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OF CONTENTS
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Responsibility and Obligation
Towards
India's Poorest Caste: The Dalit's
By
Ryan Harper
It was my first day in India and I was
on a bus heading towards a Dalit Village in the city of Chennai on only
my second Semester at Sea sponsored trip, a service project designed to
perform a day's worth of labor for India's lowest caste. We exited the
bus to the surprise of a marching band awaiting us and people dressed
in vibrant colors, all dancing excitedly to the music.
They led us through the street and
headed towards a covered area where a few of the children performed a
series of dances for us. It was obvious that the living conditions of
these people were poor at best but it was almost hard to notice such
things because of the unbelievable beauty and good spirited character
of the people of the village. The people laughed uncontrollably and
were so willing to engage us in their dancing and celebrating.
We finished the ceremony with a speech
given by our trip leader which was returned by a speech and donation
given by a politician of the nearby area. We could only faintly
understand what was being said by the interpreter but it was certainly
obvious that he was giving advice and instructions on how the Dalits
can attempt to better their current situation. This is quite common
when charity is received by the poor people of India as outlined in
Sara Dickey's article entitled "Cinema and the Urban Poor in the South
India" where she states that "the wealthy will occassionally try to 'do
something' for their less advantaged fellows, accompanying their
charitable acts by lectures on how to improve one's life."
We continued the day by working hard and
moving concrete to build a roof over top a community center and school
for the village. The heat was smoldering and the labor was no easy
task, but I can confidently say that I have not once felt so rewarded
and humbled on this trip as I did that afternoon with the Dalits.
Dickey's article also states that "the urban poor lack most of the
resrouces to take effective action in the larger society. Power comes
from wealth, prestige, and political connections. When poor people are
faced with difficult or unfair circumstances they can do little in the
face of entrenched bureacracy." This is an unfortunate consequence of
the caste system in place in India, however, based on what I witnessed,
the Dalit people have found a way
to thrive in less conventional ways.
Their vibrance and exhuberance for life radiated from each and every
one of them and I can guarantee that not a person on that trip felt
that what we did was anything more than an obligation that has been
bestowed on us because of our having come from such a fortunate
situation.

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