Bhagat Singh Thind - Background

Background

Thind's citizenship was rescinded four days after it was granted. Eleven months later, he received his citizenship for the second time. However, the Immigration and Naturalization Service appealed to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals which sent Thind's case to the Supreme Court for ruling. Thind fought his case in the Supreme Court but the court revoked his citizenship. Indians in the United States and Canada were commonly called "Hindoos" ("Hindus") irrespective of their faith. Thind's nationality was also referred to as "Hindoo" or "Hindu" in all legal documents and the media although he was a Sikh by faith.

Born on October 3, 1892, in the village of Taragarh in the state of Punjab, India, Bhagat Singh Thind came to the U.S. in 1913 to pursue higher education in an American university. However, on July 22, 1918, he was recruited by the US Army to fight in World War I. A few months later, on November 8, 1918, Bhagat Singh, was promoted to the rank of an Acting Sergeant. He received an honorable discharge on December 16, 1918, with his character designated as "excellent".

The U.S. citizenship conferred many rights and privileges but only "free white men" were eligible to apply. In the United States, many anthropologists used Caucasian as a general term for "white". Indian nationals from the Punjab, Kashmir and other parts of the northern Indian Sub-Continent are also considered Caucasian. Thus, several Indians were granted U.S. citizenship in different states. Thind also applied for citizenship from the state of Washington in July 1918.