For the past few weeks, I’ve been thinking a lot about the Caste System. Of course, I always knew that caste is an oppressive system that has and continues to exist in India. Though there was a caste-discrimination California lawsuit relatively recently, I wasn’t really aware of how caste manifested in the US. This is perhaps the most telling mark of privilege—it was something I never had to worry about.
I began making my way through Equality Labs’s reading list. I drew parallels with my Anti-Racism research I conducted as a grad student: while many people claim to be “non-racist,” or not overtly being racist, they are not doing the work to be anti-racist. Anti-racism involves taking steps to unlearn biases and dismantle systems of oppression.
I wasn’t an anti-racist before I got to college. Now, with research, writing, and self-education, I can honestly claim a commitment to anti-racist work—with the understanding that there’s always more I can do to improve my efforts. Anti-casteism, on the other hand, is something I’m still trying to figure out. This blog post isn’t going to tell you how to be anti-casteist, or even anti-racist. There’s so many people who’ve devoted their minds to educating the masses on caste and race—I’ve linked what I used to get started.
How do I get started?
We’re all stupid about our privilege, because it’s something we’re not socialized to see. The way we get less stupid is by hearing from others who don’t have the same privileges as us. It sounds obvious, but how many of us have made a commitment to unlearning the way we’ve been socialized?
Keeping up with whatever is happening in the news isn’t enough. In fact, it can even be counter-productive to doing the work necessary to self-educate and advocate. There’s a lot of information out there. We consume it, are shocked/entertained/amazed, and then forget about it in ten minutes like we were cramming for an exam.
A casual, passive relationship with social justice is not going to make real change. It’s a good way to get started, but if you’re really committed to making the world a better place, it is necessary to make this quest a part of who you are. Just like your privilege, your commitment to acknowledging and unlearning your biases should become a part of your identity.
This doesn’t look the same for everyone. Reading (nonfiction and fiction), engaging with online communities, and talking with friends & family are some examples. People have habit trackers for everything from drinking water to meditating. Why not have the same commitment to self-reflection and self-education?
This Week’s Top 3
- Everything, Everywhere, All at Once 🎞 – I know I’m aggressively late in hopping on the bandwagon. If you haven’t seen it yet, it’s worth a watch.
- Dumbbell pullover 🏋🏾♀️ – your lats will thank you
- “Zindagi Kuch Toh Bata (Reprise)” 🐒 – This song, from Bajrangi Bhaijaan, is an incredibly uplifting Hindi ballad.