News and Events | Dalit Solidarity Network

DSN-UK’s Annual General Meeting 2021

19th November 2021

This year’s AGM was a relatively quiet affair, though that’s not to say that there wasn’t plenty to be dealt with. Apart from the usual matters of adopting the proposed Annual Report and Accounts for 2020/21, we were delighted to welcome Dr Prerna Tambay to our Board of Trustees. Prerna is an active leader in the Dalit movement, and already a long-standing member of DSN-UK, having contributed to past AGMs. Her specialisation is digitalisation and mobilisation, and she has a particular interest in women’s issues. We were also pleased that Corinne Lennox (Chair), Kate Solomeyina (Treasurer) and Ramani Leatherd were re-elected to the Board, so that the transition period between Directors can continue smoothly. Our [..]

A virtual screening of ‘I Am Belmaya’ with a unique Q and A session

12th October 2021

On Wednesday 6th and Thursday 7th International Dalit Solidarity Network, along with Tideturner Films, organised a virtual viewing of ‘I Am Belmaya’: a documentary made by Sue Carpenter and Belmaya Nepali about Belmaya’s journey to become a film-maker, centred mainly in Nepal. Belmaya is both female and Dalit, and the intersectionality of these two aspects have held back her progress in life. Her father died of cancer when she was young, her mother of suicide sometime later, and she ended up in a children’s home. Her education was cut short by the lack of empathy towards her, with the teacher [..]

The Californian Democratic Party adds ‘caste’ as a protected category

7th September 2021

The Californian Democratic Party has set a precedence on the issue of ‘caste’ by adding it as a protected category to their Party Code of Conduct. Despite heavy opposition from a number of Hindutva organisations in the US (including the Hindu American Forum), activists have succeeded in persuading the Party that caste-based discrimination is a genuine cause for concern and that action should be taken to ensure that victims have access to justice. Caste hit the headlines in the US back in 2020, when the State of California took Cisco Inc. to court over the discrimination that one of its [..]

The UK House of Lords debate on India and Human Rights

13th August 2021

On 22 July 2021, Lord Harries of Pentregarth (Co-Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Dalits) opened a debate in the House of Lords on India and Human Rights. Whilst expressing his enormous admiration for those in India, and appreciating their long history of discussion and debate, he also raised his sadness over the rise of nationalism and increasing denial of fundamental human rights. Aside from the lack of academic freedom, Lord Harries mentioned the targeting of journalists; human rights groups who have had bank accounts frozen and been denied travel visas; Muslims who have suffered attacks stemming from an [..]

Online Caste-Hate Speech – A Growing Concern

6th April 2021

On 22 March a side-event to the 46th Session of the UN Human Rights Council highlighted the impact of caste-hate speech on-line and what could be done to combat it. The keynote speaker was Dr. Fernand de Varennes, UN Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues, who argued that ‘Dehumanization of minorities such as Dalits through use of hate-speech is a precursor to violence.’ The event was also used as a launching pad for IDSN’s excellent report on Caste-hate speech researched by Dr Murali Shanmugavelan, with support from the IDSN team. In the UK we are well aware of the impact of [..]