I remember first learning about castes in history class sometime in elementary school. It meant absolutely nothing to me until my parents brought it up again at home saying our family tradition was to marry within our caste. It was irrelevant to me; I live in the US, I only visited India once every couple of years, and I didn’t really notice its presence until later in my life. But, the harsh reality is that casteism today still very much so exists and is prevalent in communities all across India. Just as racist policies in the US have transformed to try to disguise themselves, casteism has snuck into every aspect of social and daily life.

But, what even is the caste system?

The caste system is a complicated social hierarchy that has been a part of Indian society for centuries. It categorizes people into different groups based on their occupation and birth. Traditionally, at a basic level, there are four main castes:

Brahmins: Priests and scholars
Kshatriyas: Warriors and rulers
Vaishyas: Merchants and landowners
Shudras: Laborers and service providers

Outside of these four main castes are the Dalits, formerly known as "untouchables," who were historically considered outside of the caste system and faced severe social discrimination. Each caste has its own set of rules and regulations, including restrictions on marriage, occupation, and social interactions.

Though we see casteism most prevalent in India, it actually can be found it a myriad of other faith systems, including, but not limited to, Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Islam, Sikhism, and more.

How does the Caste System show up in Indian Society today?

According to the Pew Research Center, “Indians conduct their social lives largely within caste hierarchies. A majority of Indians say that their close friends are mostly members of their own caste, including roughly one-quarter (24%) who say all their close friends are from their caste. And most people say it is very important to stop both men and women in their community from marrying into other castes, although this view varies widely by region. For example, roughly eight-in-ten Indians in the Central region (82%) say it is very important to stop inter-caste marriages for men, compared with just 35% in the South who feel strongly about stopping such marriages.”

There are laws that prohibit caste-based discrimination, but the system’s influence still exists, especially in rural Indian villages. I’m from a small town in Andhra Pradesh, and you can very clearly see that people don’t support inter-caste marriages- it’s very rare. Political parties mobilize based on caste support still and economic disparities have been passed down generations to oppress the same caste over and over again. Modern India may now be modern, but discrimination is certainly a constant.

In recent times, Dalits have been campaigning for their rights

Why should I care?

When I was younger, I know for a fact I didn’t give a shit about the caste system beyond learning about it for school. As a South Asian, the caste system has and will play a part in the way I interact with my culture, traditions, and family and others whom I meet in India. However, for people who aren’t South Asians or don’t need to interact with the caste system, I hope that it is a reminder that discrimination exists in so many shapes and forms. It can feel overpowering and helpless at times to encounter such a behemoth of discrimination.

Promoting education and awareness about the caste system and other systems of oppression that still exist, lawfully in our world today is one way to empower yourself as you navigate the social influence of these constructs. Use this as a moment to also rethink the way you interact with others, and consider your own implicit biases. Even though the caste system doesn’t quite exist as concretely in the United States, we certainly have systems in place that oppress groups of people, and the way we interact with others on an individual and interpersonal level can challenge or support that.

Progression comes with regression, and history can repeat itself. That’s a lesson for not just Indians practicing the caste system today, but every single one of us living in a society built to uphold generations of oppression.