India’s Affirmative Action

December 22, 2007 at 8:18 pm (Breaking News)

The caste system, in brief:

The caste system is a system of social hierarchy that, though unjust, has prevailed in South Asia for the past few millennia. Basically, it is a system that links occupation with name and social status, and offers little room for social mobility. A child, upon being born into a family, would inherit not only a name but also the career and social class connected to it. And, if born into a lower caste or dalit family, a history of discrimination too.

So now that more and more dalits are rightly demanding their rights, government officials have struggled with how to guarantee them. One quick-fix solution they have come up with is a system similar to the affirmative action implemented in the U.S. in the wake of the Civil Rights Movement. For years under these reservation policies, a certain number of positions in the Indian government and slots in Indian universities have been reserved for dalits. Problem is that few dalits are able to secure the level of education requisite to make it to that point and, as a result, few of these reserved positions are actually filled.

In response to this sad reality, over 10.000 dalits from across India assembled in New Delhi on December 10, 2007, to urge the government of India to enact a more effective reservation bill to fill up the backlog of vacant reserved spots and to extend reservations to the private sector, judiciary, and armed forces. Addressing those assembled, Dr. Udit Raj, Chairman of the All India Confederation of Scheduled Caste / Scheduled Tribe Organizations, said, “The UPA [United Progressive Alliance, the current ruling coalition in India's Parliament] has done nothing significant to uplift dalits so far.”

The organization of which Dr. Raj is Chairman submitted a memorandum to Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh, urging him and his coalition government to implement the Reservation Act, which has been tabled for over 2 years. Also, they demanded the filling of a backlog of vacancies for dalits in the government sector. In a recent meeting with the Prime Minister, Dr Raj said, “the Prime Minister told me… that 53,000 posts have been filled. But this is nothing considering the number of unfilled posts.”

Explaining the need for judiciary posts reserved for dalits, Dr. Raj said that out of a total of 610 judges, only 20 come from a dalit background. Considering the number percentage of dalits in the general population (roughly 18% of over 1 billion), there’s a huge gap between that and the percentage of dalits filling government and judiciary posts. And here’s the catch 22: though all of these posts have been reserve for dalits, very few of them have been able to achieve a level of education high enough to be qualified to fill them.

In my eyes, the biggest barrier standing between dalits and equality is education: dalits are systematically denied educational opportunities. And, when education is made available to them, the fees are typically too much for your average dalit family to afford. And if they can afford it, the discrimination they face in the classroom- at the hands of fellow students and teachers alike- is often hard to bear. And, if a dalit child is able to bear it and their family is able to support them all through college, the people competing with them in the workforce and the people hiring them have likely grown up being taught to discriminate against dalits. If educational opportunities can be made available to all and prejudice and discrimination is not part of what is purveyed through formal and informal education, only then will dalits be able to achieve full equality.

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We’ve Come a Long Way…

November 13, 2007 at 10:21 pm (Musings)

Before I had the pleasure and honor of meeting Prasad-ji this past Saturday (described in greater detail in my previous post “Of Dog Meat & Dalits”), I already knew one thing about him: he doesn’t mind being controversial. This was apparent in his articles published in The Pioneer (a daily English-language Indian newspaper: check it out at www.dailypioneer.com).

Take his recent October 14th article as an example: he starts off describing the misconceptions that Indians tend to have about the state of race relations in the U.S. Blacks are thought to be United State’s equivalent of dalits. So Prasad-ji was taken aback when, early on in his visit to the U.S., he saw a black man driving a Mercedes Benz. And not as a chauffeur: it genuinely appeared to be the black man’s own vehicle. That doesn’t seem all that unusual, you might think. But, according to Prasad-ji, because few Indians would believe their eyes if they were to see a dalit driving a Mercedes. Prasad-ji’s theory is that these misconceptions about the status of blacks in the U.S. are fed by Brahmins (the highest caste) to members of lower castes basically to show them, “You don’t have it all that bad.”

But while blacks still have a tough time in the U.S., dalits in India have it far worse. An, Prasad-ji claims, certain members of the Brahmin caste take the pre-Civil Rights Movement state of race relations in the U.S., exaggerate it, and say it still applies to today. And use that, in turn, to justify their poor treatment of dalits.

If you do a comparison of the pre-Civil Rights Movement situation in the U.S. to the situation in the U.S. today, you’ll find that, yeah, we do still have a long way to go, BUT we’ve come a long way. To use Prasad-ji’s example, just 50 years back, blacks weren’t allowed into many night clubs and other establishments serving whites in this country. Today, such an idea would likely (hopefully) be striking in its extreme prejudice.

So, now on to Prasad-ji’s controversial way to prove a point:

Fifty years ago, blacks weren’t admitted into lots of establishments, night clubs among them. To compare that state of affairs to that of today, Prasad-ji visited a night club himself one night this past October to see how things have changed. You can read his observations for yourself:

“It wasn’t easy adjusting with the carnival of nudity. Holding a glass of beer in one hand, and cigarette in the other, I watched half a dozen young women in Gandhian attire doing acrobatics for the men.
 
“A young woman walked toward us. She sported a massive leather belt around her waist from where hung five bottles of liquor. As she walked past me, I followed her traits. I was now witness to a spectacular phenomenon.
 
“‘Want a shot,” she asked a Black man seated nearby. “That would be lovely,” said the man in his early 70s. The lady made herself comfortable on his lap, took out one of the bottles with a nozzle attached to it and gave the gentleman a drop of the drink. She got up and the man gave her a five dollar note. As the proceedings went past mid night, many a Black men were seen dancing with White women, and vice versa.”

~Chandrabhan Prasad (one of my new heroes)

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Of Dog Meat and Dalits

November 11, 2007 at 5:25 pm (Musings)

Imagine:

You’ve just enjoyed a fabulous meal, the finest food served courtesy of cordial hosts. You and your fellow guests have eaten and drank your fill and are fully satisfied. Right as you are putting on your shoes and coat to take your leave after a thoroughly enjoyable evening, the host makes an announcement:

“By the way, that meat dish you were all raving about? That was made from dog meat.”

What would your reaction be?

Would you think, “Hmm, I guess dog meat isn’t as bad as its made out to be…” and return home unfazed?

Or Choke, Gag! Run to the restroom so you can upchuck a delicious meal that sat with you just fine until then?

What is it about dog meat that might cause this reaction? No inherent qualities, it seems, but just the conditioned associations arising from our culture that says, “Dog meat is not for eating.”

Last night, after enjoying a delicious meal at the beautiful home of Indiana University Professor of Law Kevin Brown held in honor of visiting scholar / writer / dalit activist Chandrabhan Prasad… No, I wasn’t greeted with such an announcement. While wrapped up in an engaging discussion with Prasad-ji, he used this little scenario as an analogy to attitudes against dalits in India. Even though there is certainly nothing inherently wrong with dalits, there is this palpable distaste towards them, Prasad-ji explained. A prejudice that becomes ingrained into the minds of Indians just by virtue of growing up in a society in which caste is such an inherent aspect.

The meal, the most delicious I’ve had in quite a long time, was cooked by Prasad-ji’s own two hands. He spent over 4 hours over a fancy modern stove top (which, I was told, took some explaining before he figured it out!) to make a magnificent meal of many delicious dishes. I was honored to enjoy Prasad-ji’s cooking and company. If the same meal were served in India, the quality of the cooking would surely shine through. However, if the guests were told at the end of the meal, “This meal was made by the hands of a dalit,” their reaction (provided they weren’t dalit themselves) might quite possibly be similar to yours or mine after discovering that the delicious food we’d just partaken of was dog meat.

This analogy offers some insight into attitudes towards dalits by members of higher castes. I got many other insights from my discussion with Prasad-ji yesterday evening, and hope the dialog can continue. I was pleased that he seemed willing to help me in the making of my proposed documentary project on dalit issues. So, as says the dalit activists I came into contact with in India, “In Qalab Zindabad!” A variation on the “Shanti Zindabad” of my blog title, but with perhaps less potential for peacefulness: meaning, “Long live the revolution! Keep on fighting for your cause!”

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India’s Dirty (not so little) “Secret”

November 11, 2007 at 4:54 pm (Background & Analysis)

I’ll be quick to tell anyone who asks that India is my favorite place on earth (at least of all the places I’ve visited thus far). It’s a beautiful country. That is not to say that I’m one of those spiritual seekers so wrapped in my spiritual quest so as to become blinded to painful realities, and I certainly wasn’t one of those wealthy tourists that sees India through the rose-colored lenses of the best hotels and royal treatment. I’d say I got a glimpse of the real India. Don’t get me wrong; there is still so much about the place that I don’t understand. But I love it nonetheless.

Still, never have I been to a place where more problems are so overwhelmingly obvious and in-your-face. India certainly has its fair share of problems, facing every sector of society to the environment to infrastructure to… you name it. These problems, while tough for a traveler in India to cope with, are even more difficult for the citizens of India to cope with.And of all these problems, the one that moved me most was not the horrific situation of waste management or the proliferation of beggars with deformities inflicted by parents or ring leaders, extremely depressing and seemingly hopeless though both were.

The problem that I most took to heart was something not quite as in-your-face. In fact, its more often than not swept under the rug. But it is a powerful undercurrent that pervades life in India, an inescapable reality for roughly 161 million of the country’s 1 billion. India’s dirty (and not so little) “secret”: the caste system.

Before I went to India and since I returned, I’ve had quite a few Indian friends. Once the friendship reaches a certain level, I’ll inevitably try to subtly bring up the issue of caste and get their thoughts on it. I’ve had former friends outright stop talking to me on account of this. Those that do breach the topic seem do so with great reluctance, and the responses I’ve gotten from these conversations has been overwhelmingly along the following lines: “There’s no more caste system. It was made illegal, you know. Its not a problem anymore.”

Before I saw the situation for myself, I accepted these claims at face value. But now I know better. Even though the caste system and discrimination stemming from it was officially outlawed by the 1950 Indian Constitution, it does still exist. And it is a huge problem, negatively affecting the quality of life for the estimated 161 million dalits (untouchables) living in India today. I’m now able to see past the misleading of statements of the Indians I’ve met in the U.S. Unfortunate though it is, it makes sense why they would make such comments. Think about it. The Indians that make it to this country for study or work are overwhelmingly of the higher castes, who are either…

a) because of their status, unaware of the problems dalits are confronted with

b) in denial about the role they or their family or, more broadly, their caste played in perpetrating these unjustices

c) as ambassadors of sorts for their country, trying to portray it in an artificially positive light.

So, nothing personal against my Indian friends or yours, gotta-love-’em, but don’t take claims like “What caste system? That doesn’t exist anymore!” at face value. It is a serious problem that affects the lives of a bloc of India’s population that’s over 1/2 the population of the U.S. That’s a lot of people! And they are systematically discriminated against solely due to caste and are denied access to basic human rights. What can be done to help this issue? Well, to start with, knowledge and truth are the most powerful weapons in the fight against injustice. So said Gandhi, at least, and I’m inclined to believe him.

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Melissa Dittmann, in brief.

October 1, 2007 at 1:53 am (A Bit About Me)

Hello!
Hola!
Konnichiwa!
Bonjour!
Salaam!
Ni hao!
Namaste!

In case you couldn’t tell by my multilingual greetings, I am fascinated with foreign languages. My 6 year-old self’s proclamation that “I want to be an anthropologist when I grow up” was met with no shortage of raised eyebrows from skeptical adults. Since then, I have continued with a life of passionate fascination with world cultures. After graduating from a public high school in rural Chesterton, Indiana, I went where no CHS student had gone before: I took a gap year (a what? This phenomenon, while virtually unheard of in the Midwest, is popular in other parts of the country and world: basically, taking a year off between high school and college, most often for work and/or travel) to go beyond the Land of Cornfields and spend 6 months studying and traveling in India.

Now, as a student at Indiana University, I’m using what’s called the Individualized Major Program to combine anthropology, Asian studies & the arts. In this vein, I spent the past summer living in Manhattan doing an internship at the Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art. Anthropology, Asian studies & the arts. Like many of the adults I encounter, you may be wondering what I plan to do with that combination. Perhaps you were also wondering about my curious mouthful of a blog title. Well…

I see the arts as a universal language of sorts, something every culture shares and yet something that makes each culture unique. As such, the arts are a great platform for bringing people together, for promoting cross-cultural dialogue & understanding. So whatever I end up doing will be using cultural programming (in visual arts, music, dance, theater, and beyond) to promote these goals, promoting my ultimate goal of PEACE in the process. Which is how my blog title works in: I recently returned from India and picked up some Hindi in the process. Shanti & Zindabad are among my favorite Hindi words: “shanti” = “peace” and “zindabad” = “long live / hurray / hail.”

So, Shanti Zindabad = Long Live Peace.

We’ve got some work to do…

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Washington takes a historic stand on Human Rights… But will it make any difference where it matters?

October 1, 2007 at 1:20 am (Breaking News)

Historic News to Report from Washington, DC!

House of Representatives passed a historic resolution on untouchability in July of 2007.
House Concurrent Resolution 139 was the first of its kind from the United States Congress. Sponsored by Congressman Trent Franks and co-sponsored by 33 leading human rights advocates in Congress, including Congressman Tom Lantos, Chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, the bill contains historic language on untouchability in India, including a lengthy findings section detailing the effects of untouchability and caste abuse on outcastes in India.

The resolution calls on the United States government to work with India to address the problem of untouchability by raising the issue of caste discrimination through diplomatic channels and encouraging US businesses, USAID, the State Department, and other US programs and organizations working in India to take every possible measure to ensure Dalits are included and are not discriminated against in their programming.

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All humans are created… unequal?

September 30, 2007 at 10:37 pm (Background & Analysis)

 

“It’s all because of karma,” they say.

“Because he committed bad actions in a past life.”

So just because of what what family you are born into, what name you carry, and supposedly some bad actions sometime in the course of your past lives, a child can be condemned into a life of almost certain poverty, hardship & discrimination. Such is the lot of the untouchables, or “dalit”, of India.

You’ve probably heard the term “untouchable.” Read a bit about the “caste system” in some social studies textbook. But do you know what the reality of the caste system means to those who are born into it as an untouchable? Because of a person’s status at birth, they can be locked into a life with little promise. Dead-end job dictated from the day you’re born. Denied education. Discriminated against in seeking healthcare, employment & decent housing.

And the people doing the discriminating, as well as the dalits discriminated against, justify this unjust system in terms of faith: the caste system, said to be the oldest system of social stratification still in existence, is lined out in many Hindu texts and reinforced in ritual & practice. Not only do many Hindu’s use their faith to justify it (by saying that in your current caste status, you are paying for past sins or reaping the benefits of good deeds in past lives): there is actually a legend claiming that the Hindu gods themselves instated the system in the first place.

The Hindu creator of the universe, Lord Brahma, created some humans from his mouth — they became reciters of the sacred scriptures and became the Brahmins, the highest priestly class. Then he created other humans from his arms, they became the Kshatriyas, bearers of arms, the warrior and ruling class. Then, out of his stomach, Brahma created people who became the Vaishyas or merchants. Finally, Brahma created humans from his feet (which, in Hindu society are seen as the most unclean and disgusting part of the body, both physically and spiritually: pointing the soles of your feet at someone is considered a big insult). These feet people became the Shudras, manual laborers and artisans. They served the other castes like feet serve a person: can’t get around without ‘em but don’t give them any credit for doing the dirty work.

Notice how in this myth the dalits (a.k.a. untouchables) aren’t even mentioned? This is a product of the mindset that considers dalits sub-human, sadly a mindset that is still around today.

In addition to this mythological explanation for how the caste system came to be, there is a historical basis. Lets rewind about 3500 years. Around 1500 BC, a warlike tribe from Eurasia invaded India known as the Aryans established themselves as rulers of the civilization that already existed there. The Aryans were lighter skinned. The people they conquered had darker skin. The Aryans became the rulers of the native people and established a system of hierarchy based on skin color: the lighter-skinned invaders occupied the top 3 status tiers and became priests, warriors, and merchants while the darker-skinned people they conquered were forced to do agricultural labor. These professions became traditional and hereditary.

Over time, the people at the lowest tier of the lowest tier of society, the unlucky ones forced to take on jobs consideredto involve too much pollution to be performed by caste Hindus, such as: (1) dealing with the bodies of dead animals (like the sacred cattle that wander Indian villages) or dead humans, (2) tanning leather, from such dead animals, and manufacturing leather goods, and (3) cleaning up the human and animal waste for which in traditional villages there is no sewer system.

Well, this system of classification stuck in Indian society. It’s believed to be the longest-surviving system of social hierarchy in the world. 3000-year old habits are tough to break.

Which can explain how the caste system and the systematic discrimination that goes along with it are still around despite being illegal.

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Downsides of Being Dalit

September 30, 2007 at 10:35 pm (Background & Analysis)

Around 240 million people in India and elsewhere in South Asia (that’s roughly 5/6 the population of the U.S. or 1/5 of India’s 1 billion), have been born into lives of hardship just because of their family’s status in society. Even though the caste system was officially outlawed in India’s 1950 constitution, discrimination based on caste is a problem still deeply ingrained in Indian society.

Being born as an untouchable (the current euphemism for this is “Dalit”) often means…

• Being forced for life to do demeaning physical labor for a living, jobs that are considered “unclean” or “polluting,” such as shoveling shit or collecting rotting garbage from roadsides. These jobs have traditionally been passed down from generation to generation for centuries.

• Poverty. Because of the nature of the jobs forced upon Dalits, its difficult for them to earn enough of a living to adequately provide for their needs, let alone the needs of their families. An estimated 70% of Dalits live below the poverty line.

• Being told by members upper castes that you are less than human. According to Hindu legend, each of the 4 official castes were created by the god Brahma from different parts of the first man’s body. Untouchables are not included in this legend, as they are not considered a caste but below the lowest caste, subhuman even.

• Forced servitude for upper caste families. After the day’s chores are completed, however, the higher caste family with often go through an elaborate purification ceremony to avoid contact with impurities thought to be left by the presence of a Dalit.

• Lack of access to education. This leads to illiteracy, exacerbating the socio-economic gap and making it difficult for even those Dalits who are determined to break from their prescribed menial job to do so.

• Frequent acts of violence from higher castes. Murder, abduction, gang rape, and occasionally large-scale destruction or massacre of entire Dalit villages are sadly common occurrences but are rarely publicized or brought to justice.

• Little access to health care due to discrimination, insufficient finances, or lack of knowledge about proper health and hygiene.

• Lack of political voice or access to social justice.

• No freedom of religion. Even in the religiously diverse society of India, several states have enacted laws that prevent Dalits from changing religions: as the caste system is tied to Hinduism, many Dalits have recently tried to improve their social standing and escape discrimination by converting to other religions. Even the basic freedom of religion is being taken away.

• Discrimination when seeking health care or decent housing (Dalits are often made to live in separate communities, outside the actual village)

• Basically, an overall denial of basic human rights.

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