Society...

This video is a nice overview of the types of things that will be covered in this blog.


The life of a Dalit is one of hardship-- that's how many people would describe it. However, feel that "hardship" is not accurate at all. We all face hardships... but none of use have a life even remotely as difficult as the life of a Dalit. One of the main reasons for this, and what I would like to talk about in this entry, is the way Dalits are viewed in society.

The caste system is based on four basic castes- The Brahmins, The Kshatriyas, The Vaisyas, and the Sudras. BELOW the Sudras is a group called the Panchamas, which means the Untouchables, or the Dalits. Untouchables used to also be called the "Unborn". This referred to the upper-caste attitude that it would be best if the Dalits were never born. Animals (all animals, not just cows) are considered to be at a higher standing in society than the Dalit people.

The idea that a chicken is considered to have a higher standing in society than a person does not seem possible in this day and age. I didn't believe it at first either-- it sounds like a myth. When I came home from India, I started getting involved in the largest non-proft working for Dalit rights called Dalit Freedom Network. I formed my own committee that branched off of DFN called the Dalit Liberation Committee (formed of students) and we began raising money and awareness. I worked for a production company that produced short films about the plight of the Dalits. I a now interning for DFN. I'm saying this not to prove how much experience I have, but to show that I have been researching this for years now. What I have found through the research I have done and the experiences I have had is truly unbelievable.

I'm not at all kidding when I say that this is the nicest Dalit slum (village) we came across.

Slumdog Millionaire gave a very small glimpse into the life of a Dalit child and teenager. Although I am very thankful that someone touched upon this issue in mass media, the image of the slums and the "slumdogs", as Dalits are now sometimes referred to, was created to be much nicer than what many slums in India actually look like.

The main change agent for Dalit Freedom is Manmohan Singh, India's current Prime Minister. India's government is very slowly working to change the oppression, but not quickly enough. The PM of India has the most influence and power over the issue.

However, what if celebrities such as Dev Patel and Freida Pinto (Slumdog Millionaire) stars came behind this cause and really fought for what their movie represented. Oprah, for example, would also be someone that could inflict a huge amount of change in an issue like this. There are so many possibilities and it is my dream that in my lifetime, the Dalit people will see their real freedom.