A “Pink Lohri Festival” brought together over 200 women in Birmingham last Sunday. Organised by the Sikh Women’s Action Network, or SWAN, the theme was to celebrate the birth of girls.
The event featured dance performances, speeches, case studies, a range of stalls and much more. Narinder Kaur Kooner, Assistant Leader at Birmingham City Council and vice-chair of SWAN said: “The Guru Granth Sahib cites that men and women are equal and without women, men would not exist. Lohri is a time to celebrate the birth of girls.”
Sahdaish Pall, Chair of SWAN described the event “a resounding success”, adding, “it's awful to hear of the inequality that women still face in our community in this day and age. We plan to hold a similar event every year to celebrate the birth of all our daughters.” SWAN was set up to raise awareness of issues that exist in South Asian communities but are not discussed or acknowledged as they are seen as far too taboo. The four women founders of this charity are Sahdaish Pall, Narinder Kaur Kooner, Shantose Kaur and Mandeep Sungu.
