Dalit Women Speak Out

Aloysius Irudayam S.J., Jayshree P. Mangubhai, Joel G. Lee

445 pp Hb
INR 695
ISBN 9788189884697
All Rights Available

“Women always face violence from men. Equality is only preached, but not put into practice. Dalit women face more violence every day, and they will continue to do so until society changes and accepts them as equals.” — Bharati from Andhra Pradesh 

The right to equality regardless of gender and caste is a fundamental right in India. However, the Indian government has acknowledged that institutional forces arraigned against this right are powerful and shape people’s mindsets to accept pervasive gender and caste inequality. This is no more apparent than when one visits Dalit women living in their caste-segregated localities. Vulnerably positioned at the bottom of India’s gender, caste and class hierarchies, Dalit women experience the outcome of severely imbalanced social, economic and political power equations in terms of endemic caste-class-gender discrimination and violence.

This study presents an analytical overview of the complexities of systemic violence that Dalit women face through an analysis of 500 Dalit women’s narratives across four states. Excerpts of these narratives are utilised to illustrate the wider trends and patterns of different manifestations of violence against Dalit women.

Table Of Contents

• Acknowledgements
• Abbreviations
• A Note from the Authors
• Introduction
• 1. Conceptual Framework
• 2. Profile of Dalit Women
• 3. The Social Context
• 4. Forms and Frquency of Violence: An Overview
• 5. Verbal Abuse
• 6. Physical Assault
• 7. Sexual Violence
• 8. Kidnapping, Abduction and Forced Incarceration
• 9. Medical Negligence
• 10. Female Foeticide and Infanticide, Child Abuse and Domestic Violence
• 11. Casual Factors for Violence
• 12. Dalit Women’s Courage and Resilience
• 13. Effects of Violence on Dalit Women
• 14. Responses to Violence against Dalit Women
• 15. Concluding Observations
• Bibliography
• Glossary