LONDON: A 10-year-old Sikh girl was branded a terrorist in a London playground when she tried to play with other children who refused to play with her.
Munsimar Kaur, who wears a turban, was told twice by different sets of children at Plumstead Adventure Play Centre in Plumstead, south-east London, this week they would not play with her because she looked dangerous.
“On Monday, two boys who looked 14 to 17 and two girls who looked like they were in their late teens were playing a game. When I asked to play it — as the queue was a mile long — they said loud and clear ‘No you can’t play because you are a terrorist’,” Munsimar said. “This obviously broke my heart but I kept my head up and went away.”
She then went back the next day and made friends with a nine-year-old girl. “After an hour her mum called her and said she can’t play with me because I was dangerous. She said sorry so I knew it wasn’t her fault,” Munsimar said.
Munismar bravely decided to speak about the harassment in a video on Twitter. “This exposes the lack of exposure some people have,” she said in the video. “Sikhs are naturally caring. No matter what, we will love everyone. But I need to speak out about this because not everyone is strong enough to walk away or has suitable parents to talk to, to handle this racism. Anyone going through this, tell your parents and keep your chin up and it will work out in the end, I promise.”
Her father Gurpreet Singh, a mental health professional, tweeted the video saying: “My eldest daughter Munsimar Kaur, aged 10, tells her own true story. Today it was my child, tomorrow it could be yours.”
Munsimar’s mother Navrup Kaur tweeted: “My 10 yr old was called a terrorist by kids on Monday & a parent called her dangerous on Tuesday. The GLL adventure play staff are oblivious #racist #Ignorant.”
Greenwich Leisure Ltd (GLL), a charitable social enterprise, runs the Plumstead Adventure Play Centre which has facilities including rope swings, walkways, zip wires, pool and table tennis. Its spokesperson said it had “a zero-tolerance policy on racism and bullying” and was “very shocked to hear of this little girl’s experience.”
“We and our approachable and caring playworkers all receive diversity training appropriate to our multicultural playground, which provides a warm welcome to dozens of nationalities and faiths. The incident was not witnessed by our staff or reported at the time, so we would very much like to speak to the family about what they experienced and take any necessary action,” the spokesperson said.
“Racism against Sikhs — because of the hyper-visible appearance of practising Sikhs — is incredibly common in the UK and across the Western world,” said Jasveer Singh, Sikh Press Association Senior press officer. “Sikhs have become so used to it, most barely react to the comments such as ‘Bin Laden’ and more. However, the UK often overlooks the amount of racism against Sikhs there is.”
Munsimar Kaur, who wears a turban, was told twice by different sets of children at Plumstead Adventure Play Centre in Plumstead, south-east London, this week they would not play with her because she looked dangerous.
“On Monday, two boys who looked 14 to 17 and two girls who looked like they were in their late teens were playing a game. When I asked to play it — as the queue was a mile long — they said loud and clear ‘No you can’t play because you are a terrorist’,” Munsimar said. “This obviously broke my heart but I kept my head up and went away.”
She then went back the next day and made friends with a nine-year-old girl. “After an hour her mum called her and said she can’t play with me because I was dangerous. She said sorry so I knew it wasn’t her fault,” Munsimar said.
Racist Park @GLL_UK My eldest daughter Munsimar Kaur, aged 10, tells her own true story. Today it was my child t… https://t.co/Gt75KRgJZ9
— Sikh Dad (@sikhdad) 1565282180000Munismar bravely decided to speak about the harassment in a video on Twitter. “This exposes the lack of exposure some people have,” she said in the video. “Sikhs are naturally caring. No matter what, we will love everyone. But I need to speak out about this because not everyone is strong enough to walk away or has suitable parents to talk to, to handle this racism. Anyone going through this, tell your parents and keep your chin up and it will work out in the end, I promise.”
Her father Gurpreet Singh, a mental health professional, tweeted the video saying: “My eldest daughter Munsimar Kaur, aged 10, tells her own true story. Today it was my child, tomorrow it could be yours.”
Munsimar’s mother Navrup Kaur tweeted: “My 10 yr old was called a terrorist by kids on Monday & a parent called her dangerous on Tuesday. The GLL adventure play staff are oblivious #racist #Ignorant.”
Greenwich Leisure Ltd (GLL), a charitable social enterprise, runs the Plumstead Adventure Play Centre which has facilities including rope swings, walkways, zip wires, pool and table tennis. Its spokesperson said it had “a zero-tolerance policy on racism and bullying” and was “very shocked to hear of this little girl’s experience.”
“We and our approachable and caring playworkers all receive diversity training appropriate to our multicultural playground, which provides a warm welcome to dozens of nationalities and faiths. The incident was not witnessed by our staff or reported at the time, so we would very much like to speak to the family about what they experienced and take any necessary action,” the spokesperson said.
“Racism against Sikhs — because of the hyper-visible appearance of practising Sikhs — is incredibly common in the UK and across the Western world,” said Jasveer Singh, Sikh Press Association Senior press officer. “Sikhs have become so used to it, most barely react to the comments such as ‘Bin Laden’ and more. However, the UK often overlooks the amount of racism against Sikhs there is.”
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