Untouchability – a traditional Hindu belief & a social platform for hate & discrimination.
When travelling through India, it would be impossible, even for a blind person, to not observe the blatant poverty that is everywhere. After talking to a local person about the issue, it was asked if I knew about the ‘untouchables’? A traditional Hindu concept that has been around since the dawn of time, dictating a class system platform to discriminate a particular ‘lower’ class or caste of people because of who they are. This discrimination takes form’s in physical & social abuse, segregation, isolation, humiliation & boycott from society, while forcing the labour of demeaning jobs. Essentially this treatment makes these people outcasts of mainstream society in India & not recognized under the 4 caste system of Hindu’s.
As well as a person’s birth place, family ties & tribal origins, historically an untouchable is any person judged by a higher class person of society, because of their job, health or criminal status, it was even a form of criminal justice for the guilty.
The basis of the belief system is that these ‘untouchables’ are extremely polluted, unholy, impure & contagious. Even letting an untouchables shadow touch you, requires a dip in the Ganges to cleanse your soul.
The extreme’s of this discrimination & the avoidance of untouchables wasn’t legally changed until 1955, when parliament enacted the untouchability offenses act, which made several discriminatory offenses illegal & punishable. The act would later be amended & renamed in 1976, due to several loop holes & mild punishment of the guilty people caught breaking this law. The act was renamed to the protection of civil rights act.
Unfortunately these act’s did not see much progression or positive change to the lives of the untouchables.
Members of tribes that were once called untouchables are now known as Dalits, and though their name has changed & there is legal ramifications for discrimination. They are still denied civil right's, living in terrible socio economic conditions, subject to the menial jobs, poor health, humiliation, isolation, segregation and there is still the presence of social discrimination.
In present day India, it is still easy to observe the idea of class superiority in the general population and to feel the discrimination that is still there. A quick google search shows that annually, Hindu people in metro cities and small rural villages are guilty of still practising untouchability, thankfully some of these cases make it to the attention of the law and media.
Slowly with time, the new generation’s who have had the chance for a modern education, will embrace a modern global acceptance, moving away from this ancient and outdated religious & traditional view & will establish a new perspective of social equality in India.
It’s all about the changing of perspective.
When travelling through India, it would be impossible, even for a blind person, to not observe the blatant poverty that is everywhere. After talking to a local person about the issue, it was asked if I knew about the ‘untouchables’? A traditional Hindu concept that has been around since the dawn of time, dictating a class system platform to discriminate a particular ‘lower’ class or caste of people because of who they are. This discrimination takes form’s in physical & social abuse, segregation, isolation, humiliation & boycott from society, while forcing the labour of demeaning jobs. Essentially this treatment makes these people outcasts of mainstream society in India & not recognized under the 4 caste system of Hindu’s.
As well as a person’s birth place, family ties & tribal origins, historically an untouchable is any person judged by a higher class person of society, because of their job, health or criminal status, it was even a form of criminal justice for the guilty.
The basis of the belief system is that these ‘untouchables’ are extremely polluted, unholy, impure & contagious. Even letting an untouchables shadow touch you, requires a dip in the Ganges to cleanse your soul.
The extreme’s of this discrimination & the avoidance of untouchables wasn’t legally changed until 1955, when parliament enacted the untouchability offenses act, which made several discriminatory offenses illegal & punishable. The act would later be amended & renamed in 1976, due to several loop holes & mild punishment of the guilty people caught breaking this law. The act was renamed to the protection of civil rights act.
Unfortunately these act’s did not see much progression or positive change to the lives of the untouchables.
Members of tribes that were once called untouchables are now known as Dalits, and though their name has changed & there is legal ramifications for discrimination. They are still denied civil right's, living in terrible socio economic conditions, subject to the menial jobs, poor health, humiliation, isolation, segregation and there is still the presence of social discrimination.
In present day India, it is still easy to observe the idea of class superiority in the general population and to feel the discrimination that is still there. A quick google search shows that annually, Hindu people in metro cities and small rural villages are guilty of still practising untouchability, thankfully some of these cases make it to the attention of the law and media.
Slowly with time, the new generation’s who have had the chance for a modern education, will embrace a modern global acceptance, moving away from this ancient and outdated religious & traditional view & will establish a new perspective of social equality in India.
It’s all about the changing of perspective.
This photo was taken from the 5th storey of our hostel. This is considered a normal and relatively good dwelling. While in the common room, I witnessed a family of approximately 7, chickens and 2 goats living here. This family is lucky, by other peoples standards. Driving through India we saw whole families sitting in the dirt under bridges and on foot paths, covered in dirt and sores, begging for money. It broke my heart every time to see people living and dying like this.
- Alli
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