California is all set to bring about the very first statewide ban in the United States on caste discrimination.
The State Senate, on Tuesday, passed Senate Bill 403. The Bill was passed by a 31-5 margin. It added caste as a type of "ancestry" protected under the civil rights law of the state.
Activists are now calling on Governor Gavin Newsom to sign the bill into law.
Aisha Wahab, Democratic State Senator is the author of the bill. Aisha expressed by saying, “I’m proud to stand in solidarity with every person who said they, as a Californian, experienced caste discrimination, and others who say they want it to stop.”
Aisha further expressed by saying, “We shined a light on a long-hidden form of discrimination thousands of years old, invisible shackles on the wrist of millions of people.”
The bill has been passed with the backing of numerous social justice and civil rights organizations. The move has become the most important triumph in fighting casteism in North America.
On August 29, prior to the passage of the bill in California's Senate, it got passed in the State Assembly, with a margin of 55-3 vote.
Senator Wahab presents SB 403, the Caste Discrimination Bill, for its Senate Concurrence Vote. SB 403 passes 31-5 and is on the way to the Governor! pic.twitter.com/nNIGRyu4Tq
The Dalit community is of the view that discrimination on caste is present in the South Asian diaspora. Discrimination remains prevalent in classrooms, workplaces, and many other social settings.
Caste has been in existence since eons in nations such as India, which abolished the caste system formally after the independence of the country. However, Dalits are of the view that violent social division enforcement and discrimination have always been there in the real sense.
Some Dalit community members in California stated that they got to know about their caste after they experienced discrimination against them by individuals belonging to the privileged caste.
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The passage of the Bill
In the State Legislature, SB 403 was successfully passed with very little resistance. However, it had to experience strong opposition, especially from a few Hindu-American groups. These groups have called Governor Newsome to veto the bill.
The Hindu American Foundation expressed through a social media post that the bill implicitly targets South Asians, and thus, must be vetoed.
Groups like these are of the view that with bills like these, legislation targets or single out Hindus.
On the other hand, the Dalit rights groups clearly rejected such claims. The supporters of the bill also deny the fact that it in any way is going to discriminate against South Asians.
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