Caste in South Asian Diaspora: Learning from Ambedkar, Du Bois and Garvey

• In Event: 4367 - Section on Asia and Asian America Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable 100min: 8. Migration, International and Internal

Abstract

Caste-based discrimination is an important issue that severely affects hundreds of millions of Dalits (Untouchables) and Advasis (Tribals) in South Asia and the diaspora. There is a vast body of sociological literature on caste and untouchability in South Asia, however, only a handful of studies are available on the persistence of caste in the diaspora (Judge 2012; Manohar 2013). Similarily, the sociological work of Dalit leader, BR Ambedkar, is well-known in India, but there are few studies on his relevance outside of the sub-continent (Zene 2013). And, research linking Ambedkar to other scholars and leaders of descent-based discrimination is lacking,
This exploratory qualitative study utilizes historical and content analysis to interpret aspects of caste and class issues within the South Asian diaspora, and how Ambedkar's ideas may be used to help this community to face its many challenges. The study also looks into similarities between casteism and racism by briefly comparing Ambedkar's struggle against the caste-based subjection of Dalits in India, and Du Bois's and Garvey's resistance to racial oppression of African Americans in the USA. Applying Gramsci's notion of the 'organic intellectual' to the work of these leaders, the study finds important commonalities between Ambedkar, Du Bois and Garvey in their framing of the subaltern, and approaches to liberation.

Author

• Moses Seenarine