US Gurdwaras meet to chart grassroots strategy

Representatives from more than 50 Gurdwaras in the US are gathering here this week for a national meeting to chart grassroots strategy that will raise the profile of Sikhs in the country.

Organised by the newly formed National Sikh Campaign (NSC), the gurdwara leaders will strategise with Hillary Clinton's former Chief Strategist, Geoff Garin, who is already conducting a survey about Sikhs in the US.

In one of the largest effort to change the perception of the community, the meeting will explore further collaboration with AKPD, President Barack Obama's media firm.

Garin's research will help the NSC to organise a massive, well-coordinated, strategically designed campaign to put Sikhs in the most positive light possible, a statement from organisers said.

"This meeting will be an unprecedented step to organise the Sikh community in the United States towards a common goal, which is shaping the Sikh image in America," said Gurwin Singh Ahuja, the campaign's executive director and former National Field Coordinator for President Obama.

"Our community has been waiting for this opportunity for over 100 years," he added.

"This is the first time that the Gurdwaras are meeting for the single agenda to display Sikhs as vital members of American society and this has the potential to be the largest promotion of Sikhs in the western world," said Rajwant Singh, chairman of the Sikh Council on Religion and Education and senior advisor to the National Sikh Campaign.