has a defensible reason and allows women alternatives which preserve their own sense of dignity. As the French burqa commission collects opinions and assesses goals, strategies, and consequences of a ban, I offer a few humble words of advice as an immigrant lawyer who has worked with immigrant communities to change attitudes on controversial topics:

Community attitudes on veiling will not transform overnight. Lessening the suppression of women and curbing the rise of fundamentalism in minority communities will require cooperation from moderate French Islamic communities, adequate funding for research and analysis of the issue, and a staggered system of bans which gently phase in reasonable restrictions, rather than traumatize the community with Draconian laws.