In recent years, there’s been a growing trend among some Indians — especially those living or studying in the West — to call out racism with fierce moral indignation. They tweet passionately about George Floyd, take part in Black Lives Matter marches, and are the first to cry foul at the slightest hint of racial bias abroad. That’s all well and good. Racism should be called out. But the irony is thick when the same voices remain curiously silent — or worse, complicit — in India’s own centuries-old social crime: caste.
It’s bizarre, even laughable, that someone who wouldn’t let their domestic help sit on their furniture or wouldn’t dream of marrying outside their caste, suddenly becomes a champion of equality the moment they land in London or New York. The casteist becomes the anti-racist. The oppressor dons the mask of the oppressed.
Let’s be clear — racism and casteism are both about power, privilege, and the subjugation of others based on birth. But while the West at least acknowledges its past and wrestles with its present, many Indians are still busy justifying caste as “culture,” “tradition,” or “family values.” Worse, they export these hierarchies into their diaspora communities — where matrimonial ads still specify caste, and temples often reflect the same old social stratification.
So what happens when a casteist calls out a racist?
It’s not activism.
It’s not moral awakening.
It’s projection.
It’s deflection.
It’s theatre.
If you’ve never questioned your own caste privilege, if you’ve never stood up against caste-based violence or untouchability back home, then maybe you’re not the right person to preach about white privilege. Clean your own house before lecturing others on theirs.
Because when casteists play victims and call Westerners racists, it’s not justice — it’s just hypocrisy with a halo.