TeaThat unholy Hindu trinity – caste, cow and curry – has resurfaced once again in its latest avatar in caste policies, ordinances and laws being implemented in various US universities, corporations and local/state governments. The mere mention of the word ‘caste’ conjures up vivid images of evil Hindu Brahmins tormenting poor Dalits in dusty Indian villages. This is because every American is taught these concepts from elementary schools to post-doctoral programs.
For example, a Hindu American parent, given the mandatory status of their child textbook, discovered that “since we are Hindus, we are essentially part of a birth-based hierarchical caste system.” some scholars like Stanford anthropologists Thomas Blom Hansenbelong to Look that the caste system is “justified in Hindu scriptures”, and should continue to be taught in California schools. Brandeis University, The First In December 2019, the organization that added race as a protected category in the US, a program’ Called “a global magazine on caste/social exclusion”. Though it is offered as a global study, have a quick look at current And Of earlier The issues confirm that all the studies are focused only on India and specifically on Hindus. There is not a single study on the caste system among the Muslims of Bangladesh, the Christians of Pakistan, the origin of untouchability in Japan, or the Midgan-Madibhan in Somalia, or how an outcast has to endure life-long humiliation. Impure, inauspicious, sinful, unholy, and thus considered the attribute of scorn, avoidance, and abuse by others. recent race survey Date 23 May 2023 onwards certifies For the average American, caste is clearly associated with India and Hinduism.
Academia and the media also use similar narratives to reinforce these stereotypes. When it comes to caste, no one thinks of the ‘untouchable’ Burakumin caste in Japan or the upper caste called Gob in Somalia. Instead, all guns blazing are trained on the Hindus of India who have now brought this hateful practice deep inside the American heartland. A Hindu American student from California described it as a “religion of monkey and elephant gods, harsh caste discrimination and oppression of women”. The student further said that California history textbooks insulted her religion, and she felt a mixture of anger, embarrassment, and humiliation.
Now, to make matters worse, the California Senate has passed Bill 403 (SB-403) to add race as a protected category. On the surface, it looks like a noble cause aimed at ending all discrimination. But on closer inspection, it doesn’t seem as uplifting and gentle as it claims to be. The first question that comes to mind is that all forms of discrimination should already be covered under the existing protected categories, so why this insistence on adding the very specific word ‘caste’ as a new protected category? If the (supposedly) noble intention is to prohibit all forms of discrimination based on class or social status, including caste discrimination, then why not use the term “hereditary class or social status”? It is face-neutral, includes not only race but also any other advantages or disadvantages based on parentage or ancestry, and applies equally to all Americans, regardless of race, skin color, ethnicity. irrespective of race, caste, creed, tribe and national origin. , Could it be that caste is being used deliberately to target a particular group of Americans while giving a clean chit to other Americans?
Regardless of whether SB-403 was well-intentioned (it’s malicious) or written by naïve politicians (an oxymoron), the bill will harm South Asian communities in California and its negative consequences will be enormous. Barbara A. McGraw, JD, PhD, Professor of Law, and founding director of the Center for Engaged Religious Pluralism at Saint Mary’s College of California in Moraga, writes: “With California becoming increasingly diverse, the solution to addressing subtle forms of inter-community discrimination is not to expand specific categories that target particular ethnic groups, resulting in discrimination against them. This is by applying existing laws with their broad, neutral categories that provide protection to all and an obligation to treat all fairly. She also raises legitimate concerns that SB-403 “will limit equal protection and due process rights of South Asians (and others), resulting in racial profiling because it legislates false claims based on national origin, ethnicity, and ancestry.” Is”.
Read also: California’s anti-racism bill is a milestone in equality. It is a role model for others to follow
single south asian outside
SB-403 is not only discriminatory, it also has several constitutional flaws spiked By Vikram David Amar, Dean of the University of Illinois, College of Law, and a leading constitutional authority. For example, SB-403, in its current form, potentially violates the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. “SB-403’s selective emphasis on South Asian (and Asian, African, and South American) – but not European or North American – cultures would be textually troubling to a review court” and would fail the face neutrality test. Furthermore, the SB-403 proposal “is merely declarative of supposedly pre-existing law. [Thus] The subtlety of the purpose of the Explanation for the enactment of the law opens the door to the possibility that the Bill is intended to target and vilify communities with whom the term ‘caste’ is deeply (and stereotypically) associated,” Amar Add to the mix the fact that some partisan for-profit organizations and foreign actors with conflicts of interest are lobbying hard for SB-403 to advance their own political agendas and vested interests. Given the legislative history (an earlier version of SB-403 specifically singled out South Asians in an even more explicit way), and the conflict-of-interest angle, this bill also appears in court to be “illegal-motive.” challenge” will fail.
Asian American Hotel Owners Association (AAHOA) issues a press release statement Stating that it “strongly opposes discrimination of any kind, including race. AAHOA, however, opposes California Senate Bill 403” due to concerns that it would discriminate against individuals of Asian American descent and/or the tenets of Hinduism. It can lead to unfair and illegal racial profiling, targeting and attacks on people who follow it. Adding “race” to the anti-discrimination categories outlined in Section 51 of the California Civil Code and other Education Code and Government Code sections is unnecessary, and would do more harm than good. AAHOA President and CEO Laura Lee Blake, who is also a veteran California attorney, said: “There are existing US laws that already address discrimination, and they are near and dear to the hearts of Asian Americans who have faced so many different challenges. have faced discrimination on multiple levels, simply because of the color of their skin or their religious beliefs. Adding caste to the mix through SB-403 only exacerbates these differences and is the cause of the great divide and for all South Asian communities. will cause unnecessary conflict.” AAHOA said it stands in solidarity with other organizations, including the Hindu American Foundation, which strongly opposes SB-403, and urges the Senate to completely defer the bill.
If become law, SB-403 would be implemented and enforced by the California Department of Civil Rights (crd), which is infamous for its witch hunts by allegedly fabricating data, making false claims They said that the alleged victim at Cisco was the only Dalit on the team, while in fact the team consisted of non-Indians and another Dalit who had been promoted to a leadership position earlier. Furthermore, the CRD did not even bother to interview other Dalits in the team, as is evident on page 10, line 24. Speed for sanctions. It forcibly assigned a ‘Hindu Brahmin’ caste to those who have publicly declared themselves to be irreligious. In the past, CRD has also gone after corporations such as Activision and Tesla as noted in a reuters Article Date 8 December 2022. Activision attorney Christopher Schinnell said in a trial On December 5, 2022, the company announced that the CRD “stirred a storm of hostile media coverage against the company based on malicious and intentionally false claims” in an attempt to force Activision to settle the claims of bias. According to reuters ArticleCRD is already facing another lawsuit by Tesla Inc agency issue Electric car maker accused of discriminating against black factory workers. Tesla says CRD did not follow procedures required by state law before filing the 2021 lawsuit, which the company claims lacks merit.
Therefore, it is no surprise that CRD was sued on In Federal Court on 22 September 2022 by Hindu American Foundation. Recently, a diverse group of 30+ current and former Cisco employees wrote “Due to misrepresentations made in court documents by the California Civil Rights Department (CRD) against the culture and ethics of our organization, we experienced a detrimental effect on our lives,” CRD said. ends with the letter, ,We feel it necessary that CRD publicly apologize and absolve us of any implied blame and in doing so help restore our reputation. In the absence of the above, this infamy will be with us along with our permanent loss.
If California does not want to face more lawsuits, especially multi-million-dollar class action lawsuits by groups of people who were hurt by the California government’s discriminatory actions, it is essential that SB -403 should be removed immediately. On March 29, 2022, Janet Wiper, lead counsel and lead attorney for CRD, who was leading the Activision and Cisco lawsuits, removed From Governor, Gavin Newsom. Second Senior Counsel on the Activism Case, Assistant Chief Counsel Melanie Proctor, Leave Later in protest against the firing of his boss. One year later on 12 April 2023 the California Policy Center released a report stating that bounty hunter incentives have made the CRD fund their budget through attorney fees and created a Demon, Now the same CRD will implement SB-403 after it becomes law. Therefore it is necessary that Office Legislative Affairs under California Attorney General Rob Bonta takes immediate steps to prevent further abuse. amy alley, director The Office of Legislative Affairs should investigate SB-403 as it is still pending legislation and should be repealed immediately.
Abhijeet Bagal is Resident Legal Analyst at Caste Files, an online media and educational platform about caste, Hinduism and diversity. Thoughts are personal.
This article is in response to ThePrint’s article ‘California’s anti-racism bill is a milestone in equality. It is a role model for others to follow‘, written by Dilip Mhaske, president of the Foundation for Human Horizon, a UN-affiliated NGO leading the anti-caste law movement in the US, and an AI research scholar at John Hopkins University. Mhaske’s response to Bagal’s rebuttal is as follows:
On May 17, 2023 During the release of the 2022 report on International Religious Freedom, a US State Department official expressed deep concern about the situation of Dalits in India and reaffirmed commitment to address the issue, Government of India urged the U.S. to condemn violence, ensure accountability, and protect all groups, with further discussions during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the White House. The author fails to recognize that the California bill does not target Hinduism, but rather aims to protect the civil rights of all persons without discrimination. Although the authors acknowledge the historical existence of caste discrimination within Hinduism, they overlook the ongoing relevance of legislating to prevent practices such as slavery. Furthermore, recent government statistics highlight the alarming number of registered cases of crimes against Dalits, emphasizing the need for proactive measures.
ThePrint now closes the discussion.