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How can anti-caste allyship move beyond lip service and cede power? In this episode, Christina Dhanaraj and Dhanya Rajendran discuss what it really means to be an anti-caste ally, the role institutions must play, and why caste-marginalised people should take centre stage in the anti-caste movement.

Highlights

• While affirmative action has played a role in bringing caste-marginalised people into formal institutions, higher positions continue to be occupied by those belonging to the dominant castes. 

• We still have caste-powered people at the centre, thinking of how they can be better allies. Instead, caste-oppressed people need to be at the fore, holding the power and being the ones originating anti-caste discourses. 

• Social media has been a powerful platform for anti-caste voices and conversations. However, the call outs that have been happening seem to be taking up more real estate than the issues we should be talking about. 

• It is important to educate and speak to younger generations about caste exclusion and oppression, and make them aware of their privileges early on. 

For more information about IDR, go to www.idronline.com. Also, follow IDR on Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter and Instagram.

Read more:

1. The politics of mental health and well-being.

2. Who tells our stories: Representation of marginalised caste groups in Indian newsrooms

3.  IDR Interviews | Bezwada Wilson

4. “I want to build a better life for those around me”

5. A story of caste, class, and activism

6. Photo essay: Justice delayed is justice denied

7. Caste, friendship and solidarity

8. How caste oppression is institutionalised in India’s sanitation jobs

9.  Readings for an anti-caste education

10.  We tell our stories ourselves: Young Bahujan artists on Instagram

This podcast is a Maed in India production, you can find out more about us https://www.maedinindia.in/