Dalit Children

No country for dalit children

In Rohith Vemula’s suicide lies the sordid reality of dalit children across India. In his first and final letter, lies the dejection and exclusion felt by children who are often treated as sub-human by their ‘upper-caste’ teachers, peers and by the society at large. Today 80 % of out-of –school children are from dalit and Adivasi communites. Rohith was one of the few who made it to higher education. Yet, he was killed by deep-rooted hateful discrimination that dalit children continue to face.

Here is an appeal written by Valay Singh based on a conversation with adalit student. #RohitVemula #MLKday #dalitchildren

Dalit children: Death by discrimination

Dalits continue to remain marginalized both socially and economically. The hateful discrimination against them starts in childhood itself. Everyday we hear stories of Dalit children being harassed in government schools. Rohith Vemula was one of the few Dalit children who managed to reach university. His tragic death shows us the the mental and physical violence that dalit children are subjected to. #RohithVemula #MLKday #dalitchildren

The life of a dalit student in India

67 years after #India became a free country, life for Dalit children remains as shackled as before. They are economically backward and their children are still ostracised in schools. Illustrated here is the life for an average dalit student. #RohithVemula #Republicday #dalitchildren

 

Caste discrimination in education

From Mahabharata to now: The existence of #caste #injustice in #education continues – Illustration by Maitri Dore/Youth Ki Awaaz #rohithvemula

Exclusion & Discrimination in School: Voices of Dalit children

Oppressive and unjust hierarchies of the caste system continue to lock Dalit children out of full participation in education within schools; whether it is access to basic facilities, social interactions or pedagogic processes.Here are some experiences of Dalit children from a study conducted in a village of Phagi tehsil in Rajasthan, by the @indianinstituteofdalitstudies and UNICEF that shows how educational institutions meant as a critical platform for change ironically continue to perpetuate caste based exclusion, humiliation and discrimination. #rohithvemula #dalitchildren

Source

Even as a 5 year old, I hid my caste

#Rohithvemula suicide has opened a can of worms relating to structural injustices and discrimination against #dalits in the country. It has given courage to people like Yashica Dutt to ‘come out’ as dalits after a life of hiding her actual identity. Yashica, a New York based journalist recollects her earliest experience of casteism when she was in kindergarten and how she learnt to hide her caste.