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I observed it multiple times during CS graduate school. An Indian high caste classmate refused to let his roommate sleep in the same bedroom. The higher caste g

I observed it multiple times during CS graduate school. An Indian high caste classmate refused to let his roommate sleep in the same bedroom. The higher caste guy told us that his roommate is of lower caste. The other poor guy ended up very obedient and sleep in the couch for 2 years. They have a group of high caste guys and talk sht about a few fellow low caste guys in the class Eye opening.

eternalban 4y ago
! This was in US? What school was this?
- sreevisakh 4y ago
  "If Hindus migrate to other regions on earth, Indian caste would become a world problem." - Dr. B R Ambedkar said this in 1916 [1]. The surprising incident in US was predicted more than a century ago. For more context, Dr. B R Ambedkar was the main architect of the constitution of India. He also formulated the affirmative action for Dalit representation, called the reservation system. He was one of the so called Dalits who faced extreme caste discrimination in India despite his brilliance and all his achievements. There are documented instances where upper caste government officers refused to touch files that he signed. The discrimination was so bad that he and 500K of his followers converted to Buddhism. These days, some sections treat him like an ideological revolutionary (sort of like marxism or leninism). Many are openly calling for replacing his ideas with those from manusmriti - an ancient text that is a huge source of racism and misogyny in India. Hope this gives you some insight into the problem. [1] http://www.columbia.edu/itc/mealac/pritchett/00ambedkar/txt_ambedkar_castes.html#:~:text=It%20is%20a%20local%20problem,has%20defied%20a%20great%20many http://www.columbia.edu/itc/mealac/pritchett/00ambedkar/txt_...
  - eternalban 4y ago
    > The surprising incident in US was predicted more than a century ago. That's my question: was this in US? Because in US if anyone pulls that kind of shit you head straight to the dean's office and address the problem. 2 years sleeping on a couch because of your roommate's conceit? It boggles the mind.
    - whoevercares 4y ago
      It is indeed US. Well for some reason the guy did not complain. I might exaggerate it a bit - the guy slept elsewhere as well but in this very dormitory he only slept in bedroom when the other guy is not home
    - ReactiveJelly 4y ago
      Nobody wants to be seen as the one complaining. One of the funniest parts of our HR training at my employer was "If someone does something you don't like, first talk to them and tell them you don't like it." What a joke. That would never work.
  - apun47 4y ago
  - known 4y ago
lotophage 4y ago
That's horrible
puranjay 4y ago
High caste people in India will often find ways to casually mention their caste in conversation, sometimes within minutes of meeting someone new. Its reflexive - like subtly turning your wrist to show off a new watch. And I have no data to corroborate this, but I've felt caste chauvinism increase in the last few years.
- sangnoir 4y ago
  > And I have no data to corroborate this, but I've felt caste chauvinism increase in the last few years. ...as has Hindu nationalism, as noted in the article.
  - ReactiveJelly 4y ago
    A worrying trend. The vibe of nationalist theocracy in the USA has not been fun for me as a non-Christian.
  - int_19h 4y ago
    There's a broad trend in the rise of populist ethnocultural nationalism around the world, which usually brings with it a revival of all kinds of discriminatory outlooks because they're "traditional".
- known 4y ago
cuteboy19 4y ago
This is unthinkable in any IIT/NIT in India. I think casteism is somewhat worse in the US
- oh_sigh 4y ago
  I forget what the concept is called, but I will call it something like emigrant conservatism, where emigrants bring essentially a snapshot of their culture from when they emigrate, and that snapshot remains fixed - they don't feel American, so they don't integrate into American cultural norms, and they don't have much active interaction with their previous home's culture which is constantly progressing.
- dataexporter 4y ago
  Well. I am from an NIT in India and upper caste groupism is super common there. Of course to an outsider it seems like these are guys from the same high school and same hostel hanging out, but in reality it is mostly upper caste Brahmins in those high schools as well who end up continuing their groupism and favoritism in college and beyond. The same groupism exists even today - decades later. You see the same upper caste brahmins hanging out in the US together still in their close knit groups.
  - cuteboy19 4y ago
    Groupism is one thing but this kind of brazen discrimination is absurd. I never saw any case of people refusing lower caste roommates for example
- sreevisakh 4y ago
  Either that is lack of awareness or a misrepresentation. Please have a look at this: https://theprint.in/opinion/brahmins-on-india-campuses-studying-science-is-natural-to-upper-castes/378901/ https://theprint.in/opinion/brahmins-on-india-campuses-study... . There were lots of anecdotes about this going around. But it's documented news these days.
  - cuteboy19 4y ago
sshlocalhost98 4y ago
Hello ? Any source please? Anyone can talk nonsense and say it’s a personal recount
- whoevercares 4y ago
  Think about the “MeToo” movement, do you think it was nonsense before? Obviously until this movement there aren’t any sources. In this case believe it or not, it’s a personal anecdote and true story. I’m not interested in revealing the identity or source in case of internet violence
  - sshlocalhost98 4y ago
    Okay fair enough :) but some people on HN blame entire people or religion as if they are the perpetrators. Like it’s affecting my mental health, can’t stop thinking of people blaming my religion for it. I am sad

eternalban 4y ago

! This was in US? What school was this?

sreevisakh 4y ago
"If Hindus migrate to other regions on earth, Indian caste would become a world problem." - Dr. B R Ambedkar said this in 1916 [1]. The surprising incident in US was predicted more than a century ago. For more context, Dr. B R Ambedkar was the main architect of the constitution of India. He also formulated the affirmative action for Dalit representation, called the reservation system. He was one of the so called Dalits who faced extreme caste discrimination in India despite his brilliance and all his achievements. There are documented instances where upper caste government officers refused to touch files that he signed. The discrimination was so bad that he and 500K of his followers converted to Buddhism. These days, some sections treat him like an ideological revolutionary (sort of like marxism or leninism). Many are openly calling for replacing his ideas with those from manusmriti - an ancient text that is a huge source of racism and misogyny in India. Hope this gives you some insight into the problem. [1] http://www.columbia.edu/itc/mealac/pritchett/00ambedkar/txt_ambedkar_castes.html#:~:text=It%20is%20a%20local%20problem,has%20defied%20a%20great%20many http://www.columbia.edu/itc/mealac/pritchett/00ambedkar/txt_...
- eternalban 4y ago
  > The surprising incident in US was predicted more than a century ago. That's my question: was this in US? Because in US if anyone pulls that kind of shit you head straight to the dean's office and address the problem. 2 years sleeping on a couch because of your roommate's conceit? It boggles the mind.
  - whoevercares 4y ago
    It is indeed US. Well for some reason the guy did not complain. I might exaggerate it a bit - the guy slept elsewhere as well but in this very dormitory he only slept in bedroom when the other guy is not home
  - ReactiveJelly 4y ago
    Nobody wants to be seen as the one complaining. One of the funniest parts of our HR training at my employer was "If someone does something you don't like, first talk to them and tell them you don't like it." What a joke. That would never work.
- apun47 4y ago
- known 4y ago

lotophage 4y ago

That's horrible

puranjay 4y ago

High caste people in India will often find ways to casually mention their caste in conversation, sometimes within minutes of meeting someone new. Its reflexive - like subtly turning your wrist to show off a new watch. And I have no data to corroborate this, but I've felt caste chauvinism increase in the last few years.

sangnoir 4y ago
> And I have no data to corroborate this, but I've felt caste chauvinism increase in the last few years. ...as has Hindu nationalism, as noted in the article.
- ReactiveJelly 4y ago
  A worrying trend. The vibe of nationalist theocracy in the USA has not been fun for me as a non-Christian.
- int_19h 4y ago
  There's a broad trend in the rise of populist ethnocultural nationalism around the world, which usually brings with it a revival of all kinds of discriminatory outlooks because they're "traditional".
known 4y ago

cuteboy19 4y ago

This is unthinkable in any IIT/NIT in India. I think casteism is somewhat worse in the US

oh_sigh 4y ago
I forget what the concept is called, but I will call it something like emigrant conservatism, where emigrants bring essentially a snapshot of their culture from when they emigrate, and that snapshot remains fixed - they don't feel American, so they don't integrate into American cultural norms, and they don't have much active interaction with their previous home's culture which is constantly progressing.
dataexporter 4y ago
Well. I am from an NIT in India and upper caste groupism is super common there. Of course to an outsider it seems like these are guys from the same high school and same hostel hanging out, but in reality it is mostly upper caste Brahmins in those high schools as well who end up continuing their groupism and favoritism in college and beyond. The same groupism exists even today - decades later. You see the same upper caste brahmins hanging out in the US together still in their close knit groups.
- cuteboy19 4y ago
  Groupism is one thing but this kind of brazen discrimination is absurd. I never saw any case of people refusing lower caste roommates for example
sreevisakh 4y ago
Either that is lack of awareness or a misrepresentation. Please have a look at this: https://theprint.in/opinion/brahmins-on-india-campuses-studying-science-is-natural-to-upper-castes/378901/ https://theprint.in/opinion/brahmins-on-india-campuses-study... . There were lots of anecdotes about this going around. But it's documented news these days.
- cuteboy19 4y ago

sshlocalhost98 4y ago

Hello ? Any source please? Anyone can talk nonsense and say it’s a personal recount

whoevercares 4y ago
Think about the “MeToo” movement, do you think it was nonsense before? Obviously until this movement there aren’t any sources. In this case believe it or not, it’s a personal anecdote and true story. I’m not interested in revealing the identity or source in case of internet violence
- sshlocalhost98 4y ago
  Okay fair enough :) but some people on HN blame entire people or religion as if they are the perpetrators. Like it’s affecting my mental health, can’t stop thinking of people blaming my religion for it. I am sad