India is a peculiar country and her nationalists and patriots are a peculiar people. A patriot and a nationalist in India is one who sees with open eyes his fellow men treated as being less than man. But his humanity does not rise in protest. He knows that men and women for no cause are denied their rights. But it does not prick his civil sense of helpful action. He finds a whole class of people shut out from public employment. But it does not rouse his sense of justice and fair play. Hundreds of evil practices that injure man and society are perceived by him. But they do not sicken him with disgust. The patriot's one cry is power for him and his class. I am glad I do not belong to that class of patriots. I belong to that class which takes its stand on democracy and which seeks to destroy monopoly in every form. Our aim is to realise in practice our ideal of one man one value in all walks of life - political, economical and social. - B R Ambedkar
AMEN! How true, and ever more so today than when Dr Ambedkar wrote these words. Seems democracy education has to be taught the hard way to Indian "patriots"! Best, rama
ReplyDeleteYour timing in posting this and the Dalit documentary is obviously excellent since tomorrow is the infamous 50th anniversary of Dr. Ambedkar's conversion to Buddhism. He is of course the father of the Dalit movement, the constituion and modern Indian Buddhism. I have been reading some of his recent critical works of Marxism written toward the end of his life. The (pre-split) CPI of his time was unable to deal with caste in an effective and democratic way, a problem the Naxalites likewise long had. But fortunately, the Naxalites seem to have come round in recent years. I think that Dr. Ambedkar today would agree with most of the Naxalite program, if not with all of its methods. This is because his warning to his co-authors of the constitution about the risk of not addressing the economic and social needs of the lower classes and castes is leading them to "blow up the edifice [of the Indian state and economy] that we have labored so hard to build," as he said to the Indian constitutional convention. The only way out for Dalit Bahujans spriritually and religiously appears to be Buddhism or other egalitarian religions. The only way out for them economically, socially and politically is true socialism. Jai Bhim! Naxalbari Zindabad!
ReplyDeleteHullo again, you may have an ally in http://anoopsaha.blogspot.com/ (in case you have'nt visited that). Best, rama
ReplyDelete@ Rama - Thanks for the tip , I have been reading anoopsaha's blog for sometime now
ReplyDelete@ Anonymous - Agree with you Comrade.
I have posted the quote that of Dr Ambedkar that you have refered to.