MY NAME IS MEMORY
“A race of people is like an individual man; until it uses its own talent, takes pride in its own history, expresses its own culture, affirms its own selfhood, it can never fulfill itself.” — Malcolm X Story. Story. Story is the shortest distance between two people. This piece of wisdom has stayed with me … Continue reading
DALITS AT THE WSF MUMBAI
Today’s #dalithistory month post focuses on the incredible participation of #dalit‘s at the World Social Forum of Mumbai. Some background: originally the World Social Fourm (WSF) had been convened as an alternative to The World Economic Forum in Davos. Hosted for three years in Puerte Allegre, Brazil, the World Social Forum Mumbai was the first … Continue reading
DALIT PANTHERS
Our second #dalithistory month post is on the #dalitpanthers. The Dalit Panthers was a social organization founded by Namdeo Dhasal, Raja Dhale, and Arun Kamble in April 1972 in Mumbai. Formed in the state of Maharashtra in the 1970s, they ideologically aligned themselves to the Black Panther movement in the United States. During the same … Continue reading
JHALKARI BAI
Our first #Dalithistory month post is about the legendary Jhalkari Bai. She was a legendary Dalit woman warrior who played a crucial role in the Indian Rebellion of 1857 during the battle of Jhansi in the women’s army of Queen Laxmibai of Jhansi. Born into a poor Dalit family, she started her career as an … Continue reading
STILL I RISE
Another first for me. This is my first print article in ELLE INDIA. Enjoy! Discrimination and rejection are rites of passage for any Dalit, anywhere in the world. One Dalit-American artist contemplates all she has learnt from being branded untouchable. Life can turn upside down in an instant. I was in the fifth grade … Continue reading