V.Kumaresan
The indigenous society has been enslaved through religious scriptures in this ‘holy’ land. The societal enslavement of the vast population under the microscopic populated mass denied education and ordained them with allocated employment in succession for centuries together. Extending educational opportunities, ensuring its availment and deployment of the educated in the versatile employment arena have been the happenings of the past one century starting from British ruled India.
The remedial measures to bring equality and equal opportunities are not at the desired pace both in law and practice of the country. But some sort of illusion is created in the public domain as if everything is normal and just, devoid of deprivation to any section in the society.
The ultimate gainers of the discrimination, division and subjugation of subjects of the society in graded inequalities are Brahmins who are at the apex level of hierarchy, sanctified by the ‘varnasrama’.
Supremacy coupled with placing a few below the one on top is inherent in enslaving all others is vested with Brahmins, who remained even supreme over the ‘omnipotent’ god. For the demolition of this inhuman doctrine much was spoken during the entire course of the history but less were carried out. The effort has become intensive only after social revolutionaries like Periyar E.V.R., Dr. B.R. Ambedkar and Mahatma Jothirao Phule rose against the subjugation in the society. The liberating task of the subjugated masses is not yet over. Still the dominance of the minuscule population i.e. Brahmins continues. But nowadays it is common among the educated, especially who are in the first generation of getting educated to utter thus: “Is it not irrelevant to point at Brahminism and commenting on Brahmins? Everything has got normalized.” This sort of message is being spread among wider public. Such societal illusion is apparent and the utterances do not reflect the actual position.
Many public incidences are evidential to the continuing Brahminical hegemony in the society, the publicity of which was restricted during the past. But due to the breakthrough in the latest vibrant social media viz. facebook, twitter, whatsapp etc, any of the deeds of dominance have become vividly visible and noticeable.
“Is it not irrelevant to point at Brahminism and commenting on Brahmins? Everything has got normalized.” This sort of message is being spread among wider public.”
One such incident that captured public attention is the posing of Jack Dorsey, Twitter CEO, for a photo along with a poster gifted by one of the attendees of a round table meet. The poster is signified with “Smash Brahminical Patriarchy”. The photo depicts Jack Dorsey along with the attendees of the meet highlighting the poster held (not in lifted position but possessed as gifted article)
The photo invited criticism vastly from a particular section, needless to say ‘Brahmins’. The Brahmin activists in the social media who were so far in the disguised form came out openly, condemning the CEO Twitter, stating ‘How he could pose for a photo along with the poster?’
Two posters were gifted to Jack Dorsey. The other one depicted, “End Caste Apartheid”. That poster did not invoke any significant opposition except for information. The ‘perpetrators of Caste Apartheid’ are Brahmins who are privileged with the prescriptions of scriptures and the legal code viz. Manusmrithi, which rule the roost including the ‘Constitution’ of the country. There is not much reaction when the disease is pointed out; but when the diagnosed germ causing the disease was exposed, spontaneous communal selfish reactions emanated from the Brahminical side.
Twitter’s Jack Dorsey was accused of ‘hate mongering’ and ‘inciting violence’ by the Brahminical lobby. The twitter personal who was part of the meeting apologized stating that the photo was a private one.
Still the reactions to the already depicted photo did not stop. A few of the protest responses tweeted will suffice to expose the gravity of Brahminical hegemony, unknown to many including the suppressed sections.
- “Tomorrow if @ jack is given a poster with anti Semitic message in a meeting will his team allow him to hold it up? Why is that any different? Inciting hate against any community is wrong.”
- “Wake up Tuesday morning to see Brahmin names floating on my TL (timeline). If Smashing Brahminical Patriarchy is not an incitement to violence, what is?”
Counter to the comments also circulated as follows:
- My Twitter feed is full of elite man hyperventilating about Twitter CEO @ jack holding a sign that calls out sex-based & caste based discrimination in India. Caste and sexism are real and virulent is modern India. If you want to be angry about something, let it be that reality.
- “Feminists use the term # Brahminical patriarchy to talk about how # Brahminical norms determine # caste & # gender relations. It is fact not violence to name how one caste through scripture has held hegemonic power for centuries”.
The comments and counter comments to the original twitter posting exposed the disguised mentality that prevails in the country. The twitter episode has enabled the majority people to overcome their inability to discern the Brahminical hegemony that prevails in all fields in this land. Because of the denial of education to the majority people, their enslavement was not exposed. Only in British India the social enslavement started to break. Still many ‘progressive’ minds point their finger at the Britishers for having divided the country, as if political unity prevailed prior to their arrival.
Now a foreigner (CEO, Twitter) has interrupted the deep slumber, of course without any intent, of the educated non Brahmin masses to realize the social reality of ‘Brahminical hegemony’ through the glut of comments floated by the Brahmins to blow up.
Let the discerning acumen on the social reality be strengthened among the historically enslaved masses of this ‘holy’ land!
