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	==See also==		==See also==
	~~{{Portalbar\|United States\|India\|Biography}}~~
	*[[Indian Americans]]		*[[Indian Americans]]
	*[[Sikhs in the United States military]]		*[[Sikhs in the United States military]]

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73.170.67.148 at 17:34, 13 July 2021

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	\| death_date = {{Death date and age\|1967\|9\|15\|1892\|10\|3}}		\| death_date = {{Death date and age\|1967\|9\|15\|1892\|10\|3}}
	\| death_place = [[Los Angeles, California\|Los Angeles]], [[California]], [[U.S.]]		\| death_place = [[Los Angeles, California\|Los Angeles]], [[California]], [[U.S.]]
	\| citizenship = American		\| citizenship = [[British subject\|British Indian]] {{small\|(1892–1918)}}<br/>[[American people\|American]] {{small\|(1918-1967)}}
	\| nationality = [[~~Americans~~\|~~American~~]]		\| nationality = [[British subject\|British Indian]] {{small\|(1892–1918)}}<br/>[[Indian people\|Indian]] {{small\|(1947-1967)}}
	\| other_names =		\| other_names =
	\| known_for = ''[[United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind]]''		\| known_for = ''[[United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind]]''

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2021-06-21T01:43:25Z

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{{distinguish|Bhagat Singh}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2020}}
{{short description|Indian American writer and civil rights activist}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Bhagat Singh Thind
| image = Bhagatsinghthind.jpg
| alt =
| caption = Sergeant Bhagat Singh Thind in U.S. Army uniform during [[World War I]] at [[Camp Lewis, Washington]], in 1918. Thind, an [[Sikhism in the United States|American Sikh]], was the first U.S. serviceman to be allowed for religious reasons to wear a [[turban]] as part of his [[military uniform]].
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1892|10|3}}
| birth_place = [[Taragarh Talawa]], [[Amritsar district|Amritsar]], [[Punjab, British India|Punjab]], [[British Raj|British India]] (present-day [[Punjab, India|Punjab]], [[India]])
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1967|9|15|1892|10|3}}
| death_place = [[Los Angeles, California|Los Angeles]], [[California]], [[U.S.]]
| citizenship = American
| nationality = [[Americans|American]]
| other_names =
| known_for = ''[[United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind]]''
| occupation = Writer
}}

'''Bhagat Singh Thind''' (October 3, 1892 – September 15, 1967) was an [[Indian Americans|Indian American]] writer and lecturer on [[spirituality]] who served in the [[United States Army]] during [[World War I]] and was involved in a [[Supreme Court of the United States|Supreme Court]] case over the right of [[Indian people]] to obtain [[United States citizenship]].

Thind enlisted in the United States Army a few months before the end of [[World War I]]. After the war he sought to become a [[naturalized citizen]], following a legal ruling that [[White Americans|Caucasians]] had access to such rights{{citation needed|date=May 2020}}. In 1923, the [[Supreme Court of the United States|Supreme Court]] ruled against him in the case ''[[United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind]]'', which retroactively denied all [[Indian Americans]] the right to obtain [[Citizenship of the United States|United States citizenship]] for failing to meet the definition of a "white person", "person of African descent", or "[[Alien (law)|alien]] of African nativity".<ref>{{cite web|title=United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind, 261 U.S. 204 (1923)|url=http://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/261/204/case.html#214|publisher=Justia}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=US v. BHAGAT SINGH THIND |url=https://caselaw.findlaw.com/us-supreme-court/261/204.html |work=FindLaw.com |accessdate=November 15, 2019}}</ref>

Thind remained in the United States, earned his [[Doctor of Philosophy|PhD]] in [[theology]] and [[English literature]] at [[University of California, Berkeley|UC Berkeley]], and delivered lectures on [[metaphysics]]. His lectures were based on [[Sikh religious philosophy]], but included references to the scriptures of other [[world religions]] and the works of [[Ralph Waldo Emerson]], [[Walt Whitman]], and [[Henry David Thoreau]]. Thind also campaigned for [[Indian independence movement|Indian independence]] from [[British Raj|colonial rule]]. In 1936, Thind applied successfully for United States citizenship through the [[State of New York]].

==Early life==
Thind was born on October 3, 1892, in the village of [[Taragarh Talawa]] of [[Amritsar district]] in the state of [[Punjab (India)|Punjab]] in [[India]],<ref>http://pbplanning.gov.in/districts/Jandiala.pdf</ref> listed as number 68 in this record. He belonged to the [[Thind]] [[clan]] of [[Kamboj]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.bhagatsinghthind.com/thind_family_india.php |title=Archived copy |access-date=June 15, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160510081901/http://www.bhagatsinghthind.com/thind_family_india.php |archive-date=May 10, 2016 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.bhagatsinghthind.com/popup_familyindia24.html |title=Archived copy |access-date=May 10, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923184249/http://www.bhagatsinghthind.com/popup_familyindia24.html |archive-date=September 23, 2015 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==Arrival in the United States==
Bhagat Singh Thind arrived in the United States in 1913 to pursue higher education at an American university. On July 22, 1918, he was recruited by the United States Army to fight in [[World War I]], and on November 8, 1918, he was promoted to the rank of Acting Sergeant. He received an honorable discharge on December 16, 1918, with his character designated as "excellent".<ref>{{cite book |url= https://archive.org/details/makingofasianame00leee |url-access= registration |title=The Making of Asian America: A History | page=[https://archive.org/details/makingofasianame00leee/page/172 172] |first=Erika |last=Lee|publisher= Simon and Schuster | date=2016|accessdate= March 14, 2019 }}</ref><ref>Rashmi Sharma Singh: Petition for citizenship filed on September 27, 1935, State of New York.</ref>

U.S. citizenship conferred many rights and privileges, but only "free white men" and "persons of African nativity or persons of African descent" could be naturalized.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://multiracial.com/index.php/1948/10/01/perez-v-sharp-32-cal-2d-711-198-p-2d-17/|title=Perez v. Sharp (32 Cal.2d 711, 198 P.2d 17) – The Multiracial Activist}}</ref> In the United States at this time, many [[anthropologists]] used the term ''Caucasian'' as a synonym for ''white''. Indians were also categorized as Caucasians by various anthropologists. Thus, several Indians were granted United States citizenship in different [[U.S. state]]s. Thind also applied for citizenship from the [[State of Washington]] in July 1918. {{Citation needed|date=February 2011}}

==First United States citizenship==
[[File:Bhagat Singh Thind at Camp Lewis.jpg|thumb|Bhagat Singh Thind with his battalion at Camp Lewis, Washington on November 18, 1918.]]
Thind received his certificate of US citizenship on December 9, 1918, wearing [[military uniform]] as he was still serving in the United States Army. However, the [[Immigration and Naturalization Service|Bureau of Naturalization]] did not agree with the decision of the [[United States district court|district court]] to grant Thind citizenship. Thind's nationality was referred to as "Hindoo" or "Hindu" in all legal documents and in the [[news media]] despite being a practicing [[Sikh]]. At that time, Indians in the United States and [[Canada]] were called [[Hindus]] regardless of their [[religion]]. Thind's citizenship was revoked four days later, on December 13, 1918, on the grounds that Thind was not a "white man".

==Second United States citizenship==
Thind applied for United States citizenship again from the neighboring [[State of Oregon]], on May 6, 1919. The same Bureau of Naturalization official who revoked Thind’s citizenship tried to convince the judge to refuse citizenship to Thind, accusing Thind of involvement in the [[Ghadar Movement|Ghadar Party]], which campaigned for [[Indian independence movement|Indian independence]] from [[British Raj|colonial rule]].<ref>[http://www.sunypress.edu/p-6435-race-nation-and-refuge.aspx Doug Coulson, Race, Nation, and Refuge: The Rhetoric of Race in Asian American Citizenship Cases (Albany: SUNY Press, 2017)].</ref> Judge [[Charles E. Wolverton]] wrote that Thind "stoutly denies that he was in any way connected with the alleged propaganda of the Gadar Press to violate the neutrality laws of this country, or that he was in sympathy with such a course. He frankly admits, nevertheless, that he is an advocate of the principle of India for the Indians, and would like to see India rid of British rule, but not that he favors an armed revolution for the accomplishment of this purpose."{{citation needed|date=November 2012}} The judge took all arguments and Thind’s military record into consideration and declined to agree with the Bureau of Naturalization. Thus, Thind received United States citizenship for the second time on November 18, 1920.

==Supreme Court appeal==
The [[Immigration and Naturalization Service|Bureau of Naturalization]] appealed against the judge’s decision to the next higher court, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which sent the case to the Supreme Court for ruling on the following two questions:

# "Is a high caste Hindu of full Indian blood, born at [[Amritsar]], Punjab, India, a white person within the meaning of section 2169, Revised Statutes?"
# "Does the act of February 5, 1917 (39 Stat. L. 875, section 3) disqualify from naturalization as citizens those Hindus, now barred by that act, who had lawfully entered the United States prior to the passage of said act?"

Section 2169, Revised Statutes, provides that the provisions of the Naturalization Act "shall apply to aliens, being free white persons, and to aliens of African nativity and to persons of African descent."

In preparing briefs for the Ninth Circuit Court, Thind's attorney, [[Sakharam Ganesh Pandit]], argued that the Immigration Act of 1917 barred new immigrants from India but did not deny citizenship to Indians who, like Thind, were legally admitted before the passage of the new law. The purpose of the Immigration Act was "prospective, and not retroactive."

On February 19, 1923, Justice [[George Sutherland]] delivered the unanimous opinion of the [[Supreme Court of the United States|Supreme Court]] to deny citizenship to Indians, stating that "a negative answer must be given to the first question, which disposes of the case and renders an answer to the second question unnecessary, and it will be so certified." The justices wrote that since the "common man's" definition of "white" did not include Indians, they could not be naturalized.<ref>{{cite news|title=Court Rules Hindu Not a 'White Person'; Bars High Caste Native of India From Naturalization as an American Citizen|work=New York Times|date=February 20, 1923| accessdate= March 14, 2019 | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1923/02/20/archives/court-rules-hindu-not-a-white-person-bars-high-caste-native-of.html}}</ref>

Thind's citizenship was revoked and the Bureau of Naturalization issued a certificate in 1926 canceling his citizenship a second time. The Bureau of Naturalization also initiated proceedings to revoke citizenship granted to other [[Indian Americans]]. Between 1923 and 1926, the citizenship of fifty Indians was taken away.

==Third and final United States citizenship==
Thind petitioned for naturalization a third time through the state of New York in 1935 after the Congress passed the Nye-Lea Act, which made World War I veterans eligible for naturalization regardless of race. Based on his status as a veteran of the United States military during World War I, he was finally granted United States citizenship nearly two decades after he first petitioned for naturalization.<ref name="papers.ssrn.com">{{cite journal|last1=Coulson|first1=Doug|title=British Imperialism, the Indian Independence Movement, and the Racial Eligibility Provisions of the Naturalization Act: United States v. Thind Revisited|journal=Georgetown Journal of Law & Modern Critical Race Perspectives|date=2015|volume=7|pages=1–42|ssrn=2610266}}</ref>

==Contributions==

* Fought for United States citizenship (''[[United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind]]'')
* First turbaned soldier in the [[United States Army]]
* [[Indian independence movement|Indian independence]] activist and General Secretary of [[Ghadar Party]] from 1916–1917<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.bhagatsinghthind.com/gadar.html |title=Archived copy |access-date=May 29, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150222064859/http://www.bhagatsinghthind.com/gadar.html |archive-date=February 22, 2015 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
* Sikh spiritual writer and philosopher

Thind, during his early life, was influenced by the spiritual teachings of his father whose "living example left an indelible blueprint." After graduating from [[Khalsa College, Amritsar|Khalsa College]], he left for Manila, where he stayed for a year.

Thind learned about American culture from students and teachers at the [[University of California, Berkeley]], and from working people in the lumber mills of [[Oregon]] and [[Washington (state)|Washington]], where he worked during summer vacations to support himself financially. His teachings incorporated the scriptures of many religions, including [[Sikhism]]. During his lectures to Christian audiences, he frequently quoted the [[Vedas]], [[Guru Nanak]], [[Kabir]], and other sources in [[Indian philosophy]]. He also made reference to the works of [[Ralph Waldo Emerson]], [[Walt Whitman]], and [[Henry David Thoreau]].

Thind earned a [[PhD]], became a writer, and was respected as a spiritual guide. He gave a new "vista of awareness" to his students throughout the United States and was able to initiate "thousands of disciples" into his expanded view of reality – "the Inner Life, and the discovery of the power of the Holy Nãm." He published many pamphlets and books, including ''Radiant Road to Reality'', ''Science of Union with God'', ''The Pearl of Greatest Price'', ''House of Happiness'', ''Jesus, The Christ: In the Light of Spiritual Science'' (Vol. I, II, III), ''The Enlightened Life'', ''Tested Universal Science of Individual Meditation in Sikh Religion'', and ''Divine Wisdom''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.Bhagatsinghthind.com|title=Homepage}}</ref>

==Death==
Thind was writing a book when he died on September 15, 1967. He was outlived by his wife, Vivian, whom he had married in March 1940, and his daughter Tara and son David. His son created a website<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.bhagatsinghthind.com/|title=Homepage}}</ref> to propagate the philosophy for which his father devoted himself to the United States. He also posthumously published two of his father's books: ''Troubled Mind in a Torturing World and their Conquest'' and ''Winners and Whiners in this Whirling World''.

==Writings==
* ''Radiant Road to Reality''
* ''Science of Union with God''
* ''The Pearl of Greatest Price''
* ''House of Happiness''
* ''Jesus, The Christ: In the Light of Spiritual Science'' (Vol. I, II, III)
* ''The Enlightened Life''
* ''Tested Universal Science of Individual Meditation in Sikh Religion''
* ''Divine Wisdom'' (Vol. I, II, III)

===Posthumously released===
* ''Troubled Mind in a Torturing World and their Conquest''
* ''Winners and Whiners in this Whirling World''

==In media==
In 2020 the story of his Supreme Court case was part of PBS’s documentary ''Asian Americans.''<ref>{{cite web|author=Kristen Lopez |url=https://www.indiewire.com/2020/05/pbs-asian-americans-documentary-1202230675/amp/ |title='Asian Americans': PBS Documentary Compels Viewers to Honor and Remember – IndieWire |publisher=Indiewire.com |date=2020-05-12 |accessdate=2020-05-19}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portalbar|United States|India|Biography}}
*[[Indian Americans]]
*[[Sikhs in the United States military]]

== References ==
{{Reflist|30em}}

Lee, Erika. ''[https://archive.org/details/makingofasianame00leee  The Making of Asian America: A History]''. New York, NY: Simon and Schuster, 2016.

==Further reading==
* {{cite web|url=https://www.saada.org/item/20101210-148|title=Hindus Too Brunette To Vote Here|work=[[The Literary Digest]]|date=March 10, 1923|page=13}} - [https://s3.amazonaws.com/saada-online/objects/2012-00/item-exclusion-001.jpg Direct link]

==External links==
{{commons category|Bhagat Singh Thind}}
* [http://www.saadigitalarchive.org/collection/bhagat-singh-thind Bhagat Singh Thind materials in the South Asian American Digital Archive (SAADA)]
* [https://www.pbs.org/rootsinthesand/i_bhagat1.html PBS - Roots in the Sand - Bhagat Singh Thind]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20150923184247/http://www.bhagatsinghthind.com/lifeofdrthind.html Dr. Bhagat Singh Thind]
* [http://www.goldentempleamritsar.org/ Golden Temple, Amritsar, Sri Harmandir Sahib, Darbar Sahib, Hari Mandir, Sikhism, Famous Temples of India, Ancient Temples of India, Temples India, Darbar Sahib, Swaran Mandir]

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thind, Bhagat Singh}}
[[Category:1892 births]]
[[Category:1967 deaths]]
[[Category:American spiritual writers]]
[[Category:United States Army personnel of World War I]]
[[Category:American male writers of Indian descent]]
[[Category:Indian emigrants to the United States]]
[[Category:Indian spiritual writers]]
[[Category:Former United States citizens]]
[[Category:American people of Punjabi descent]]
[[Category:American Sikhs]]
[[Category:United States Army soldiers]]
[[Category:Indian Sikhs]]
[[Category:20th-century American non-fiction writers]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian non-fiction writers]]
[[Category:Military personnel from Punjab, India]]
[[Category:20th-century American male writers]]
[[Category:American male non-fiction writers]]
[[Category:United States immigration and naturalization case law]]
[[Category:Race and law in the United States]]
[[Category:Anti-Indian sentiment in the United States]]
[[Category:Indian-American history]]
[[Category:Sikhism in the United States]]
[[Category:People with acquired American citizenship]]

Bhagat Singh Thind - Revision history

CleanupBot II: Removed empty portal template using script

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73.170.67.148 at 17:34, 13 July 2021

>Citation bot: Add: work. Removed parameters. Some additions/deletions were parameter name changes. | Use this bot. Report bugs. | Suggested by Abductive | Category:1967 deaths | #UCB_Category 131/4395