Washington: With a view to assuage the feelings of Sikh Americans who have been involved in rows with security personnel over possession of kirpans, the US department of homeland security and a Sikh outfit have reached an agreement to display posters of various kirpans (ceremonial daggers) at checkpoints across the country to assist screeners.
Under the agreement reached between the department and the Sikh American Legal Defence and Education Fund, posters will be distributed to federal facilities, showing photos of different kirpans ranging from a symbolic necklace some women wear to the more common three-to-six-inch daggers, as well as full-on swords, Washington Post reported.
In the last two years, Sikhs have been arrested, threatened with arrest or harassed in disputes with guards over kirpans.
The poster tells security workers how to navigate the situation, "Respectfully ask if a Sikh is carrying a kirpans. If so, request to inspect the kirpan," it reads.
"If a kirpans must be confiscated, explain the reason(s) and handle the kirpan with respect and care."
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