The Dalit movement was started due to constant hatred faced by them for centuries. Upper caste people exploited them and their resources. They were forced to live outside of town somewhere in the Jungle. Dalits were always assigned to serve three Varnas i.e. all non-Dalit.
They were forced not to study and were denied social-economic and political status. There were divisions based on inequality and exploitation.The caste system degenerated Dalit lives into a pathogenic condition where occupations changed into castes.
Dalits were always positioned last in the caste system. There was a belief that Dalits were impure from birth and were untouchable. They were never given proper education thus they used to do menial occupations like cleaning dry latrines, sweeping, tanning, or working as landless labor for meager daily wages.
They were treated as slaves and used to work as bonded labor on fields. This made the Dalit rise and protest. They were fed up with all these. There was a feeling among them that they are not humans. They led protests against the inhuman practices of Brahmanism.
Dalits were discriminated against in every sense. Many of the atrocities were committed in the name of religion. Besides, the system of Devadasi they poured molten lead into the ears of a Dalit, who happened to listen to some mantra. To retain the stronghold of people, education was monopolized. Dalit never got their rightful place ever in history.
A submerged community in India who were not getting equal rights and were living their lives outside of town. Inhuman practices which made their life miserable.
The Mukti Movement
This movement was led by very poor Dalits who fought against saints. They got influenced by the Christain missionaries. They came to know about equality and liberty. Thus the beginning of the Dalit Movement took its place. Somehow they got an education and the Educated section of Dalit start talking about the problem faced by their community.
They begin to talk about the problems of the poor and about exploitation and humiliations from the upper castes without any hesitation educated Dalits tried to explain to the other illiterate brothers about the required change in the society. This movement gave birth to many writers and poets. A new group emerged among the Dalit community.
In the 1970s, a new movement started named “The Dalit Panther Movement” in Maharastra. It was led by an educated Mahars Dalit. It was kind of inspired by The Black Movement.
Dalit Literacy Movement
At the time, when there was no means of communication to support the Dalits, Literacy was the only solution. Every news channel and newspaper was in the control of the upper-caste Brahmins. It was a historical belief that Brahmins always used their power to threaten their survival.
So, Dalits start publishing their magazine and start expressing their views. They start narrating poems and start telling people how they were exploited in past. They were writing with their blood (mental torture). Initially, during the Mukti Movement, Dalit literature rose.
All this literature argued that the Dalits Movement fights against the Brahmins and all those who practice exploitation. New songs, drama, poems, stories, autobiographies were written by them. All their feeling were bursting in the written form.
Conclusion
Dalit Movement, a social revolution aimed to change the condition of the Dalits in our country, replacing the age-old hierarchical Indian society based on the idea of liberty, equality, and social justice. There are many books on Dalit Movement but they don’t show the actual thing.
It’s far different than it’s shown in the book. Many people changed their surname to live peacefully. The Dalits who got power became the doll of Upper caste people.
India got independence in 1947 but Dalits are even humiliated now. Untouchability has been abolished but injustice practice is still there in society. In the name of reforms, today’s leaders are taking advantage of this. They are pitting against each other.
Education, yes education is the only solution to discrimination. The real movement for social change will succeed when all Dalits will unite together. Caste has been deeply rooted in peoples’ mindsets which cannot be erased. So, social change here means to remove discrimination and get equal rights. This is necessary for the upliftment of the backward section of society- the Dalits.
Written by - Akash Agrawal
Edited by - Nidhi Verma
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