The Dalit Voice and the Outcasts of Democratic Society
The focus of this work is a documentary, “The Dalit Voice,” released by Jane Hubbard. Despite being seen as a democracy, India still retains portions of its caste system, especially in rural areas. People are divided into groups depending on their inherent qualities and the circumstances of their birth. Castes do not allow vertical movement and restrict the freedoms of individuals according to their position. At the bottom of the caste system are the Dalits, who are considered outsiders (Hubbard and Stiller).
According to the Hindu religion, Dalits must be deprived of the rights and social freedoms others enjoy and made subservient. The position of the Untouchables within India is justified by their “bad karma,” which justifies a life of hardship and servitude (Hubbard and Stiller). Two primary messages can be derived from the film.
First, the interviews and the narration demonstrate that the persecution of Dalits is socially constructed for the benefit of other castes. By appropriating the labor and wealth of the Dalits, landowners, lenders, banks, and a variety of other social groups reap direct profit (Hubbard and Stiller). The second message of the film is that through raising awareness and giving Dalits the tools needed to fight for their rights, gradual change can be made. Both of these messages are supported by stories of the real people filmed and Indian history.
Cultural Violence as a Driver of Inhumanity
The persecution of the Dalits in India is intrinsically tied to both culture and structures of power. Religious Hindu texts create a sense of divide between the Dalits and all other castes. The subsequent treatment of the group falls in line with the concept of cultural violence introduced by the Norwegian sociologist Johan Galtung.
In discussing conflicts and peace, the man proposes that certain aspects of culture can legitimize and normalize violence (Galtung). Certain narratives, both intentionally and unintentionally, can cultivate conflicts between social groups (Galtung). By continuously repeating a specific motif in arts, literature, and other forms of culture, messages about “correct” interaction models between people get transferred. In the case of a monumental piece of culture and history like the Hindu religion, the scope of influence and outreach is especially large. By discussing certain people as inherently inferior, Hinduism gives Indian people a reason to subjugate and discriminate against a perceived out-group.
Dalits exist as both the in-group and the out-group – intrinsically connected with the structure of Indian society and rejected by it at the same time. Naturally, the influence of culture and religion is not the only driver of Dalit mistreatment. Without a clear incentive structure for reaping social benefits from the creation of outcasts, there would be no reason for Dalits to remain a consistent part of the culture.
Society of Peace in the Context of Culture
In Perpetual Peace, Emmanuel Kant discusses some of the conditions necessary to achieve successful and harmonious cooperation between nations and various social groups. The main supposition of the work is that a system of elective government, put into motion by the will and power of the collective, will always gravitate to peace. For Kant, democracies are systems inherently built to maximize the prosperity of their population, achieved through negotiations and cooperation of nations (Kant).
However, the existence of Dalits within India’s democracy poses a barrier to Kant’s understanding of the world. The existence of Dalits demonstrates that even in democratic or republican societies, those who are not considered people will be denied the ability to participate in decision-making and policy. Furthermore, these people suffer violence from within instead of an external threat. The facilitation of republican governance does not address the violence created and continued within a culture. A truly peaceful country that is operated by the will of its people cannot exist as long as violence is perpetuated against those it considers inhumane.
Works Cited
Galtung, Johan. “Cultural Violence.” Journal of Peace Research, vol. 27, no. 3, 1990, pp. 291-305.
Hubbard, Jane, and Katja Stiller. “The Dalit Voice.” YouTube, 1994. Web.
Kant, Immanuel. To Perpetual Peace: A Philosophical Sketch. 1795.