For An Informed Ambedkar Age
Amar Khade [A compilation of news and commentary] Recently the Special Rapporteur on minority issues Rita Izsák, of United Nations Human Rights Council Published a report on minority issues. The report was presented and discussed in the UN Human Rights Council on 15th March 2016. The mandate of the Special Rapporteur on minority issues was …
Martin Macwan (First published in the December 2001 issue of Seminar) The UN World Conference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance (WCAR) held at Durban had three major agenda themes among others: identification of the sources and causes of discrimination, identification of victims of discrimination, and working out a programme of action …
Gail Omvedt (First published in February 2003) The antagonism to conversion rests on an ideological foundation which takes ethnicity, that is a presumed community of blood and heritage, as central. IN 1996, during a six-month employment in Bhubaneshwar, fascinated by the beauty and antiquity of the area, I travelled with friends to Konarak and to …
Chandra Bhan Prasad (First published in The Pioneer in October 2001) I do not wish to refer to Ms Mayawati, the pride of the Dalit movement today, who has single-handedly redefined the grammar of cowbelt politics. Yes, Kanshi Ram did “introduce” her but don’t male politicians require mentors, too? I am talking about other …
by Chandrabhan Prasad The decision was deliberate. I wore a starched kurta churidar pajama because it had given me a distinct identity. Plus, with the “end caste” discrimination badge in place at the second button, anxious mediapersons could easily approach me to learn about India’s caste system. The party had just begun.
by Chandrabhan Prasad No, I would not like to describe how Heather M. Acs looked. The New York born girl has just crossed her teens. She is a White American, usually accompanied by her friend Mama S. Diouf, a Black girl of about the same age and appeal. Then there is the tall Brazilian girl …
by Chandrabhan Prasad It can happen only in India. In the US or South Africa, it will be beyond anybody’s imagination to indulge in any race-related discourse without involving Blacks. Last Sunday, Star News organised a debate on caste in We The People, hosted by Barkha Dutt, otherwise a fairly “secular” person by persuasion …
by Chandrabhan Prasad The Ganges is a monumental aqua-guard which has been cleansing Varna souls ever since the advent of their civilisation. A few Varna apologists describe the senseless Ganga dip as an act of “self-criticism”, where devotees officially confirm they have committed a sin.
by Chandrabhan Prasad A novelist friend has just returned from Oxford. She was there to attend a Dalit-related talk where the UN-sponsored World Conference Against Racism, to be held in Durban this year, came up for discussion. She wondered why European scholars were not easily prepared to equate caste-based discrimination with that of race. Another …