3 - Global and Local Practice of the Contemporary Dalit Movement: Making Sense of “Coming out” of Highly Educated Dalit Youth

In India, in the beginning of 2000, activists of the Dalit community living in India and abroad began to argue that the caste issue should not remain a 'domestic problem' in India, but should be tackled as one of racial discrimination. The UN World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance was held in Durban, South Africa in 2001. The Dalit people refused to remain silent against the discriminatory treatment that continued in India and other countries. This paper examines the background to such movements and examines the development and challenges of the contemporary Dalit movement from the perspective of global and local practices.

The 2016 suicide of University of Hyderabad PhD student Rohith Vemula led to protests that spread both inside and outside India, especially among the highly educated Dalit youth. In the aftermath of these events, some youth came out as Dalit and published their own memoirs on the theme of their lived experiences of discrimination and suffering. In addition, the influence of the anti-racism movement (Black Lives Matter, BLM) that was flourishing at the same time cannot be overlooked as a background to the growing interest in caste discrimination in the USA.

This study focuses on how personal perceptions such as discrimination and humiliation manifest. Further, it explores the moment for such experiences being narrated and what globalization has done to the anti-caste movement.