Casteism and ME

I have expressed many times my dislike for casteism. I started hating this system when I saw some people being discriminated against or treated as inferiors just because they were born into a particular caste. I couldn't understand the fact how a family in which a person is born, on which a person has no control can decide the social status of a person for the rest of his/her life? None of us can choose our biological parents or family. We are born randomly in some families by the act of reproduction, and based on that our caste and religion are decided. One can change that legally but for the most, they are branded based on which family or parents they are born to, and this tag sticks to them for the rest of their lives as per the current system. I was trying to remember the day when I came to know about my own caste (sometimes called Jati), what effect it had on me and what was my reaction to it.

I have to travel deep down in my memory lane to recollect that instance. As far as I can trace my memory I think I was in 3rd or 4th grade and one day I don't know why or for what reason some teacher in my school decided to ask everyone in our class their caste, most kids knew what caste they belong but I was among few who didn't and I was really embarrassed by this. So, I came home and asked my parents what is our caste, they told me it was Thakur, which is also my last name, but then I had doubts about why other people have different last names than their caste name, then my dad explained that this particular last name is also used as caste name in northern parts of India (from where my family originally belongs) and this comes under warrior section of varna system (Kshatriya). I was relieved to know that our caste was not at the bottom of that hierarchical system, it was a big relief for me at that time. Over time, I was also told by various people around me that I should be really proud of my caste as we have a long history of brave warriors and great rulers. Actually, all this information had some effect on me, suddenly I started looking at people around me from the angle to which caste they belong, whether they were from Brahmin, Kshatriya, Vaishya, or Shudra varna? This might sound very disgusting and racist but that's how it was when I became aware of my own caste and believed in that system. I started making fun of some friends who belonged to some other castes and were physically weaker than me (so I knew they could not beat me for teasing them). I even laughed at some because they could not fight a war and their ancestors were not brave enough just because they were not Kshatriya. When I look back to these incidents I feel really embarrassed and disgusted. I did all these things as an ignorant and naive kid, but such was the effect of knowing the caste and varna hierarchy on a young child who had no clue about this system just a few days back. Also, I was not the only one doing this, insulting people by mentioning their caste or abusing them using their caste name in a derogatory manner was very common around me, which is why I didn't feel I was doing anything seriously wrong. I think one day I took it too far and one of my friends started crying because of my taunting and he complained to his mom, after knowing why was he crying his mom gave me a big lecture. I don't remember what she said to me but that effectively ended my disgusting stint in casteism. I do not claim that her reprimand enlightened me about the evil of casteism but it had some positive effect. I think it took a few more years and a few more visits to my ancestral village where I saw more open practice of casteism which slowly infused utter dislike and disgust about this system in me. There was also an issue of reservations when I was in college (a kind of affirmative action for socially backward sections of society in India) which brought this issue back in my life where people from the so-called upper caste were at the receiving end. Like many, I also thought I was discriminated against because of my caste in a secular country like India (where everybody is supposed to be equal irrespective of their caste, religion, or gender), and realized whenever someone discriminates based on your caste or race it really hurts.

The post is not about the history of casteism (see the links section of this post for more information about this), but it's about my own personal experience with it and the reason why I dislike it and chose not to follow this system. Many are still ardent followers and defenders of this system, I am sure they must have their own reasons for doing this but I couldn't find any reason to support this system. For me, this is no less than racism and I am totally against it. The system that gives some individuals feelings of superiority just because they are born into a particular family is not acceptable to me. It doesn't matter what was the original intention and how it got corrupted, the current system which is practiced is outrageous, I think it's damaged beyond any repair and should be discarded totally. 

Thanks for reading and please share your views on this topic.

[Copyright: Vinay Thakur. Please contact the author for re-posting or publishing]

Links:
1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caste_system_in_India 
2. Casteism: Essay on Casteism in India
3. Vedic Friends Association Position on Casteism