We applaud Rutgers University for taking a crucial step toward addressing caste inequity through its recent affirmation of the existence of caste discrimination, and its commitment to ensure equity protections for all students. We also thank the University task force report on Caste Discrimination in Higher Education and the Rutgers AAUP-AFT union for leading this campaign for so many caste impacted faculty, students, and staff. Global caste systems enforce discrimination through inherited social status. They are a systemic injustice that has long been overlooked in the United States, despite its prevalence in many American institutions including higher education. That is why the findings of this report are so crucial. By recommending to add caste as a protected category, Rutgers has an opportunity to lead the way in creating equitable spaces for all, especially for caste-oppressed faculty, students, and workers who experience this bias.
The testimonies presented in Rutgers’ task force report are a powerful reminder of the urgent need to address caste-based exclusion, harassment, and inequities in higher education. Caste is not an abstract concept; it is a harsh reality for millions. Caste discrimination spans across industries and includes bullying, harassment, bias, wage theft, sexual harassment, and even trafficking. Caste-oppressed individuals have also been denied rental housing upon the discovery of their caste identity. This issue has gained significant attention in New Jersey following human trafficking allegations against the BAPS temples, where caste-oppressed workers were held against their will and paid just a dollar an hour under inhumane conditions.
In New Jersey there are many communities who suffer caste discrimination in their communities from Africa, South Asia, Asia, and Indigenous residents of the state. Students, faculty and staff from these backgrounds must be able to access the campus as a place of learning and as a workplace free from discrimination and harm.
From workplace discrimination to campus bullying, the insidious impacts of caste privilege have been well-documented by marginalized communities, In our own 2016 report Caste in the United States we have found caste oppressed people face alarming discrimination and harassment with 1 in 4 facing physical and verbal assault, 1 in 3 education discrimination and 2 out 3 workplace discrimination.
Rutgers’ initiative is part of a broader, necessary movement to confront caste oppression in the United States. We look forward to standing alongside other universities and institutions in their journey toward caste equity. Together, we can build communities where everyone can thrive with dignity and equal opportunity.