Lea Terhune writes in the May/June 2005 issue of SPAN, the journal
published by the New Delhi-based American Centre --
newdelhi.usembassy.gov/wwwhspan.html about the role of Sikhs in
California. Says her article:
When the first Sikh immigrants arrived in California's
fertile Central Valley more than a century ago, they
were reminded of the plains in their homeland, the
Punjab. Their farming skills, their willineness to work,
and their drive to get ahead ensured their rise in
status from humble migrant laborers who picked fruit
in the hot sun to significant landowners who today
control much of the agriculture in California. But
agriculture was just the beginning. Today an
estimated 250,000 Sikhs live in California, and they
are found in all businesses and professions, making a
major contribution to the socioeconomic fabric of the
state.
Interesting! Goa may not have the migratory numbers when compared to
other states like the Punjab, Gujarat, Andhra or Kerala. But people from
Goa too have played pioneering roles (sometimes controversial, at other
times immensely positive) in places like East Africa, the Persian Gulf
when people still lived in tents and recall drinking sandy water, Burma,
and cities like Karachi.
So why are Goans simply so invisible in history? Is it that their tale
has not been told? How do we change this situation? Can the Internet
help? Questions, questions....
