Chapter 5: Understanding Marginalisation
What Does it Mean to be Marginalised?
To be marginalised is to be forced to occupy the sides or fringes and thus not be at the centre of things. It is a social process where a group of people is pushed to the edge of society and is considered less important. This can be due to various reasons like speaking a different language, following different customs, or belonging to a different religious group from the majority community. Marginalisation is linked to experiencing disadvantage, prejudice and powerlessness.
Adivasis and Marginalisation
Adivasis – the term literally means ‘original inhabitants’ – are communities who lived, and often continue to live, in close association with forests. Around 8% of India's population is Adivasi. There are over 500 different Adivasi groups in India.
Adivasis and Stereotyping
Adivasis are invariably portrayed in stereotypical ways – in colourful costumes, headgear and through their dancing. This often leads to people believing that they are exotic, primitive and backward, which in turn leads to discrimination.
Adivasis and Development
Forests were absolutely crucial to the development of all empires and settled civilisations in India. However, in the last 200 years, Adivasis have been increasingly forced, through economic changes, forest policies and political force applied by the State and private industry, to migrate to lives as workers in plantations, at construction sites, in industries and as domestic workers. This process of dispossession and displacement has been painful and violent, as they lose their main sources of livelihood, food, and their traditional ways of life.
Minorities and Marginalisation
The term minority is most commonly used to refer to communities that are numerically small in relation to the rest of the population. The Indian Constitution provides safeguards to religious and linguistic minorities as part of our Fundamental Rights, recognizing that the culture of the majority could influence the way in which society and government express themselves.
Muslims and Marginalisation
According to the 2011 Census, Muslims are 14.2% of India’s population and are considered a marginalised community because, in comparison to other communities, they have over the years been deprived of the benefits of socio-economic development. Reports like the Sachar Committee Report (2005) examined the social, economic and educational status of the Muslim community in India and highlighted their marginalisation across various indicators like literacy, access to public employment, and access to basic amenities.
Exercise Questions and Answers
1. Write in your own words two or more sentences of what you understand by the word ‘marginalisation’.
Marginalisation is the process of pushing a group of people to the edges of society, making them feel isolated and excluded. This happens when a group is seen as different or less important by the majority, leading to them having limited access to resources, opportunities, and decision-making power.
2. List two reasons why Adivasis are becoming increasingly marginalised.
Two major reasons for the increasing marginalisation of Adivasis are:
1. Loss of forest lands: Due to development projects like dams, mining, and industrial plants, Adivasis have been forcibly displaced from their traditional lands, which destroys their livelihood and culture.
2. Negative Stereotyping: They are often portrayed as primitive and backward, which leads to discrimination and a lack of respect for their unique knowledge systems and way of life.
3. Write one reason why you think the Constitution’s safeguards to protect minority communities are very important?
The Constitution's safeguards are very important because they protect minority communities from being culturally dominated by the majority. These safeguards ensure that India's rich cultural diversity is maintained and that minorities can practice their religion and preserve their culture without fear of discrimination or being forced to assimilate into the majority culture.
4. You are participating in a debate where you have to provide reasons to support the following statement: ‘Muslims are a marginalised community’. Using the data provided in this chapter, list two reasons that you would give.
I would give the following two reasons:
1. Lack of Access to Basic Amenities: Data from the Sachar Committee Report shows that Muslim communities have lower access to basic amenities. For instance, in 2008-09, only 63.8% of Muslim households had access to electricity, compared to 65.4% for Hindus. Similarly, only 35.8% had access to piped water, significantly lower than the 43.7% for Hindus.
2. Lower Literacy Rates: The literacy rate among Muslims, according to the 2011 Census, was 57.3%, which is the lowest among all major religious communities and well below the national average. This educational backwardness limits their access to better employment opportunities and contributes to their socio-economic marginalisation.
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