It is common for people from countries including India to enter the US for reasons including employment. Due to this, the problem of caste oppression is said to have increased there. Dalits in particular are said to be forced to hide who they are.
Although caste-based discrimination is illegal in countries like India, the caste system still exists. So in a country like the United States, caste discrimination has been banned in places including Harvard University, Brown University and the California State University system.
In this case, the organization called ‘Equality Labs’ is struggling to eliminate caste oppression in other places. In 2016, the organization conducted the first survey on caste discrimination in the United States. Of these, 25 percent of Dalits in the country reported facing verbal or physical assault. At the same time, it was revealed that two-thirds of the workplaces were treated badly.
Meanwhile, in the United States in 2020, a case was filed for the first time for facing caste discrimination in the workplace. Accordingly, Cisco Systems and two of its employees were accused of discriminating against an engineer belonging to an oppressed caste. Depending on the final verdict, many others are said to be ready to file suit.
Meanwhile, the Seattle City Council is set to vote on a measure to help protect marginalized communities in its region. Voting was held. In the Seattle City Council, an ordinance banning caste-based discrimination was introduced by city official Kshama Sawant. It initially caused heated arguments among Indian-American communities. However, the Seattle City Council planned to vote on this resolution at a meeting held yesterday. If the resolution passes, Seattle is said to become the first US city to ban caste-based discrimination.
The Seattle City Council also said the bill would provide protection to India’s scheduled and disadvantaged social workers and prohibit discrimination on the basis of caste, race, color, sex, religion and nationality.
In this case, the information has now been released that this project has been completed. Seattle became the first US city to ban caste-based discrimination. With the passage of this act, caste has been included under the United States’ list of discrimination along with race and origin.
How did the caste system develop?
The word “caste” is derived from the Latin word “castus”. It means chaste or pure. With the arrival of the Portuguese in the 1700s AD, the word “caste” entered the Indian vocabulary. They were the first to use the word “casta” to refer to the Indian social hierarchy.
References to social hierarchy are found in the thousands of years old “Rig” Veda. A hymn found there describes the origin of all life from God. A verse also says that the four divisions (varnas) of Hindu society came from here. Accordingly Brahmins (priestly class) are said to have sprung from God’s head, Kshatriyas (warriors) from his arms, Vaishyas (merchant class) from his thighs and Shudras (labourers) from his feet.
Initially the varna system helped classify individuals based on their characteristics and merit. Over time it evolved into a caste system. Accordingly a person’s social status was determined by birth and occupation. Those outside this system were called outcastes or untouchables. Later they were also called Dalits. Dalits means “broken” in Sanskrit.
Almost all Indian languages have the word “caste”. There are more than 3,000 castes in India. Castes also have ranks specific to their respective regions in India. However, Dalits remain at the bottom of the social hierarchy in every region. They have been subjected to caste discrimination for centuries. Even today they are forced to do the inhumane work of manually disposing of human waste. This inhumane practice was banned by the Indian government in 2013. However, in many parts of the country, the practice of “manual dumping of human waste” continues. Caste is also behind this.
Caste also plays a significant role in parentally arranged marriages in India. Accordingly, parents look for child grooms within their own caste. Caste plays such a role in marriage that even online matrimonial sites are named after caste.
Is caste exclusive to India or Hinduism?
In Hindu texts such as Manu Smriti and Bhagavad Gita, the concepts of varna and caste are mentioned. Caste divisions, however, are not unique to India or Hinduism. Caste can be found in countries around the world and in other communities including Buddhists, Christians, Jains, Muslims and Sikhs. Dalit converts continue to be segregated in places of worship and crematoriums in India even today.
Ananya Chakraborty, associate professor of history at Georgetown University, opines whether caste is a British construct. He said, “The entire nation was classified into Schedules by the census conducted under the British rule. The British did not invent caste by any means. However, they contributed to the perpetuation of these caste identities. Caste was very long-lived within India, before the arrival of the Europeans.
The British provided representation to the marginalized groups in education, employment, government schemes, scholarships and politics. Even today, backward groups like Dalits are given ‘reservations’ by the Union and State Governments based on the provisions of the Indian Constitution. The reservation system has been another source of animosity between castes. Upper caste Indians say that such programs and policies are against the merit-based system,” he said.
PABS, a major Hindu sect in New Jersey, is facing a lawsuit for allegedly forcing hundreds of low-income workers to work on temple sites for less than $450 a month. All those involved in this case are of the same race. Therefore equating race and caste should be cautioned.
Cornel West, a professor of philosophy at Union Theological Seminary and a scholar of African-American studies, has recorded his opinion. Accordingly, “both casteism and racism are forms of institutionalized hatred. There is no other option but to fight morally, intellectually and politically against this,” he said.
The bitter truth is that even when people leave their country, caste never leaves them. What’s worse is that the suffering of the Dalits, who are at the bottom of the caste pyramid, continues!
The current question of American Indians is whether the city of Seattle in the United States will be the beginning to eradicate this.
– King