Thread by @HMAesq

Candidate day at the Raj Khalsa Gurdwara in Sterling! We were introduced and then got to say a few words to the congregation in the langar hall.

Gurdwaras, or Sikh houses of worship, all have a free kitchen that serves simple, vegetarian meals to everyone, no questions asked.

The three pillars of Sikhism (naam jappo, or meditation, vand chhakko, or sharing, and kirat karo, or earn an honest living) are practiced here. Sikhism originated in the Punjab province of India and Pakistan, which also is my ancestral homeland.

The Punjab province was split during the 1947 partition, but Sikhs, Muslims, and Hindus still share family ties that defy borders. I chatted with several congregants who excitedly told me about their parents and grandparents who hailed from what is now Pakistan.

And I shared my mother and grandmother hailing from what was, and remains, India. To me, visiting a gurdwara feels like coming home.

Borders and walls are temporary. They cannot keep a people from "vand chhakko" (sharing) not only wealth, but culture, language, and spirit.

I addressed the congregation entirely in Punjabi, telling them the story of what happened two years ago at Dulles Airport during the Muslim ban. Such exclusion is against our constitution, it's against our principles, and against the teachings of any faith.

But it's standing together, showing up, where real power inheres.

ਜਦੋਂ ਅਸੀਂ ਇਕੱਠੇ ਖੜ੍ਹੇ ਹੁੰਦੇ ਤੇ ਸਾਨੂੰ ਕੋਈ ਨਹੀਂ ਰੋਕ ਸਕਦਾ
جدوں اسیں اکٹھے کھڑے ہندے تے سانوں کوئی نہیں روک سکدا
When we stand together, no one can stop us.

#ShowUpVirginia
#VoteJune11
#Hassan4VA