Essays on Untouchables and Untouchability: Political _________________________________________________ Contents Chapter 1 : From millions to fractions Chapter 2 : The revolt of the untouchables Chapter 3 : Held at bay Chapter 4 : Their wishes are laws unto us Chapter 5 : Under the providence of Mr. Gandhi Chapter 6 : Gandhi and his fast Chapter 7 : A warning to the untouchables
Muslim-Catholic dialogue in India: Is caste the main problem?
Jason Keith Fernandes Introduction Sharing his experiences on Christian-Muslim dialogue in the March ’09 issue of Jivan, Fr Paul Jackson was unusually reticent on the challenges that face the Catholic aspirant on this route. To say that this route is a path of thorns would not be an exaggeration, since there are quite a …
The Y5K problem
Gail Omvedt (Probably written before the year 2000) “Millenniums” ring few cultural bells for Indians, not when time is envisioned in aeons, ‘kalpas’, endlessly recurring and unimaginably immense cycles… And so, in a society just being touched by the marvels of the information age, the “Y2K” problem is seen in quite mundane terms. IT’S official: …
Muslim-Dalit Relations
Gail Omvedt Islam is a religion of egalitarianism and brotherhood. After the defeat of Buddhism, it maintained these values in India for centuries. Not only did those who became Muslims benefit by escaping from caste restrictions, but Muslim rule also provided a social and political context for the growth of Bhakti movements. Within these, to …
The Dravidian movement
Gail Omvedt “So many movements have failed. In Tamil Nadu there was a movement in the name of anti-Brahmanism under the leadership of Periyar. It attracted Dalits, but after 30 years of power, the Dalits understand that they are as badly-off – or worse-off – as they were under the Brahmans. Under Dravidian rule, …
Pride, awkwardness, and a dangerous accident in Chalisgaon
Waiting for a Visa : by Dr. B. R. Ambedkar In the year 1934, some of my co-workers in the movement of the depressed classes expressed a desire to go on a sight-seeing tour, if I agreed to join them. I agreed. It was decided that our plan should at all events include a visit …
Back from the west–and unable to find lodging in Baroda
Waiting for a Visa : by Dr. B. R. Ambedkar In 1916 I returned to India. I had been sent to America by His Highness the Maharaja of Baroda for higher education. I studied at Columbia University in New York from 1913 to 1917. In 1917 I came to London and joined the post-graduate department …
Untouchable Ambedkar—the Saga of his Discrimination in America
BY A K VISWAS The 119th birth anniversary of Dr Babasaheb Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar has been observed on April 14 this year. On this occasion we offer our sincere homage to that towering personality by publishing the following article and a piece that N.C. wrote on him in 1990 when the Bharat Ratna was posthumously …
From Millions to Fractions
[This is one of the essays written by Dr. Ambedkar, in his book “Essays on untouchables and untouchability”. The importance of this article is the freshness, which it brings to our mind. Even though the article was written about 70-80 years back, It shows how hindus have tried every trick, in thier power, to stop the …