I?ve often enjoyed staying at Excelsior Hotel, a stunning 1898 ?Belle Epoque? landmark on the French Riveria. Now, I abhor it. While reading about Simone Veil, fighter for the rights of women, children, prisoners and immigrants, I discovered that this luxury hotel was once a Nazi headquarter. From here, thousands of Jews like her lost their dignity, being packed off to concentration camps. Torture surrounded Simone Veil?s life, yet she overcame it and was voted France?s most popular woman in 2010.
Historically, Christians have condemned Jews. They believed that Judas, who was a Jew, betrayed Jesus Christ. Hateful stereotyping of Jews started from the Middle Ages. Christians were forbidden by the Church to lend money and charge interest, so Jews fulfilled this occupation. Every borrower who returns money does so very grudgingly. No wonder Jews were typecast as greedy and devilish. Nazi propaganda between 1920 and 1945 said Germans are superior Aryans, so anti-Christianity Jews should be exterminated. Many Jews in Europe, like Simone Veil?s father, were secular and avoided racial animosity. But Catholics who continued to detest Jews cooperated in delivering people like Simone Veil?s family to horrifying deaths in Nazi hands.
Man-made religious dogmas are dangerous; they install social class, hate, superiority and inferiority complexes. In Christians versus Jews, did the Jews kill Jesus? Were Christians more spiritual because they were not allowed to lend money? A twelve century-old dogma was excavated in 20th century, which showed Hitler?s ?Final Solution? strategy to wipe out Jews forever. In her autobiography, Simone Veil wrote about why she decided to cover her Auschwitz tattooed number 78651: ?In 1950 or 1951, at a reception in an embassy, a high-level French official pointing to my forearm and number, asked with a smile if it was my cloakroom number. After that, I privileged long sleeves.? Was he ignorant, insensitive, indecent or insulting?
Caste further denigrates women: If I compare divisiveness with Hinduism, where the caste system originated, it may not involve fear or hate, but discord is even more entrenched. Its perpetrator, the upper caste, puts itself on top, but in every caste and sub-caste, women are at the bottom of the pile. Look at how widows are treated, even among Brahmins; they wear white, cannot attend happy functions and live in penury. Society needs to abolish caste as it ?legalises? inequality and makes women susceptible victims in a patriarchal society. It legitimises a woman?s ?place? in society as the server, not the served.
It?s despicable when politicians use religion to get votes. Driving the caste card, Indian politicians create dissonance to strengthen their advantage. During Independence they brought in laws to improve the conditions of lower caste people, instead of demolishing it. If people with conviction take a stand to eradicate caste, women?s equality problems could simultaneously be resolved. In the West, when Christians understood the danger of anti-Semitism, they eliminated Hitler?s third Reich, and created Israel for Jews. But we?ve kept caste alive in a petridish, rendering society, particularly women, vulnerable.
In the poor refugee colony of my childhood days, we had to cross a slum before entering the living space. A caste, poorer than the poorest, lives there till today. They provide the critical service of cleaning human shit; we call them untouchables. Their and our living standards were equally low, yet we were superior. Such social fractures need to be disrupted to humanise society. In this lowest caste, women have no dignity, they are at the receiving end even in the family. Take the case of daily wage labourers in construction sites, women get half the pay of men even though they do similar health-impairing jobs. Nobody cares to implement the laws enshrined in India?s Constitution because our social practices are stronger.
I remember my grandmother saying that our poverty was an illusion of dividing Bengal in 1947. She?d say being of ?vaidya? caste we were destined for high professions like doctors. That obviously gave me a superiority complex; I could dream of taking an adventurous step or going to Paris. But boys of the lowest caste could never dream of ever being rid of poverty or the slum. Caste is destroying the morale and self-respect of our people.
My comparative analysis: Christians created physical divergence with Jews, blaming them for killing Jesus and fabricating images of miserly moneylenders like Shakespeare?s Shylock. With caste, Hindus have created psychological and social discrepancies, which can never be eroded from people?s way of living. Inspite of getting bad-mouthed, Jews became great scientists, artists, singers, philosophers and doctors. But our caste system didn?t allow untouchables to rise in mass numbers, nor has woman?s self-esteem improved. Many women end up in brothels because a family member sold them shortly after attaining puberty. Perhaps, Indian brothels are flooded with socially-deprived women whom we call the lower caste. Upper caste men seem to have no qualms of getting sexual gratification from lower caste women, but will deny them social dignity. When rape happens in metros it gets highlighted. But the root cause of women?s miserable situation comes from caste divisions. Laws exist but it?s up to you and me to drive caste away, the way slavery was abolished in the West, abortion legitimised and illegitimate children given equal rights.
There?s hope on the horizon. The ZAP generation (http://shiningconsulting.com/wp/2012/z-disruption-and-the-future/) I?ve identified as change agents has displayed outstanding anti-rape solidarity without any political influence in the case of the 23-year-old who was brutally gang-raped in Delhi and unfortunately passed away early Saturday morning. These outstanding, brave youngsters have inspired other states against such horrors, and swayed authorities towards her to get medical treatment in Singapore. She symbolises the physical awakening of India?s Zappers for women?s dignity, similar to how the French students? 1968 movement led to Simone de Beauvoir working for women?s rights (https://indianexpress.com/news/manifesto-of-343-sluts/1045849/0).
Shombit Sengupta is an international creative business strategy consultant to top management. Reach him at http://www.shiningconsulting.com
