There are plenty of arguments (although not good ones) to not wear a helmet. "Wearing a helmet cuts down my vision," or "I can't hear nearby cars when I'm wearing a helmet," or "If I wear a helmet, no one will be able to see my flowing locks." But a new argument has popped up in Ontario, Canada, as a group of Sikhs say that wearing a helmet impedes on their religious obligation to wear a turban.
The Ontario Highway Traffic Act currently requires all motorcyclists to wear a helmet, which for Sikhs, is impossible. The Record reports that Khalsa Sikh do not remove any hair from their bodies and are required to wear a dastaar, or turban.
A group of Sikhs in Canada have formed a petition and are asking for the helmet law to be amended.
"Asking someone to take off their turban is literally like asking them to take off their clothes. That's how it's viewed," said Baljit Singh Ghuman, chair of the Canadian Sikh Association. "It's part of the religion. It's part of the lifestyle."
A motorcycle helmet exemption for turban wearing Sikhs isn't unheard of. In both British Columbia and Manitoba, Sikhs are allowed to ride a motorcycle without a helmet. But a Ontario Superior Court Justice ruled in 2008 that mandatory helmets do not interfere with religious rights since a helmet "meaningfully" reduces the chance of injury.
Ontario is gearing up for a new election season and the motorcycle helmet vs religious rights issue is becoming a hot topic.
"I personally wouldn't support a law that endangers any Ontarian," said Mark Cairns, NDP candidate for Kitchener-Conestoga. "I don't see how someone could get away with not wearing their seat belt in a car based on some matter of religious freedom."
What do you think? Should there be religious exemptions to motorcycle laws generally or in specific cases like this one? Let us know in the comments below and be sure to vote in our poll on this issue!
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Remember, there are two types of bikers. Those that have crashed, and those that are going to.
http://www.sikh-history.com/sikhhist/personalities/military/sikhiniaf.html
There will see Air Chief Marshal Arjan Singh, a Sikh, the head of the Indian Air force up to 1969 and an ex fighter pilot who was quite happy to wear a crash helmet!
There you will find a photo of him in his Mystere IVA wearing a helmet. Don’t let anyone get away with telling you that Sikhs can’t wear helmets!
As far as I know, it isn't MANDATORY in any state or province that everyone must ride a motorcycle, and I'm not buying the "it's my right" argument put forth by groups like ABATE. I'll take the responses 'off-air'...
All I can say to that is that I would not feel comfortable sending my children off to a school where young men were running around with knives - so I am completely happy with an across the board ban on them for all students, with all being treated equally.
As far as the question of helmets goes, if a decision is being considered to allow Sikhs to wear them or not, then the law needs to be changed so that helmets are optional for all riders. Simply put, this is the only way such a situation can be handled with everyone being treated equally.
Frankly I don't care either way. The benefits of wearing a helmet when riding are so obvious to me that I would do so whatever the law - just as I always ride with full and appropriate gear.
Until the law is changed making helmets optional for all, Sikhs have a choice: either find some way of getting all the hair under a suitable helmet (clearly a marketing opportunity for someone), don't ride a bike, or move to somewhere where a helmet is not required.
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