It’s Not Just Ancient History… Copyright©2014 History Gal. All rights reserved.
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Transcript of It’s Not Just Ancient History… Copyright©2014 History Gal. All rights reserved.
In 1950, India adopted a constitution which made it illegal to discriminate on the basis of a person’s caste.
What was the Caste System? It was a social class structure tied to Hindu
beliefs.
Dalit, UntouchablePerformed unclean jobs like street sweepers,
waste handlers, dead body handlers
Brahmins
Priests, scholars Kshatriy
aWarrior and rulersVaishya
Merchants, landowners
SudraCommoners, peasants,
laborers, servants
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Hindus believe in reincarnation or the rebirth of the soul.
In other words, when a person dies, their soul is reborn as another person.
A person’s karma or actions while they live determines what caste that soul will be reborn into.
If a person is born a Dalit or Untouchable, it is a result of bad karma from the previous life or lives. Copyright©2014 History Gal. All rights reserved.
The 1989 Scheduled Castes and Tribes Act (Prevention of Atrocities Act) made specific acts against Dalits illegal including:
-forcing Dalits to eat things that are inedible-dumping waste in Dalit villages or neighborhoods-forcing a Dalit into forced or bonded labor-corrupting or fouling a Dalit water source-denying Dalits entrance into a public placeCopyright©2014 History Gal. All rights reserved.
Even though national law prohibits
discrimination against people born into the
bottom caste, discrimination and
human rights violations are still very prevalent.
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The word Dalit means those who have been broken down or crushed.
Dalits are expected to marry other Dalits.
In some rural areas, Dalits are not allowed to enter police stations to report a crime.
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Dalits are forced to take demeaning, low-end jobs and live in severe poverty.Jobs performed by Dalits include:leather workers, street workers, brick making, cobblers, field hands, scavenging, grave diggers, disposing of dead animals,unclogging sewers, washing clothes,cleaning dry latrines (toilets that don’t flush)
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Notable Numbers167 million1.2 billion $.50 The percentage of rural villages in 2010 where Dalits could not eat with people from other castes The percentage of Dalit villages in 2010 that had no access to water
The number of Dalits murdered each week in 2010 The number of Dalit homes torched each week in 2010
The number of Dalits abducted each week in 2010
The number of Dalit women assaulted each week in 2010
How much time passes before another crime is committed against a Dalit The conviction rate for crimes against Dalits
The number of people in India who are Dalits
The number of people living in India
The amount Dalits live on a day
70%
48% 18 minutes 5%
135
6
21
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