After Seattle, caste-discrimination battle reaches Toronto

Washington, March 11

After Seattle in the United States, the caste battle has now reached Toronto in Canada where the two sides — one favouring a ban on caste-based discrimination and the other opposing any such move — have started fighting it out in a district school.

Last month, Seattle became the first US city to outlaw caste discrimination after its local council overwhelmingly passed a resolution moved by an Indian-American politician and economist to add caste to its non-discrimination policy.

The resolution moved by Kshama Sawant, an upper-caste Hindu, was approved by the Seattle City Council by six to one vote. The results of the vote could have far-reaching implications on the issue of caste discrimination in the US.

Proponents of caste discrimination were successful in bringing the motion for consideration before the Toronto District School Board (TDSB). The board at its meeting on March 8, referred it to the Ontario Human Rights Commission as a neutral observer to study and assess the issue. In doing so, the board noted that it does not have enough expertise on this issue.

The TDSB’s move comes after the February 21 vote by the Seattle City Council which passed an ordinance banning caste-based discrimination in the city. This made Seattle the first city outside India to do so.

“A ‘Yes’ vote on this proposal is what is in the best interests of all public school students in Toronto. Students can experience caste discrimination in many forms in an educational environment, including by being subject to casteist slurs, discrimination in social and online settings and exclusion from dominant-caste spaces,” Seattle City Councillor Sawant said in a letter to the TDSB members.

On the other hand, the Coalition of Hindus of North America (CoHNA), which has been running a campaign against it, said that singling out one community on these otherwise broad markers, had resulted in significant opposition from the Canadian South Asian diaspora.

CoHNA Canada helped the community send more than 21,000 emails and make numerous phone calls to the trustees to make their voices heard. The TDSB office in North York also witnessed large stand-ing protests while the voting was underway, with community residents braving the freezing weather for hours to ensure they were heard, an official media release here said. — PTI

Coalition of Hindus opposing move

• Proponents of caste discrimination successfully brought the motion for consideration before Toronto District School Board
• The board referred it to the Ontario Human Rights Commission as a neutral observer to study the issue
• The Coalition of Hindus of North America has been running a campaign against the ongoing motion
• The coalition said the singling out one community had resulted in significant opposition from the Canadian South Asian diaspora