Opinion - Editorials

Pulling down the wall of shame

Social discrimination is often subtle and attitudinal, but in Uthapuram village of Madurai district in Tamil Nadu it was embodied for nearly two decades in a 600-metre wall separating Dalits from caste Hindus. A report in The Hindu on April 17 on the electrification of the fence atop the wall resulted in a public outcry, and prompted the government to first disconnect power supply and then to demolish the portion of the wall that denied Dalits access to areas of common use. The Dalit community of about 2,000 families is numerically dominant in the village, but they are denied space in village squares and community halls and main pathways. The wall was blocking common entry points to the village, effectively cutting the Dalits off from the village mainstream. Until it was electrified, apparently to deter night-time “intrusion” from the Dalit colony side into the streets where the caste Hindu Pillaimars reside, authorities saw the wall as an acceptable means of keeping the two warring castes apart. The wall itself was built after a caste clash in 1989 and, initially, it had the approval of community leaders on both sides. But with time, the structure grew longer and higher and soon came to symbolise a concrete form of oppression of the Dalits. With the caste Hindu community of Pillaimars firmly against demolition, the district administration had to deploy a 1,500-strong police force while bringing down the problematic portion of the wall on Tuesday.

Even so, the demolition was the easy part compared to the challenge of ending centuries-old, well-entrenched traditions of social exclusion. Uthapuram is not the only village where Dalits encounter discrimination on the basis of caste. Despite strong governmental action, in many tea shops across the State, Dalits continue to be served in a different set of tumblers; in community halls they are not allowed to mingle with those belonging to other castes. The main pathways directly leading to areas of common use are usually out of bounds for Dalits, and funeral processions of Dalits have to take circuitous routes to separate burial grounds and churches. Temple festivals remain a source of potential trouble in several villages as Dalits are kept out of chariot-pulling rituals. Economic advancement of the few Dalits who are able to find jobs outside the village becomes a problematic issue for caste Hindus who see themselves as superior in the social hierarchy. In rural areas, life is thus a constant struggle for Dalits as they come face to face with social discrimination. The portion of the Uthapuram wall that is left standing should serve as a reminder of the great deal that still remains to be done.

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