<
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/feb/18/a-disease-caste-discrimination-in-australia-is-on-the-rise-but-some-are-fighting-back>
"When Rakesh Kumar migrated to Australia from Punjab in India 16 years ago, the
discrimination followed him. Before he could even enter the house he would be
staying in he was asked: “What is your caste?”
“I said I’m Chamar,” Kumar says. The term is a Punjabi equivalent of the Dalit
caste.
With India now the third most common birthplace of Australian residents,
according to the 2021 census, and with migration from south Asia on the rise,
many are worried about caste discrimination escalating in Australia.
The Hindu caste system, which is assigned at birth and determines occupations
and social status, is made up of four tiers, with Brahmins or priests and
teachers at the top and Dalits at the bottom. Dalits are often tasked with
scavenging and street cleaning, are considered “untouchable” and are outcast
from Indian society.
Questions about Kumar’s caste followed him into his career. He now manages a
team at a Melbourne logistics company.
In 2013, Kumar says, he bought a car with a number plate that read chamar “so
that no one asks me”.
Kumar, who has a career as a logistics manager, subverted a trend among
upper-caste south Asians who flaunt their status on Australian number plates:
“When I tell them my caste with pride, people feel ashamed, they realise they
did something wrong.”
Despite his professional success he has still been discriminated against. He
once overheard a colleague suggesting that he had only progressed so far
because his mother or grandmother must have slept with someone from a higher
caste.
“That was the worst experience I had,” Kumar says."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
