Poem: Singh is Queer

Rage
Ego
Lust
Greed
Attachment

The five that we can not abide by
Not one of them mentions
Queer existence.

They say I cannot be a Queer Sikh
As if they sat across the table withGuru Ji.
They quote people against homosexuality
Never once uttering the name of ourGuru Ji.

B a s i c a l l y
Queer existence is allowed in Sikhi
Because co-existence in Sikhi is a thing.
Those who believe that it is not
Need to read the entireSri Guru Granth Sahib Ji.

EvenBhagat Khabeersays it does not
Matter if your head is shaved or
If your hair is long,
Never once making visible appearance
A mandatory thing to be a person ofPramathma.

The gurus carefully chose
The pieces that they hoped
Would make us all better Sikhs
When they established the
Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji.

Fighters of freedom
Defenders of the oppressed
Always acting out of righteousness and love
Aiming to bless bless bless.

A poem from the poetry book ‘Singh is Queer’ published here with permission. You can order the book from Amazon here

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Manpreet Singh

Manpreet is a 23 years old transman from San Franciscostudying Ethnic Studies: Genders & Sexualities in communities of colors,at California State University: East Bay. He is collaborating with the Theater department to perform shows (and spoken word pieces) focused on depicting social justice + equality. His poetry book Singh is Queer explores intersectional feminism and colonialism through a Sikh perspective.

Latest posts by Manpreet Singh (see all)

• Poem: Singh is Queer - July 17, 2018