CHAPTER-1

A Survey of Sodo-CuCturadandLiterary Movements

of'DaBts in MafiarasHtra andAfrican Americans

in America zvitft reference to Starkm i'Renaissance

and ‘Blac^MusCim Protest.

 2

CHAPTER I

The human history has been a vibrant record of an incessant

struggle as well as dialectic between the two opposing forces; between
the exploiters and the exploited, the rulers and the ruled, the powerful and
the powerless, the oppressors and the oppressed and between the
colonizers and the colonized.
Exploitation or oppression of the weaker by the stronger is as old
as mankind itself. It is an inevitable component of the power dynamics
functioning in any human situation. Exploitation or oppression is a
process by which a powerful group attempts to control and exploit the
less powerful group by using its all resources in order to further and
safeguard its own interests. In this power dynamics, it uses its power and
means for domination, exploitation and humiliation. According to Frantz
Fanon, the class of oppressors is invariably inimical to the autonomy of
the oppressed and their culture. Therefore, it constantly attempts to
inculcate a sense of inferiority complex or inferiority of their indigenous
culture by obliterating their cultural past. This resulting sense of
inferiority is internalized in their collective memory and their instinctive
behavioural responses.
It is due to a number of socio- cultural and socio- political forces
that the contemporary human society is faced with a dilemma of a fluid
identity.
Interestingly enough, the contemporary consciousness celebrates
both fluidity and anarchy. As a result of it, there have been attempts to
subject the prevalent cultural and social paradigms to a religious critique
to decolonize the mind or change the mind-set because a large section of
humanity suffers marginalization, discrimination, exploitation and
 3

deprivation at the hands of the powerful class in the contemporary world.

The constant conflict between the oppressor and the oppressed, between
the Black and the White and between the low caste Dalit and the high
caste Savama Hindus is the distinguishing characteristic of the
contemporary world.
Since the birth of the Hindu vama or the caste system, Dalits have
been segregated from the rest of the community through the inhuman and
arbitrary practice of untouchability. Dalits have also been addressed as
shudras in common parlance. They have always been at the lowest rung
of the Indian social ladder, as they are the most unfortunate members of
the human community in India. A close study of their past reveals that the
hegemonic and political aspirations of the higher caste sought their
marginalization, humiliation and isolation from the mainstream of life.
They were pushed beyond the margins of social, cultural, political and
economic spheres of life of the community in general. The tragic sense of
misery, suffering and the consequent sense of alienation have their
genesis in primordial instincts in the powerful to dominate and crush the
weak and establish their hegemony of all kinds. Therefore, the caste
system and the cultural productions such as religion, philosophy,
literature and fine arts were fully exploited for perpetuation of an
extremely inhuman and unnatural way of life to heap injustice upon
Dalits and label them as ugly, subhuman, inferior and sinful.
It is pertinent to explore the reasons and the rationale that were
used to justify the practice and prevalence of untouchability in the ancient
Hindu social system that was responsible for the ageless and endless pain
and sufferings of Dalits. The four vamas based on various occupations
were at the centre of the Hindu social structure. The Hindu scriptures
prescribe specific occupation for each caste. Accordingly, the class
 4

Brahmins (priests) was assigned the vocation of performing religious

activities. The class of Kshatrias (warriors) was entrusted with the job of
protecting the society from the forces of invasion or aggression. The class
of Vaishyas (traders) was supposed to undertake economic activities. The
class of Shudras (labourers) was required to do the menial kind of work.
In that rigid and orthodox social structures the Shudras were deliberately
and permanently pushed to the margins by the higher castes and deprived
them of any slightest possibility of upward mobility. Thus, the classic
Brahminical world view excluded the Shudras from the scheme of things
and formulated, theorized and justified their assumptions of an invariant
social order that had a divine sanction of the omnipresent God, Lord
Brahma.
The classification and positions of these four vanas were strictly in
accordance with their birth, utility and excellence in their religious
sacrificial function. It was claimed that in the hierarchical position of
birth, the Brahmins were the first to be bom. They were prioritized over
the rest due to their excellence at performing rites and rituals at the time
of sacrificial ceremony. The rigid social structure did not allow the
members to swap their duties and functions. The strict adherence to the
duties of one’s class was considered good. The Shudras were prohibited
from performing the functions of the higher castes. They were
commanded to perform ugly and menial kind of job of scavenging and
tanning. They were not allowed to imitate and undertake respectable
duties of the caste of Brahmins. The theological interpretation of the
ancient Hindu world view justified the desirability and utility of this kind
of social stmcture as it sought legitimacy from the religion and its ancient
scriptures. All those scriptures and their interpreters recommended
absolute faith in them and in the interpretation that the Varna or the caste
 5

system was willed by God or it was one of divine creation. Therefore, a

strict conformity to the prescribed way of life was emphasized and
ensured by the class or caste of priests. It is due to this discriminatory and
biased social hierarchy, the ruling class and the class of priests worked
hand -in-hand and subjected all the Shudras to an inferior social status.
The state power and the organized religion imposed on them social,
cultural and mental restrictions through superstitions, myths and corporal
punishments. Because of the inferior, ugly and unhealthy nature of their
work, their physical contact was strictly avoided. Even their shadow was
considered as an evil and polluting force by the higher castes.
The ancient text of Manu Smruti was often used for the
justification of the exploitation of lower caste people in India. It
recommends an extremely rigid and prohibitory code of conduct for the
untouchables often called as chandalas. This brought about stagnation in
social, political and economic spheres of life. In the tenth chapter of the
Manu Smruti Manu writes that the chandalas or untouchables must not
be allowed within the limits of the village. They should be forced to live
outside the precincts of the village. They should not posses valuable
assets but only broken pots. They should posses donkeys and dogs as
their only wealth. They should wear the garments of the dead people.
They should use broken mud pots and other utensils and eat their food
from the broken dishes. Their ornaments should be made of black iron
and they must wander from place to place.
This expulsion of the untouchables from the centre of the social life
of the village to its periphery deprived them of their dignity and self
respect. Their peripheral and ‘Othered’ existence was surrounded by
helplessness, ugliness, squalor, ignorance and poverty. The high castes
assigned unpleasant menial and unrewarding tasks such as scavenging
 6

carrying and disposing of the dead bodies. They were also required to act
as hangmen. Any deviation from these prescribed duties entailed terrible
physical punishments for them. In return for their services the
untouchables were favoured with the stale food and the leftovers. The
most disgusting inhuman and cruel example of social injustice was the
practice of forcing them to tie an earthen pot around their neck and a
broom at the back in order to save the village roads from getting defiled
and polluted through their infectitious sputum and foot-prints. To cap it
all, even the potable water was not easily accessible to them as they had
to depend upon the mercy of the higher castes to favour them with the
drinking water.
For Dr. Ambedkar the text of Manu Smruti was a very deceptive
and dangerous discourse aimed at the absolute marginalization and
suppression of a class of people through a strong network of social,
cultural, economic and political forces. He did not acknowledge Manu
and the Manu Smruti as the progenitor and his text. It was simply a
historical process crafted to marginalize a large section of humanity by
depriving it of its rightful claim to the natural resources of the land. He
explains his perception of Manu thus:
Manu is not matter of the past. It is even
more than a past of the present. It is a living
past and therefore as really present as any
present can be.
(Ambedkar: Vol.12:1994:7)
The years of misery, poverty, ignorance, slavish mind-set and
economic dependence gradually eliminated a desire for any kind of
freedom from the collective consciousness of untouchables. It was due to
the repressive socio- cultural state apparatus, their self respect or identity
 7

was replaced by self hatred. Their consciousness was colonized by the

socio- political and socio- cultural discourse which conditioned their
minds as passive receivers and slaves of the system. As a result of this
conditioning they began to look at themselves as the high caste people
would do, and in the course of time they lost sense of their “Self’ and will
to fight. It would be pertinent here to refer to the 19th century European
view of the Indian caste system as recorded by a French missionary
known as Abbey DuBois. In his book entitled, “Hindu Manners, Customs
and Ceremonies,” DuBois presents an account of life in the early 19th
century society in India. He has attempted to show the contrasting life
styles of the pariahs (the untouchables in Tamil) and that of the high caste
Hindus. He writes:
The idea that he (the untouchable) was bom to be
in subjection on other castes is so ingrained in his
mind that it never occurs to the pariah to think that
his fate is anything but irrevocable. Nothing will
never persuade him that men are made of the same
clay.
(DuBois: 1959-59)
The historiographers find it difficult to locate genesis of the
concept of caste and untouchability in temporal and spatial terms in the
historical antiquity of Indias’ past as there is not much factual and
archival record of socio- cultural correspondences lost during various
invasions and incursions into India around the 10th century. The
archeological and sociological sources are hardly adequate to address the
problem.
Though political and economic clout was responsible for a
prestigious social and religious standing of a community member, yet the
 8

system had an inherent lacunae that did not allow a well to-do
untouchable to aspire for a high ritual position and nor could a poor
brahmin was forced to occupy a lower ritual position in the hierarchy. In

the Indian socio- cultural structure castes are invariant and timeless
categories in the sense that castes are determinants of one’s position in
the hierarchy. Even today, a person’s birth into a particular caste-fold
prevents him from marrying over to the caste of his choice or from
marrying a spouse from another caste. These caste stereotypes were
accorded religious sanction through Hinduism. The Hinduism emphasizes
that one’s actions in the present life determine his or her status and
happiness in the next life. This kind of postulation strengthened the
existing stereotypes and spared little scope for polarization. As a result of
this, Hinduism tended to become a monolithic ideology of life. Its belief
in the rebirth and next life made it abstract and other worldly. This
provided higher castes with an excuse to perpetuate social discrimination
to further their own interests at the cost of the untouchables.
According to scholars and historiographers the ^ama or caste
system with its invariant hierarchical caste categories had its genesis
around 300 B.C.It is believed that during this period the scriptures or
religious texts like Upnishadas, Puranas and Pursh Sukta were written.
These books contained a powerful religio-philosophical discourse that
had a considerable impact on the contemporary civilization. During the
age of Manu and the priest Yadnyawalkya these scriptures exercised great
influence as an authentic rendering of socio- cultural and religious
philosophy of life.
A number of theoretical assumptions and explanations have been
offered by the historians, researchers and scholars about the origin and
development of the concept of untouchability. However, Dr. Ambedkar’s
 9

hypothesis appears quite convincing, plausible and pertinent. He himself

was an untouchable. His objective interpretation and scholarly insights on
this subject are found in his seminal book The Untouchable which offers
his theory about the tribesmen and the broken men from the alien tribes.
According to his interpretation, it is in the later years of history the
broken men came to be treated as untouchables by others. Dr. Ambedkar
offers two reasons for the birth of the notion of untouchability:
One of the reasons is a strong dislike and hatred
for Broken Men which is similar to the
Brahminical contempt for Buddhism and the other
one is the prevalence of beef-eating by the Broken
men even after other community members had
given it up
(Moon:1990-353)
Thus, Dr. Ambedkar postulates that the fundamental reason or
cause for untouchability can be traced to helplessness and economic
dependence of the inferior community on the powerful one. Dr.
Ambedkar substantiates his proposition about the origin of the concept of
untouchability with appropriate references. It is in the context of
theoretical assumptions proposed by Dr. Ambedkar that his hypothesis of
‘Broken Men’ appears quite coherent and convincing. It is particularly
relevant in the study of literature produced by Dalit writers from
Maharashtra. However, it would be very pertinent to know the status of
untouchability and its perpetuation through the middle ages to the modem
age.
The Middle Age witnessed emergence of an array of religious cults
propagating their respective principles aimed at reformation in the Hindu
social set-up. Those religious sects attempted to propose a simplistic form
 10

of Hindu religious beliefs and practices. During the period between the
11th and 12th centuries there emerged the cults such as Mahanubhav and
Warkari. These two cults had a considerable influence and following in
the contemporary society. Around this time there was the emergence of
the Nath cult. It was very popular and had many followers. The
Mahanubhav cult attempted to offer an alternative set of beliefs and
reduce the stranglehold of an orthodox belief system that had dominated
that life since ancient times. The Mahanubhavis revolted against the
practice of untouchability, caste and gender discrimination.
The pan-Indian Bhakti movement produced humanitarian religious
discourse and its practitioner saints like Ramanuj Guru Nanak, Kabir,
Basaveshwar and Mirabai and a few others in different regions of India.
They denounced the inhuman practice of untouchability and appealed to
the masses to do away with it. The orthodox Brahmnical priestly class
isolated the common humanity from God through misleading
interpretation of religion but the Warkari cult brought a new ray of hope
for them. It rejected the orthodox rituals and recommended simple
prayers to God to attain salvation in this life. It tried to liberate God from
the clutches of the Brahminical priests. The Warkari cult convinced the
masses that irrespective of one’s caste and gender, god was accessible to
any devout person or bhakt. It never bothered itself with a devotee’s
social, political and economic rank or status in society. Therefore, the
slave women like Janabai and the prostitutes like Kanhopatra were
welcomed to its fold. Sant Eknath’s (from the Marathwada region)
humanitarian act of lifting an untouchable child from the scorching heat
of the desert is an important instance of philanthropic effect of the
Warkari cult in the direction of the eradication of untouchability. Chokha
Mela, the saint poet and the follower of the Warkari cult belonged to the
 11

untouchable community. He tried to raise the consciousness of people

about the dark side of untouchability through his Abhangas or devotional
poetry addressed to God. He is often regarded as the precursor of Dalit
poetry. While exposing hypocrisy of the society he asks people not to be
taken in by the outward appearance of a person. He writes:
Though the outer covering of sugarcane is hard,
but it does not make its juice bitter, why should
people get deceived by fake appearance? If the
curved arrow doesn’t bend the arrow, then why
should people get deceived by fake appearance?
The winding way of the river does not twist its
water, then why should one get deceived by fake
appearance? Even though Chokha is a worthless
entity, this does not make his devotion worthless.
Then why should one be carried away by an unreal
appearance?
(Kadam:1969, 14)
It is interesting to note here that all these saints never had a rational
attitude towards the organized religion. They never challenged its highly
unrealistic and orthodox assumptions such as the ancient Varna system
and the inhuman practice of social discriminations sanctioned by it in
spite of its humanitarian appeal and altruism, the Bhakti movement and
its practice. They could not challenge the validity of the obnoxious
practice of untouchability and other abstractions. They could not promote
and popularize the notion of social equality, justice and other egalitarian
ideas. Though religious and devotional literature produced by them
attempted to strengthen the accepted stereotypes through their belief in
fatalism and the theories of Karma (action) and Dharma (duty), it,
 12

challenged the discriminatory religious rhetoric of the priestly classes.

The saint literature provided much needed affirmation to the unnatural,
brute and unjustifiable social practice of the upper classes.
The western colonialism with its forces of enlightenment brought a
new wave of ideas to the Indian subcontinent. With the establishment of a
British colony in 1818, the process of change and awakening was
accelerated. It brought in its trail many social, political and economic
ideas to India. The encounter with Christianity created many more
possibilities of changes. The spread of Christianity through missionaries
acquainted the Indians with the Christian theological thought. The British
colonists introduced new knowledge, technology and effective methods
of production that facilitated industrial progress.
After the establishment of the British colonial rule, the penal code
was introduced in 1851. It exposed the discrepancy and primitive nature
of the Varna system. As a result of this the supremacy and authority of
Brahmins was challenged. The new British rule encouraged the rural
artisans, the untouchables and the poor provincial people to migrate to the
urban commercial towns and cities and start professions of their choice in
place of their traditional and caste-based occupations. With the inception
of universities at Bombay, Calcutta and Madras in 1857, there was
gradual growth in the number of educated men and women in India. It
was due to print journalism there were a number of periodicals to cater to
the needs of an ever growing reading public in India. The western liberal,
secular, democratic thought influenced the Indian thinkers and social
reformers. They realized that the orthodox and outdated religious, social
ideas coupled with the lack of proper education were hampering the
growth of the Indian society. They realized that the inhuman and
unnatural social conventions such as untouchability, the practice of sati
 13

and numerous superstitions were responsible for the stagnation of their

society. The social reformers like Raja Ram Mohan Roy began their fight
against such cruel social conventions. They demanded their absolute
elimination from the social sphere of life. The new rational ideas
influenced reformers like Balshastri Jambhekar, Lokhitwadi, Justice
Ranade and Mahatma Phule who started their struggle against orthodoxy
and ignorance. In 1832 the first Marathi periodical ‘Darpan’ was started
by Jambhekar in Mumbai. He began to propagate progressive ideas
through this periodical. Gopal Hari Deshmukh alias Lokhitwadi tried to
convince the Indians about the exploitative nature of the British imperial
rule and promoted nativism. He asked people to boycott the British
products and use the products produced by the native Indians.
Under the influence of liberal, progressive and secular ideas, the
social reformers were inspired to establish a number of sabhas and
societies such as Dnyan Prasarak Sabha, Royal Asiatic society,
Paramhans Mandali, Bramho Samaj, Arya Samaj, Prarthana Samaj etc.
Justice M. G. Ranade was also a great thinker who inspired the middle
class people to strive for social and economic progress. In the last
decades of the 19th century the men like Gopal Ganesh Agarkar and
Lokmanya Tilak struggled for social and political progress of people.
However, the contribution of Mahatma Phule to the social reforms
was unprecedented and substantial. Mahatma Phule was a great visionary
thinker and social reformer. He struggled hard for the upliftment of the
Dalits, the underprivileged and women. His rational arguments created a
new hope and awareness in the minds of the lower class people. He
expounded his common sense approach to the social ills in his epoch-
making books such as Sarvjanik Satyadharma (Public Religion and
Truth), Brahmanache Kasab (Bramhin Skill), Gulamgiri (slavery) and
 14

Shetkaryacha Asud (the Farmer’s Whip). These books are Phule’s

critique of Hindu religion and a scathing criticism of Brahminism. He
established the Satya Shodhak Samaj (The Truth Seeking Society) in
1873 with a view to brining in a new social order based on the principle
of justice, equality and reason. S. M. Michael writes about this:
The Satya Shodhak Samaj assumed a vital role as
the ideological conscience for all those who
identified themselves with the castes.
(Michael: 1999,103)
Phule struggled hard to subvert the Brahminical discourse for
perpetuation of a hierarchical social order. He criticized the British
imperial and colonial rulers for their indifference to the welfare of the
poverty stricken underprivileged masses and their anti- poor policies. As
a part of his conscious strategy about untouchability, he established a
school for women in 1851 and the first school for untouchables in 1852.
He was the first philanthropic social reformer who made available the
water tank from his house to the untouchables.
Phule played a crucial role in raising the consciousness of the
downtrodden people and the untouchables. There were several factors
that contributed to this process. Because of the British policies education
was made available and accessible to all, including the untouchables. The
Christian missionaries helped the downtrodden people by their acts of
charity such as free health services and equality with others. The well
intentioned persons from the class of untouchables took initiative in
starting the movement for defining their self identity. Gopalbaba
Walangkar founded the Amarya Dosh Parihar Samaj in 1889 and wrote a
book entitled Vital Vidhvansan. In 1818 Kisan Fagoo Bansode founded
 15

the Nirasrit Samaj. In 1903 Shivram Kamble organized a conference of

untouchables.
It was through the great and ceaseless efforts of Phule and others in
the last decades of the 19th century, there emerged a very powerful
movement in the early part of the 20th century.
The far-sighted thinker, Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar founded the
People’s Education society as he believed that education opens out new
avenues and that the untouchables should have an access to them. It is
significant that the Dalit literature owes its origin to a revolutionary
struggle started by Dr. Ambedkar for a change in the social, cultural,
literary and economic hegemony of the caste Hindus. What Baburao
Bagul writes about Dr. Ambedkar is true. He writes:
Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar is the mythic giant of
Dalit literature. He is the ideal. He is the mythical
norm, the embodiment of Dalit self esteem... In
order to establish a model for Indian democracy,
he reestablished Buddhism, the philosophy of anti­
spiritualism and atheism, the philosophy with
dynamic and humanistic perspective.
(Bagul: 1971, 2)
The basic impulse behind literature is an awareness of the social
injustice and rebellion against it. Though, till nineteenth century, the
untouchables were traditionally singers, jesters and drummers of the folk
drama, ‘Tamasha’ happens to be the only recorded voice of the Dalit
consciousness. Before that the Dalit consciousness, though subdued, was
reflected in Saint Chokamela. Although, many of his poetic creations sing
of Lord Vitthal, some do interrogate against the practice of
untouchability.
 16

The dominant figure in this period was Gopalbaba Walangkar who

started a monthly Vital Vidhwansan in 1894. Shivram Kambale also
started a monthly Somvanshiya Mitra through which the untouchable
sensibilities were expressed. Waman Kardak, Pandit Kondiram,
Kerubuva Gaikwad and Kisan Fago Bansode contributed significantly
with their poems and songs by deriding at the cruel practices of
Hinduism, prescribed in Manusmriti.
It was Anna Bhau Sathe, who gave the first fully uninhabited
expression to the Dalit consciousness in his writings. Prominently known
as a Marxist writer he could not establish himself as the Dalit writer, may
be because he joined Ambedkarite movement much later. His penchant
for minute observation, deep compassion and understanding of the life of
the downtrodden and his irresistible gift for creativity made his novels
like Fakira and Wamecha Wagh, remarkable creations in Marathi
literature.Shankarrao Kharat, another Marathi writer acquired eminence
through the works, Manuskichi Haak and Balutedar. His autobiography
Taral Antaral portrayed guileless and helpless condition of the Dalits in
their novels and gave the Dalit a heroic position in literature for the first
time.
However, Dalit life was also viably portrayed by some Savama,
(non Dalit) writers like V.S. Khandekar in Don Mane. S.M.Mate in
Upekshitanche Antarang, G.T. Madkholkar in Chandanwadi and the poet
Keshavsoot in his poem Antyajachya Mulacha Prashna. These works
depict the sufferings and suppression of the Dalits. The upper-caste
progressive critics and reviewers like M.B. Chitnis, S.B. Karhade, P.S.
Nerurkar, W.L. Kulkami, R.G. Jadhav, D.K. Bedekar and Sharadchandra
Muktibodh upheld Dalit literature as a strong off-shoot enriching the
mainstream Marathi literature. Dr. M. N. Wankhede, who was a Mahar
 17

from Amravati, encouraged most of the Dalit writers to verbalize their

feelings candidly.
The poems by leading Dalits poets like Baburao Bagul, Keshav
Meshram and Narayan Surve were published in different Magazines. The
eminent writer Raja Dhale led the movement for a few years. The
movement flourished in the sixties and came to an end by the year1970.
The publication of Baburao Bagul’s collection of short stories, Jevha Mi
Jaat chorli Hoti (when I had concealed my caste) gave a momentum to
the Dalit movement because of the rebellious stance taken by the
protagonists of the stories. Though not an avowed Dalit writer, Narayan
Surve, who was influenced by Marxism gave a new dimension to the
Dalit movement with two collections of poetry, Aisa Ga Mi Brahma (For
I am Brahma) and Majhe Vidyapeeth (My University). Baburao Bagul’s
second volume of short stories, Maran Svasta Hot Aahe (Death is
becoming cheaper) gave a jolt to mainstream Marathi Literature as it
presents the heart (renting experience of the author. In addition to the
above mentioned writers, the following writers too contributed
significantly to the Dalit Literature. They are Keshav Meshram, Avinash
Dolas, Arjun Dangale, Bhimrao Shirwale, Tarachandra Khandekar,
Yogiraj Waghmare and others. The complex, obliterated, curvilinear
relationship between a Dalit individual and the society constitutes the
theme of Dalit short stories.
Dalit novel could not enjoy outright growth compared to the Dalit
poetry and short story. From the new generation, Madhav Kondvilkar
(Ajum Ujadayacha Aahe), Bhimsen Dethe (Iskot) Ashok Whatkar
(Melela Pani), B. Rangrao (Soma) and few others are conspicuous Dalit
novelists. The period between 1972 to 1978 saw the proliferation of the
Dalit literature through its poems, short stories, novels, periodicals etc.
 18

the period between 1978 to 1986 bestowed an accomplished dimension to

the Dalit literature that of the autobiographies,
A host of Dalit writers resorted to writing autobiographies. Among
them Baluta (Village Servicemen) by Daya Pawar, Upara (The
Alienated) by Laxman Mane, Athavaninche Pakshi (Birds of
Reminisces) by P.E. Sonkamble and Mukkampost Davache Gothane (At
Post Devache Gothane) have emerged as the landmarks in Marathi
literature.
There were different experiments of the performance ranging from
street- plays to the well equipped theatricals. Manuskiche Band (Revolt of
Humanity) by Gangadhar Pantavane, Mrutyupatra (The will) by Suresh
Vanjari, Pinjaryatil Popat (A Parrot in the cage) by Datta Bhagat,
Narbali (Human sacrifice) by Kamalakar Datar, Nata (Relation) by
Baburao Gaikwad are some of the notable plays.
Thus Dalit literary movement is the unique example in India. It has
proved an important platform to the lower classes to express their sense
of identity and solidarity.
* * *

Negroes are often called as the Dalits of the west. They were also
the victims of racial discrimination and a system of slavery. There are
striking similarities between the Dalit experience in India and the Negro
or Black experience in America. Dalit suffered humiliation and social
segregation due to the evil practice of untouchability and the blacks
suffered due to the practice of slavery and racial discrimination for the
black colour of their skin. However, untouchability and slavery are the
residual stereotypes of discriminatory ideological constructs that were
systematically constructed for perpetuation and maintenance of socio-
 19

cultural, economic and political hegemony of the dominant and

established classes in both the countries. Therefore, these two concepts
are the seemingly invariant categories that symbolize a perennial conflict
between the class of the oppressors and that of the oppressed that
characterize die history of human civilization. The knowledge of the
concept of slavery, its origin and its impact on the Negroes and their
creative consciousness would help in substantiating the hypothesis of this
study.
The black experience and consciousness were conditioned by the
two diametrically opposed environments in America. The northern states
were comparatively more progressive and industrially developed and the
southern states had an agricultural and plantation economy. In the south
there was the practice of slavery and the Negroes were employed as farm
labours and for unpleasant tasks by the white plantation owners who were
the modem day aristocrats.
The concept of slavery precedes the trans-Atlantic slave trade.
Since antiquity slavery had been an inevitable part of social reality. It has
been seen in various forms throughout the human history. Slavery can be
defined as the complete submission of a human being to the domineering
will of another human being. Slavery is also defined as...God’s
punishment upon man's prurient disobedience. (Berghahn: 1977, 2)
Slavery was considered as the manifestation of an inherent evil
instinct in human beings. It has always been a universal phenomenon as
has been in practice in some or the other form in all human communities.
In the American context it would be interesting to see its implications. In
America slaves were brought and sold for doing all manual and menial
kind of job. When the slave law came into execution, the Negroes were
classified as bad men. In 1663 the law was made mandatory.
 20

All negroes and other slaves within the province

and the negroes and other slaves to be hereafter
imported into the province, shall serve ‘durante
vite’; and all children bom of any Negro or other
slave shall be slaves as their fathers for the term
of their lives.
(Berghahn: 1977, 3)
In order to perpetuate the practice of slavery, various theories have
been proposed since then. All these theoretical formulations have always
presented to view that Black Africans are inferior to the white of the west
in all respects. As the Brahmins in India attributed untouchability as god
ordained and irrevocable to the Dharmashstras or scriptures, the white
racists attributed slavery to the holy book of the Bible. They tried to
validate the institution of slavery by misinterpreting the Bible.
Accordingly, the whites held that the black colour of skin of the Negroes
was a punishment of God. It was the result of their sinfulness. The
biological theories of human origin were also misused for the justification
of maintenance and perpetuation of the practice of slavery and racist
theories. According to the racist view humanity was divided into various
ethnic communities living in different parts of the world. Of all these
communities, only the white European ethnic communities were superior
and the most powerful than the rest in the hierarchical order. The Black
Africans were given the lowest position in the hierarchy. It is obvious that
even the organized religion and its scriptures were misused to justify their
inferiority. It was believed that the Africans were the savage and beastly
creatures of devil or satan. The traditional moral discourse attempts to
define and identify the white colour of the Europeans with something that
is noble, good , positive, virtuous and beautiful etc. and the black colour
 21

of skin came to be associated with evil, ominous, bad, negative and

dangerous. It is clear that even before the importation of the blacks from
Africa, the Biblical interpretation had provided the Europeans with an
excuse to impose slavery on the Black Africans.
The scientific advancement was used to give legitimacy to the
racist theories and myths. Accordingly, it was believed that the European
races were dynamic, intelligent, progressive, powerful and masculine and
the Africans were inferior, weaker, dull and feminine. The 18th and the
19th century scientific and social theories maintained the status quo.
The agricultural and plantation economy of the south American
states was reluctant to accept any change in their social set-up. They were
reluctant to give freedom to their black slaves. Therefore, they were not
in favour of any social and political integration of the black Americans
with their established social and political structure. Though, the northern
states were relatively liberal in their attitude towards the blacks, these
states witnessed extreme racism between 1880 and 1930. Unfortunately
racism became an official state policy of the government of the U.S.A. It
became the national ideological policy to segregate the blacks from the
whites on the basis of their colour. It came to be rigorously and
mercilessly practiced in all fields of life in order to reduce the black
Americans or African Americans to their earlier status as slaves. They
were likened to the apes or monkeys who were lazy and beastly. It was
said that the Negroes were dull headed persons incapable of becoming
good citizens even though they were given education.
Racism was a strategy of the white racist mindset that was
developed to safeguard the economic interests and monopoly of the white
people. The southern white plantation owners needed cheap slave labour
but at the same time they could not ignore the poor white people who also
 22

worked with them. This obstructed any kind of meaningful interaction or

relationship between the whites and the blacks. Thus the word ‘black’
became synonymous with segregation, humiliation and rejection by the
white majority.
The history of black Americans shows that the black middle class
was particularly unhappy than the lower class blacks. Because of their
proximity to the white majority, they had a direct contact and encounter
with their masters. It always exposed them to racial discrimination and
made them more vulnerable to racial assaults. This created a sense of
alienation in their minds. Harold Cruse rightly points out the identity-
crisis of the African- Americans. He remarks that in absence of a precise
and definable identity, the Negro cannot identify himself with the
American nation as a whole. He has been pushed to the social margins as
an anonymous, alienated entity without any definite direction.
The 17th century was the period of colonization of America. In
1607 the first English colony was established by the people of Virginia
Tobacco Company. The first settlement of the Africans in the colonies of
the British occurred when the black slaves were brought from the West
African coast to the colony Jamestown by Dutch traders.
However, it is essential to note that due to their obscure and
neglected contribution to the British colonies, their creative expressions
are absolutely lost in the course of time. The inhuman and unnatural
institution of slavery erased the memories of their ancient and indigenous
culture, and nor did allow them to found a new one in an alien land.
However, some faint memories have been transferred from one
generation to other in the form of songs, dance, anecdotes, and tales
narrated in slave shelters. Lucy Jerry is known to be the first black poet to
write verse in 1746 in the American colonial period. The poetic tradition
 23

of Black verse in America was initiated by Jupiter Hammon with his

poem An Evening Thought: Salvation by Christ with Penitential Cries.
This work was published on the eve of Christmas of 1760. It was
followed by Philis Wheatley’s on the Death Rev Mr. George Whitefield
published in 1770. The poetry of these early poets is marked by a
religious fervour and devout feelings. A cursory glance at their scanty
poetic output reveals their earnest desire for creative or aesthetic
expression. Jupitor Hammon’s (1720(?)-1806(?) poetic talent was
appreciated and encouraged by his white master. It is said that his master
never discouraged his expressive ability. Hammon considered himself to
be an obedient and modest slave for whom slavery was bliss in disguise
as it rescued him from the primitive darkness and barbarism of savage
Africa. Hammons welcomed it as his liberation by divine grace or an act
of god.
Philis Wheathey was encouraged by her white master to give
expression to her poetic consciousness. Her conversion to Christianity
created in her a deep sense of gratitude and a hope of salvation from her
past sins. She writes:
Some view our sable with
scornful eye,
Their colour is a diabolic ‘die’
Remember ‘Christians’ ‘Negroes’
black as ‘train’
May be refined and join the
angelic train.
(Berghahn: 1977,36)
It is obvious that for this poet Christianity offered a ray of hope due
to its philosophic, non-racist appeal. It seemed to assure that Africans
 24

also would be sheltered, blessed and consoled by Christianity. The poetry

of Philis was cited as a convincing evidence of the Africans’ mental and
intellectual capabilities by the famous medical practitioner and anti­
slavery crusader Mr. Benjamin Rush from Philadelphia. He was of the
view that the Africans were not inferior to the Europeans in any respect.
According to Mr. Sterling Brown the shortcomings in her poetry were the
symptoms of the circumstances of the period itself.
Hammon and Wheatly were content with whatever freedom they
were given by their white masters for writing poems. Another Negro poet
of the period was George Moses Horton. He was very fortunate as his
master admitted him to the university. He wrote the poetry of protest
which made him quite popular with the blacks. He was the first black
protest poet who revolted against slavery. While Hammon and Wheatley
did not challenge the practice of slavery, Horton recorded his protest
against it through his poems. He writes:
And I am bom for this
to wear this slavish chain?
Deprived of all created bliss,
Through hardship, toil and pain!
How long have I in bondage him?
And I languished to be free!
Alas! And I must still complain
deprived of liberty.
Soar on opinion of that dove
which long had cooed for thee
And breathed her notes from
 25

Africa’s grove
the sound of liberty.
(Berghahn: 1977,37-38)
This poem was published in 1828 in the anthology entitled The
Hope of Liberia for enjoying unbridled freedom.
The 18th century Negro communities were characterized by a mood
of nostalgia and a strong desire to go back to their African roots in their
native land. In 1773 a group of Negroes had submitted a memorandum
requesting the authorities to immigrate to Africa. For them Africa was
populous, pleasant and plentiful country. In 1789, the emigration
movement got encouragement from the Free African Society. In the year
1789, more than one thousand African- Americans immigrated to the new
colony known as Sierra Leone. It was established in 1787 to
accommodate the ex- slaves. In 1815 another settlement programme was
organized by Mr. P. Cuffe who was a rich black ship master. He took the
slaves to Sierra Leone for settlement. The process of emigration got
further impetus from the financial help offered by the American
colonization society. There were two categories of the black- farm slaves
and domestic slaves. The domestic slaves were relatively better placed as
they were given education. As a result of this, they became privileged
middle class blacks. Their pre-disposition was to emulate the life style of
their white masters. Thus by internalizing the white culture, its selfishness
and narrowness of the bourgeois mind, the middle class blacks were
further alienated from their African cultural roots. In spite of emigration,
most of the African Americans had a nostalgic feeling of having been
rooted in America. They considered America as their own country and
had no desire for any other land as such. This was the feeling expressed
by a black American in the publication “Liberator” in 1859. There were
 26

several blacks who were opposed to the idea of migrating from the
prosperous America. For them the idea of going back to Africa was
unthinkable as it would validate and vindicate the claim of the whites that
African Americans were inferior and hence incapable of attaining
progress.
The famous black leader Fredrick Douglas appealed to the blacks
not to waste their energies by immigrating to the African continent of
primitive darkness. He asked them to stay back and start a struggle for
liberation of the black slaves and their civil rights in the U.S.A. There
was another group of the 19th century blacks that wanted to stay back in
America. Its leader was Martin Delany. He asserted that the future of
Africa was(th§)in alienably connected with the African Americans and the
prosperity of the white Americans was the fruit of relentless labour and
hardships undergone by the blacks. Through his fiery and provoking
speeches he addressed the black Americans to fight against the unjust and
discriminatory social system. The process of colonization was welcomed
by Delany and the two black churches. It was argued that the black
Americans were not inferior in cultural, moral and religious respects.
Thus the' 19th century saw the emergence of Black Nationalism and pride
in pan-africanism. It was shaped by the missionary colonialism and
evolutionary beliefs. The black leaders like Alexander Crummel claimed
the blacks were not totally vicious incorrigible and backward. But they
were also dynamic and imaginative. Crummel argued that Liberia was the
best and the most preferred destination for the black regeneration
movement because it had the first free civilized and Christian Negro
government in the African continent since the birth of humanity. Mr.
Edward Blyden was the most enthusiastic supporter of the pan-African
identity. He was a teacher- minister in Liberia who asserted that Africa
 27

was the real home for the blacks and America was a kind of land of exile
for them. The polarization among the black immigrationists was the result
of an intense subconscious desire for emancipation and the search for a
concrete identity for the blacks.
The spiritual inclinations of the Afro-Americans reflect their
musings. It is pertinent here to refer to Booker T. Washington’s view. He
believes that they were hesitant in expressing their mood of
dissatisfaction, anger and protest. In their spiritual musings there is an
•f
elusive and ambivalent strain, ^o^ example:
Working all day
And part of night
And up before the morning light
When will Jehovah hear our cry?
And free the sons ofAfrica.
(Berghahn: 1977, 39)
For them Africa was the most desired and promised land. It is
reflected in their spiritual expression.
Don ’t you see that ship a sailin
a wine over to the promised land?
I asked my lord shall I ever be one,
To go sailin, sailin, sailin
Gwine over to the promised land?
(Berghahn: 1977, 42)
Their utopian idea of Africa and freedom finds expression in their
spiritual musings.
For example:
No more rainfall for wet you
No more sun shines for bum you
 28

No more parting in den kingdom

No more back biting in den kingdom
Everyday shall be Sunday.
(Berghahn: 1977, 62)
The very consciousness of their black identity inspired their
creativity. This is found in the poems of a slave George Moses Horton of
New Carolina. His poems are marked for the poet’s awareness of
humanity in general.
The incessant struggle of both the Dalits and the blacks in their
respective socio-cultural milieu for creating a space for their
consciousness inspired them to record their protest and wage a war
against the evil practice of untouchability and slavery by the beginning of
the twentieth century.
The 1920s, the period of the development of Afro-American
culture is known as the Harlem or Negro Renaissance. It was a time when
black and white Americans alike ‘discovered’ the vibrancy and
uniqueness of black art, music and especially literature. The decade was
marked by exciting nightlife in Harlem’s cabarets, particularly the Cotton
Club; by the publishing of a great number of novels, short stories, plays,
poems and articles about and by blacks; by great musicals written by and
starring blacks, most importantly the legendary Shuffle Along; and by the
production of art work by talented young artists like Aaron Douglas and
Richmond Barthe. What made this period significant was the fact that
‘Negro was in Voge’, as Langston Hughes writes in his autobiography
The Big Sea.
 29

He states:
For the first time in American history, large
number of Black artists could earn their livings
and be critically acknowledged in theirfields.
(The Big Sea: 29)
It was a time of excitement for the younger generation of the Negro
intelligentsia, dubbed New Negros in Alien Locke’s collection of the
same name, published in 1925. Locke is often termed as ‘The Father of
the Negro Renaissance’. In all forms of art, there developed a need to
identify and utilize, both, Afro-American folk forms such as tales,
spirituals and customs and African forms. What made this renaissance
pivotal for African-Americans, most particularly artists and intellectuals,
were the affirmation of a distinct cultural heritage and the visibility of
that culture’s manifestation.
The period of Harlem renaissance is notable for its black artistic
and philosophical awakening. Harlem was the focal point of the
movement because New York, the cultural centre of America, was the
logical centre for the genesis, a formal Afro-American culture. Harlem’s
black population in 1920 was extremely large and continued to increase
throughout the decade, reaching to 200,000 by 1930. The Harlem black
community contained not only American blacks, but many West Indians.
It was the national headquarters for recently founded protest groups such
as the National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People the
Urban League and the Black Pride of ten thousand Negroes silently
protesting anti-black violence. In 1919, the Blacks marched again to
celebrate the return of the Black 369th infantry from active service in
World War 1st. Further, by 1920, Harlem had gained a symbolic
significance for Blacks which caused it to be referred to as a ‘Mecca’ by
 30

scholars of the period. Harlem was not a ghetto; it was a Black city.
Further, Black intellectuals considered Harlem as Black capital.
Another important aspect of Harlem’s Black cultural history is its
role as a centre for protest organizations. Although, the Negro renaissance
was fundamentally a cultural movement, it can in no way be isolated
from Black protest of the period: protest movements formed an important
psychological backdrop and many artists wrote for radical magazines like
The Crisis, Opportunity and The Messenger. W.E.B. DuBois, a noted
scholar, author and spokesman by 1920, was the editor of the
N.A.A.C.P.’s crisis magazine, founded in 1910 in New York. His
editorials were widely read. The Urban League’s magazine Opportunity
edited by Charles S. Johnson, also initiated one of the most important
series of events in the renaissance by promoting contests for promising
young black writers.
During this period Black Pride for many Blacks was a greater
reality than in any previous period. Marcus Garveyey’s separatists ‘Back
to Africa’ movement centered in New York was important in the fabric of
the era. Although, many of the Harlem intellectuals severely criticized the
movement, it was vastly popular with the working class of Blacks.
Certain events are especially significant to any cultural movement.
Anna Bontemps, in his essays ‘The Awakening’ and ‘The Mirror’ sees
1921 as the beginning of Harlem renaissance. Countee Cullen, soon to
become a noted poet, published his poem ‘I Have a Rendezvous with
Life’ in DeWitt Clinton High school’s literary magazine, of which he was
an editor, in January of that year. In June of the same year, Langson
Hughes published his poem ‘The Negro Speaks of Rivers’ in Crisis.
In August 1921, the international extravaganza was held at the
135th street branch of New York public library featured an exhibition of
 31

the works of Negro painters and sculptures. In 1922, Claude Mckay

published Harlem Shadow, a book of poetry and soon became an integral
part of renaissance. Later, he contributed three novels, the picaresque
novels Home to Harlem, Banjo and Banana Bottom as well as a book on
Harlem called Harlem: Negro Metro Police and an autobiography, A long
Way From Home. In 1923 Charles S. Johnson became the editor of the
newly bom Opportunity, which was awarded in 1924. In 1925, Countee
Cullen published a book of poetry entitled Colour. Langston Hughes also
published a book of poetry Weary Blues and Alain Locke’s New Negro
was in progress. Zora Neale Hurston, and Eric Walrond, all became key
figures in the movements. Essays explored the basic premises of this
period: a new interest in Sociology (about migration), increased interests
in Negro past, and most especially, intense affirmation and discovery of
the validity of Afro-American folk culture.
The group of highly gifted novelists like Paule Marshall, A1
Young, Kristin Hunter, Tony Morrison and Alice Walker have created
special niche in American literary world.
No Black leader could have so captured the imagination of the
Black masses as did Malcom X. He was so passionately devoted to the
dispossessed and the poor that he made them feel to have received
dignity and pride, which they never experienced. Therefore he was a
symbol of Black anger and courage for the millions. His two books
Malcom X Speaks and The Autobiography of Malcom X were
posthumolously published but made a great impact on the younger
generation. Other autobiographies like Boby Seale’s Seize the Time,
George Jackson’s Soledad Brother, and Angela Davis’s Autobiography
and others have exposed their inner turmoil of their black experience.
 32

African Negroes have been exploited, oppressed and suppressed by

the white man. They were kept in slavery and denied civil rights. The
American Negro has by and large been forced into, a ghetto-like
existence. Black muslim movement, therefore, is characterised by
militant, vigorous racism, which describe all white men as ‘devils’ and
enemies of the black race by nature. They vigorously reject any form of
integration under the Constitution of the united state, or of any other
country, preferring (gncl) all black state of there own. The Black muslim
movement is the movement borne of many centuries of slavery and
degradation. Black Islam presents the awesome spectacle of growing,
black funnel, engulfing potentially millions of black people in the united
states who know that in number of areas it speaks truth concerning the
exploitation of the black men. Many Negroes support the black muslim
movement because it is the voice in defense of there rights. The voice
speaks with increasing frequency and intensity throughout the major
Negro population centers of America- New York, Washington, Detroit,
Chicago and Los Angeles. This is the movement that announces militant
nationalism.
Thfliistory of black muslim movement begins with Wallace Fard,
an Islamic Negro who in 1930 appeared among the Detroit Negro
community. He convinced Negroes about properly living and civil rights.
He rejected the teachings of Jesus Christ and utilized Kuran. He built
quite a large followers by whom he was referred to as ‘The Prophet’.
Later Elijah Muhammad propagated the ideology and gotten to the crest
of these wave. He proclaimed the divinity of black man- blaming the
white man for all the black man’s seen and lowlessness, and blaming
white ‘devil’ for all the difficulties which the black man faces.
 33

Fard founded the university of Islam and the muslim girls training
class, and a militant organisation for the protection of muslims known as
the fruits of Islam. The balck muslim movement aims at freedom, justice
and equality. Thus it is characterised by the idea of the creation of there
own separate nation.
The following chapters of this study offer a concise account of
social and political leaders and their ideas which encouraged creative
writers to express their feelings of protest.
 34

References:
• Berghan, Marion. Images of Africa in Black American Literature.
London: Macmillion, 1977.
• Cruse, Harold. The Crises of the Negro, Intellectual. New York:
Chesla, 1967.
• DuBois, Abbe J. A. Hindu Manners, customs and Ceremonies.
Clarendon: Oxford, 1959.
• Gosset, Thomas F. Race: The History of an Idea in America. New
York: Wiley, 1969.
• Kadam S.B. (ed.). Sant Chokha Mela's Abhanga Gatha.
Shrirampur: Shabdalaya Prakashan, 1969.
• Kulkami, G.M.and Pundalik Vidyadhar (ed.). Dalit Sahitya: Ek
Samajik Sanskrutik Abhyas, Pune: Sugava Prakashan, 1992.
• Michael, S.M. Dalits in Modem India: Vision and Values. New
Delhi: Vistar, 1999.
• Moon, Vasant (ed.). Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar, Writings and
Speeches. Vol. 7. Mumbai: Education Dept, of Maharashtra.
• Phadke, Bhalchandra. “Dalit Kavitechi Bhumika”. Lalita
Kumbhojkar (Ed) Dalit Kavita : Ek Darshan. Pune : Pratima
Prakashan. 1984.
• Sastri, Jagdishlal. Manusmruti. Delhi: Motilal Banarasidas, 1971.