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Academics engage with abuse of minorities in India
at SSA event
Jaspreet and Ashveer 

BERKELEY: On Thursday, April 17th, the UC-Berkeley Sikh Students Association (SSA) hosted a teach-in called “Human Rights and Religious Minorities in India.” The event featured three highly qualified speakers who all talked about different yet related issues. Dr. Darren Zook of UC Berkeley’s Department of Political Science gave an engaging overview of the RSS, VHP, and other organizations that promote the ideology of Hindutva in India. 

He gave a context for the abuse of minorities in India and also gave the history of the ideology of a homogeneous Hindu nation. Dr. Angana Chatterjee, and anthropologist of the California Institute of Integral Studies spoke about 7the unique challenge that Kashmir poses if the Indian government is to call the nation secular. She spoke of militarization, gendered violence, and sexual violence towards innocent citizens of the state. She also touched on the potential for impending communal violence in the Orrissa region where is is currently working. 

Dr. Brian Keith Axel, an anthropologist earning a second PhD from UC Santa Cruz in Philosophy, discussed the ways in which the Indian government has utilized torture against his citizens, specifically against Amritdhari Sikhs.  

He spoke of the ways in which the army and police specifically targeted those with turbans and flowing beards, regardless of their political affiliation. He also touched on the history and context of the idea of Khalistan. its position in the diaspora, as well as the current sentiment, nostalgia, and desire in the Punjab for the movement. The event was attended by about 180 people. The audience was quite diverse, including students from different religious backgrounds (Sikh, Muslim, Hindu, Christian) and ethnicities. It also included members from the Bay Area Sikh community. The speakers were followed by a question- and-answer session with students. 

After the event, the audience partook of langar brought to campus from the Fremont Gurdwara Sahib. The event initiated great discussion and debate, and exposed important issues about Indian human rights to many audience members who were previously unaware

23 April 2008
 

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