--- On Fri, 17/7/09, Hari Sharma at Seventy Five <[email protected]> wrote:
> From: Hari Sharma at Seventy Five <[email protected]> > Subject: LIFE IN STRUGGLE CELEBRATION: Honoring Hari Sharma at 75 > To: [email protected] > Date: Friday, 17 July, 2009, 1:19 PM > > LIFE IN STRUGGLE CELEBRATION: Honoring > Hari Sharma > at 75 > LIFE > IN > STRUGGLE CELEBRATION > > November > 14-15, 2009 > > Honoring Hari > Sharma at 75 > > > > > > > > Organizing Committee, Hari Sharma at 75: > > Abi Ghimire, Amarjit Chahal, Bhanu Poudyal, Chinmoy > Banerjee, Harinder > Mahil, Raj Chouhan, Sarabjit Hundal, Shinder Brar > > > > > > Dear Friends, > > > > We are friends of Hari Sharma who have come together to > celebrate > Hari's 75th birthday in a manner that is appropriate > for a person > whose life and work have impacted on and been connected > with so many > of us in the Vancouver area, nationally and > internationally. We > invite you to participate in the activities we are planning > to > celebrate not only Hari's life but the lives that we > have all lived in > struggle in his company. Some of us have been with Hari > since the > early 1970's when he was organizing international > support for > political prisoners in India, some joined him when he took > lead in > organizing resistance to the imposition of fascist > dictatorship in > India by Indira Gandhi in 1975 through the formation of > Indian > People's Association in North America (IPANA) (for > which his Indian > passport was impounded in 1976), and some came into his > orbit with his > organization of resistance to the ongoing attempt to impose > a > Hindu-chauvinist, fascistic polity in India through the > formation of > Non-Resident Indians for Secular Democracy (NRISAD) in 1993 > that later > developed a wider focus and became South Asian Network for > Secularism > and Democracy (SANSAD). > > > > Hari Sharma taught in the Department of Sociology in Simon > Fraser > University till his retirement in 1999 as professor > emeritus. As a > teacher he taught on Marxism and revolutionary struggles > inspiring > many students, and as a professional he vigorously defended > academic > freedom and the right of faculty to teach according to > their political > beliefs without persecution (including the valiant fight he > put up to > get his own tenure). However, he spent the major part of > his enormous > energy in the last forty years as an activist in the South > Asian and > the left community in Vancouver. > > > > The primary focus of Hari's activities has been the > opposition to > imperialism at the global level with a particular concern > for the > impact of imperialism and the struggle against it in India. > These have > engaged him in anti-war work locally and in the > international campaign > against nuclear weapons. But at the same time, Hari's > defense of > people's right of self-determination, national > liberation, and > livelihood has led him to a wide range of activities in > support of > wars of national liberation and people's struggles for > land, > livelihood, social justice, and dignity. Hari has been > vigorous in > opposition to state repression in the service of Capital > and an > energetic champion of the rights of political prisoners in > India and > elsewhere. For the last twenty-five years he has been a > passionate > defender of the rights of minorities in India, particularly > the Sikhs > who came under attack from the state and state-sponsored > mobs in 1984 > and Muslims who came under similar attack beginning with > the > demolition of Babri Masjid in 1992. For these activities he > was twice > denied visa to enter India on his Canadian passport. > Recently he has > been denied Overseas Indian Citizensihip. > > > > Locally, Hari has been a leader in the struggle against > racism in > Vancouver through the formation of the British Columbia > Organization > to Fight Racism (BCOFR) and an inspiration behind the > organization of > farm workers in British Columbia into the Canadian > Farmworkers' Union > (CFU), the first president of which is a part of this > organizing > committee. Hari has also been a leader in organizing the > South Asian > community to seek acknowledgement from the Canadian > government of the > injustice done to our community by the racist policies of > the > government that turned away the immigrant ship Komagata > Maru from the > shores of Vancouver in 1914. > > > > As a mobilizing force in support of people's struggles, > a champion of > human rights and social justice, and a voice of conscience > against the > oppression of people everywhere but particularly minorities > in India, > Hari has brought many people to engage in struggle with him > in Canada > and the USA and connected with many people internationally. > He has > been a teacher and guide-and gadfly--of two generations of > progressive > South Asians in the Vancouver area of BC. > > > We invite you to celebrate the struggles we have engaged in > as a > community of faith in human rights, human dignity and > social justice > in fellowship with Hari Sharma. We plan to hold a > conference on topics > included under the broad rubric, "Imperialism, > Socialism, and > People's Struggles Today" on November 14, to be > followed by a > celebratory party on November 15. We also plan to produce a > publication for the occasion as a gift to Hari. The > publication will > have three parts: the first will be a set of articles on > topics > related to Imperialism, socialism and people's > struggles today > conceived as a guide to action, the second will be a set of > contributions of memories of struggle, which we hope will > inform and > inspire others, and the third will include a selection of > Hari's > photographs of the people of India engaged in the struggle > of everyday > living. > > > > We invite you to contribute your memories of struggle to > this > collection. The essay should be no more than three pages. > It should be > sent to us no later than September 30. Please let us know > as soon as > possible if we can expect a contribution from you. > > > > We will send you further information regarding the > conference on > November 14 and the party on November 15 on hearing from > you. We > earnestly hope that you can join us for these events. We > will arrange > billeting for all out of town guests. > > > > In solidarity, > > > > > > Chinmoy Banerjee, for Organizing Committee, Hari Sharma > at > 75. > > July 16, 2009 > > > > 9155 Wiltshire Place, Burnaby, BC, V3N 4L6. > 604-421-6752. > [email protected] > > > > Looking for local information? Find it on Yahoo! Local http://in.local.yahoo.com/ --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Green Youth Movement" group. 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Honoring
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