On the morning of Friday October 30th, two girls fell through the ice of a stormwater pond in Northeast Calgary. Elderly Sikh men that walk around the lake at that time first jumped into action, trying to use siding from a nearby renovation project to reach one of the girls. When that didn’t work, the men started unravelling their turbans and tying the pieces of cloth together to make a rope. “In Sikh faith, it’s a big thing to take your turban off but they didn’t think for one moment, They just thought of saving her life” said an onlooker of the event. After several tries with the turban rope, someone brought a garden hose which made it easier to pull the girl to safety. The other girl was saved by another passerby.  Both girls survived and had no lasting repercussions from the incident. For more information on what occured visit: https://globalnews.ca/news/7436127/calgary-ice-rescue-northeast-calgary/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

     “Comedian”  used his platform in which an audience is present to mock and make insensitive jokes about the event that occurred on Friday. In the video he has now taken down, can be seen using the mic cord to mimic the turban fabric and saying “No take it, I’ll save you!” in his racist version of a brown or desi accent. He goes on to mockingly say “This guy used his turban like a whip, like a lasso. This guy is my superhero.” to which the audience only precedes with laughter. Since then  has taken down the video from his Instagram but many small Instagram pages that talk about racism in Calgary have reposted it.  

     Racism amongst minority groups in Calgary is often overlooked and needs to be addressed. Being a comedian doesn't give you the right to discriminate against others.  insensitive “jokes” are unacceptable as they promote hatred and prejudice towards the Sikh community. We can’t even consider them jokes as they were not funny and instead desensitized an event that brought people to tears. These elderly men took the initiative to save the two girls without second guessing. When these acts of kindness occur it is important to acknowledge and appreciate the efforts made instead of using it as an opportunity to make insensitive jokes. To be clear, this is not the first hate incident that has surfaced, as there have been numerous occasions in the past where the Sikh Community has been attacked. The Calgary C-Train has been a common place where hatred often goes unnoticed and this is the case for many minority groups. 

     With the rise of a new era where many individuals have been taking an initiative to prevent the spread of hatred, we need your support! Racist people and their racist, ignorant actions are not ones that should be supported. Please sign this petition to show people that think racism is okay that they’re wrong and that these actions will not be supported. We hope to get  work as a comedian under review with the club he works with called the “Calgary Yuk Yuk’s Club”. Let’s show appreciation for the Sikh men who put the girls’ lives before their own, and let us remember those who lost their lives during the Sikh genocide in November of 1984.

     Please sign, share and repost! Let’s educate and raise awareness regarding the active racism that occurs within the City of Calgary.