Subculture with Sikh Community-Free-Samples-Myassignmenthelp.com

Question: Dicuss about Community of your choice. Answer: Introduction In order to understand subculture, it is important to have first a clear idea about culture. Culture, as defined by Ravelli and Webber (2014), is a complex collection of values, beliefs, behaviors and material objects shared by a group and passed on from one generation to the next. This paper attempts to define subculture from the Canadian context. The community chosen for the purpose is the Sikh Motorcycle Club, run by the Sikh community in Canada. The Canadian Culture The formation of Canadian culture can be attributed to the intricate and diverse set of geographic, historical and social circumstances. As per the views of Margaret Atwood, an eminent Canadian writer, the harsh physical environment has played a significant role in shaping the culture of the country (Ravelli Webber 2014). Viewing from the social perspective, Canadas culture is largely shaped by the cohabitation of and conflict between the French and the English. Another interesting aspect of the Canadian culture is that historically, Canada defines its culture based on its difference with America. In the book Exploring Sociology: The Concise Edition, authors Bruce Ravelli and Michelle Webber mentioned about the change in culture in order to address the novel challenges posed by the current era in both social and technological field. These changes often give rise to subcultures. Defining Subculture with Sikh community as an example The authors have defined subculture as the group within a population that possesses a culture that is distinct from the main culture. The presence of subcultures brings diversity to a country and Canada is blessed to home variety of cultures. Although subcultures are mostly based on ethnicity, religion and race, it can also relate to sexuality, age, occupation and gender amongst others. It is evident that the existence of subcultures depends on the main culture and without it there would be no subculture (Ravelli Webber 2014). Culture is viewed from the perspective of sociology as well by the authors. They presented views of various functionalists and sociologists on culture and subculture. According to the functionalists, culture is the way of integrating and building on similarities and establishing a sense of community. Conflict theorists, on the other hand, define culture as the vehicle to promote and maintain social inequality. Symbolic interactionists defined culture as create d and re-created through social interaction. Canada is a nation that boasts and upholds the presence of different types of subcultures and allows them to prosper. Ravelli and Webber (2014) provide certain facts in the book that demonstrates Canadas acceptance of multiculturalism. They mention the work of the American sociologist Seymour Martin Lipset who researched that Canadians are more community oriented than Americans and more appreciative of racial and ethnic variation (Lipset, 1997). The Little Italy neighborhoods in Toronto, Chinatown in Vancouver, the Jewish community in Montreal and the black community in Halifax are some of the many subcultures present in Canada. One of the dominant subcultures present in Canada is the Sikh Community in Surrey. The Sikh community constitutes 1.4% of the total Canadian population and boasts of having representatives in the Cabinet as well. One of the most renowned clubs run by the Sikh community in Canada is the Sikh Motorcycle Club. The club was founded in 2003 by the sincere efforts of Avtar Singh Dhillon however; the first attempt at this was made in 1999 after years of campaigning for the right of Sikhs to be exempted from helmet laws, as they wear turbans (Sikhmotorcycleclub.org, 2018). However, with each passing time, the clubs initiatives broadened and they started organizing charity events and participating in social activities. In 2017, the club organized a protest rally where riders from all communities and race took part. It was held against crimes and drugs in the city of Surrey. The rally was organized particularly to send a message to the government regarding the safety and security of the children mostly belonging to the minority group or the subculture (Cbc.ca, 2018). The club expanded in quick time and comprised more than 100 members. They had the backing from the government as well and native Canadian s too have showed good support to the club mainly because of its noble initiatives. Conclusion The presence of this subculture further establishes Canada as a multicultural country with no biases against any minority community. However, certain statistics reveal that biases do exist in Canada where people do not favor a Sikh leader to lead the country. It contradicts the generally held notion that subcultures exist peacefully in Canada and that people would prefer joining that subculture. References: Cbc.ca. (2018).Motorcyclists ride through Surrey protesting crime, drugs.CBC News. Retrieved 27 February 2018, from https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/surrey-crime-motorcycles-1.4250691 Lipset, S. (1997).American exceptionalism. New York: Norton. Ravelli, B., Webber, M.(2014). Exploring sociology. Pearson Education Canada. pp 89-103 Sikhmotorcycleclub.org. (2018).History.Sikhmotorcycleclub.org. Retrieved 27 February 2018, from https://www.sikhmotorcycleclub.org/history