Rethinking Untouchability

Redefining untouchability brings new light to the intellectual life of the B.R. Ambedkar, one of India's most important thinkers of the last century. Usually under the shadow of Indian nationalist such as Gandhi and Nehru, the importance of Ambedkar's political thought remains largely unexplored. Ambedkar's main concern throughout his life was the abolition of untouchability, which he fought throughout his writings and politics. Ambedkar's place in the history of Indian political thought is unique. Coming from one of the most oppressed communities in India, he received doctoral degrees from Columbia University and the London School of Economics. Similarly, Ambedkar familiarised himself with the newest anthropological, political and sociological theories emerging at the turn of the twentieth century. Influenced by the thought of Franz Boas and John Dewey, among others, Ambedkar showed his followers that their condition of oppression was fluid and malleable, it could be changed as it was not dependent on karma from previous lives. By analysing untouchability and its links to religion and ideologies of racial supremacy, Ambedkar exposed untouchability as an economic, political and cultural system designed to oppress Dalits. He demanded political and educational rights to bridge the inequalities present in the lives of his followers. For Ambedkar, India required a social and a political revolution beyond the scope of nationalist aspirations. At a time when inequality and injustice is still rampant in India and elsewhere, recovering the value of Ambedkar's thought is paramount.