Santbir Singh

Research Associate

Santbir Singh is a Research Associate with SikhRI. He is currently doing his Ph.D. in Sociology at York University. His graduate research focuses on Sikh activism and the inherent relationship between Sikhi and anarchism explored through historical and contemporary Sikh movements, such as the Kisān Morcha (Farmer’s Protests) of 2020-2021. 

Santbir Singh has served as an educator and activist in the Sikh community for over two decades. He continues cultivating a deeper relationship with Sabad Guru while focusing on Sikh inspirations for social activism, feminism, and decolonization through a multifaceted critical analysis using different schools of thought and tradition.

Santbir Singh is a facilitator at Sidak and an alumnus of Sidak 2012. He lives on Wendat, Anishinabek, Haudenosaunee, Mississauga, Hiawatha, Alderville & Métis Territory on Williams Treaties land (colonially known as Toronto), Canada, with his wonderful wife, incredible children, and wild dog.

Videos

Saturday
,
31
October
2020

Genocide

How do we remember? How do we advocate? How do we survive? Watch this webinar with three leading voices in the November 1984 Anti-Sikh pogroms study.

watch now ⟶
Tuesday
,
9
February
2016

Liv - Free Akal Takht - Looking Back - Forging On

We were once free. Our sovereign institutions were answerable only to the Guru and the Divine. Today the Akal Takht, built by Guru Harigobind Sahib, is under the laws of the Indian state. We are the world's only major faith without our own sovereign institution, the only faith whose central authority is legislated by an outside government. Imagine having our own sovereign institution, open and responsible. Imagine being proud of how the Panth is run? Imagine having a say in how your faith is governed? Imagine a Free Akal Takht. About the Presenters: Santbir Singh is a avid student of Sikh history and philosophy. He has taught and spoken at retreats, conferences and youth camps for well over a decade and a half. He currently lives in Toronto with his wife and two children. Amrita Kaur is a Sikh activist interested in issues regarding Sikh sovereignty. She is a medical doctor and currently resides and practices in Hamilton.

watch now ⟶

Podcasts

Monday
,
18
March
2024

Getting to Know Rani Jind Kaur: Episode 2

Tune in to Santbir Singh and Sean Holden as they delve into the captivating tale of Rani Jind Kaur, the last queen of Panjab, in the inaugural episode of this podcast series. But why is it crucial for us to unravel her narrative?

watch now ⟶
Monday
,
18
March
2024

Getting to Know Rani Jind Kaur: Episode 1

Tune in to Santbir Singh and Sean Holden as they delve into the captivating tale of Rani Jind Kaur, the last queen of Panjab, in the inaugural episode of this podcast series. But why is it crucial for us to unravel her narrative?

watch now ⟶
Tuesday
,
13
April
2021

Countdown to Vaisakhi 2021: Santbir Singh

Santbir Singh, Sidak Facilitator at Sikh Research Institute (SikhRI) shares his reflection on Vaisakhi.

watch now ⟶
Friday
,
6
November
2020

Genocide

How do we remember? How do we advocate? How do we survive? In this episode we feature three leading voices in the November 1984 Anti-Sikh pogroms study.

watch now ⟶

Articles

Tuesday
,
26
March
2024

No More Blue Stars

In recent years, diasporic Sikhs have been moving to consciously avoid using the terms Operation Blue Star or Holocaust and instead use terms like the Battle of Amritsar, genocide, or Ghallughara when speaking about June and November 1984.

This is some text inside of a div block.
Read more ⟶
Tuesday
,
13
February
2024

The Attack on Political Sikhi

What did Indira Gandhi hope to achieve in the June 1984 attack on the Harimandar Sahib Complex and Gurduaras around Panjab? What was the goal of the Indian National Congress (I) party’s brutal and genocidal pogroms against Sikhs across the country in...

This is some text inside of a div block.
Read more ⟶
Monday
,
18
June
2012

The Messiah Is Here

We all suffer at times, weighed down with personal traumas, disappointments and regrets. According to the Buddhists, the primary truth of all of human existence is suffering. But in Sikhi, while our Guru acknowledges that there is much suffering in life, there is more to life and the universe than mere suffering. No, life is so much more than suffering.

This is some text inside of a div block.
Read more ⟶
Friday
,
22
February
2013

Sidak 2013: Why I'll be There

Like many young Sikh-Canadians and Sikh-Americans, I've done the full circuit.I started as a kid at the Punjabi Sunday School, moved on to the day camps run by the gurdwaras during school holidays. Then, in university and after, I started going from the West Coast to the East, attending conferences and retreats.

This is some text inside of a div block.
Read more ⟶
Friday
,
7
February
2014

Crafting The Tools of Sikh Sovereignty

For many Sikhs today, there is little difference between being Punjabi and being Sikh. But this was not always the case. 

This is some text inside of a div block.
Read more ⟶
Thursday
,
24
April
2014

Where Do We Go From Here?

We are not strangers to random acts of violence and discrimination. Although mass shootings have become far too common in America in recent years, rarely have these horrific crimes been targeted at one community.

This is some text inside of a div block.
Read more ⟶

Presenting at Upcoming Events

Santbir Singh
 is not presenting at any upcoming events as of yet. Explore our upcoming events.