National Symposium: Englishing Dalits

CENTRAL UNIVERSITY OF KERALA
Department of Comparative Literature Organises

National Symposium

"Englishing Dalits: Questions of Caste, Colonialism and Nationalism"

on 11 March 2010 at

Central University Conference Hall
from 10:00am to 05:00pm

The symposium is conceived as a bouquet of invited lectures by eminent academicians/intellectuals/activists.

Prof. Jancy James (Hon'ble VC, Central University of Kerala) will inaugurate the symposium.

Courtesy for Image: bog.shashwati.com

Lectures By:
1. Prof. Kancha Ilaiah (Osmania University, Hyderabad)

2. Dr. Chandra Bhan Prasad (Author/Activist, New Delhi/UP)
3. Dr. D. Shyam Babu (Rajiv Gandhi Institute for Contemporary Studies, New Delhi)
4. Prof. M. Dasan (Kannur University)
5. Dr. Sanal Mohan (MG University, Kottayam)
6. Dr. V. B. Tharakeswar (EFLU, Hyderabad)
7. Ms. Meena Kandasamy (Writer/Anna University, Chennai)

Venue: Central University Conference Hall.

A Brief Background to the Theme of National Symposium:

One more controversial deification has occurred in India. Some Dalit groups have literally started to idolize and worship English—the language. This act is definitely the first of its kind in the history of entire human civilizations. The language is now an object of worship, not only the medium. After a careful marshalling of relevant historical data, here, English is foregrounded by Dalits as the tool of liberation. Officially, this socio-linguistic campaign was ‘inaugurated’ in a meeting of Dalit intellectuals and likeminded people, on 25 October 2006 in New Delhi. The day has its own historical importance and the selection of the day too was deliberate—it was the birthday of Lord Thomas Babington Macaulay, whom some Dalits hail as the “Father of Indian Modernity”. On the occasion, a portrait of English—the Dalit Goddess, painted by Dalit artist Shanti Swaroop Baudh, was also ceremoniously, rather religiously, unveiled. The galaxy of Dalit intellectuals assembled on the occasion also designed and resolved on a four-point programme:

i. All newborn Dalits/Adivasis will hear A...B...C...D… as the first sounds from their parents;

ii. All newborn Dalits/Adivasis will first see the picture of their Goddess English;

iii. All Dalits/Adivasis will have their own Bhagawati jagaron [a religious procession] of Goddess English on 25 October – the day Macaulay was born; and

iv. For complete emancipation, Dalit/Adivasi parents ought to give English education to their children at all costs – if necessary, work for more hours, borrow money, sell jewellery, even mortgage property.

Language being the most sensitive index of one’s identity, any debate on language has to be rightly problematized. While debating English, which is often perceived as a colonial legacy, how the caste question gets intermingled is a new turning point. In the present day socio-political context of social inequity and exclusion, Dalits and Adivasis believe that Goddess English is all about emancipation. ‘Worshipping the English Goddess’ is designed to be a mass movement against the caste order and the local languages; because Indian languages are, allegedly, more about prejudices, discrimination and hatred and less about expressions and communications. This movement draws intellectual inspiration from the earlier declarations like: ‘Through English, casteism can be destroyed and brahminical teaching can be hurled away’ (Savitribai Phule); ‘English is the milk of lioness’ (B.R.Ambedkar); ‘Dalits can use English as a weapon’ (Namishray); ‘…the vernaculars have been colonised by Sanskrit for thousands of years.’ (Omvedt); and ‘English speaking Dalits are less disrespected’ (Chandra Bhan Prasad). In addition, there is a boycott call against almost all vernacular languages of India. The ideological undercurrents and political repercussions of this particular piece of Dalit discourse are highly debatable.

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For organizing Committee.