Listening to Difference

In this chapter, I listen closely to “More Than Aware,” a song by Kanwar Anit Singh Saini (also known as Sikh Knowledge) in relation to contemporary discourses of belonging in Canada. I pay particular attention to how this discourse functions in relation to the Parti Québécois’ proposed Bill 60 (the “Quebec Values Charter”). I argue that Saini culls together a complicated portrait of queer diasporic identity, sounding the contested intersections among race, religion, and sexuality in contemporary Canadian culture. He presents a dense musical collage that speaks to (and challenges) contemporary political concerns around difference and belonging.