Casteism is the practice of discriminating against a person based on their caste, or their perceived category in society.
Casteism Quotes in Caste
The Caste quotes below are all either spoken by Casteism or refer to Casteism. For each quote, you can also see the other terms and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 23
Quotes
People who appear in places or positions where they are not expected can become foot soldiers in an ongoing quest for respect and legitimacy in a fight they had hoped was long over.
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Casteism Term Timeline in Caste
The timeline below shows where the term Casteism appears in Caste. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter Six: The Measure of Humanity
...entity” that enforces structures, rankings, and boundaries on the basis of someone’s perceived rank. Though casteism and racism are intertwined in the U.S., they can be differentiated. Racism, Wilkerson suggests, is...
(full context)
...a factor in so many social interactions that one might not even perceive their own casteism. Post-racialism is still a faraway dream precisely because of caste’s invisibility—and in order to end...
(full context)
Pillar Number Four: Purity versus Pollution
...as a magazine editor. Even in adulthood, having dedicated himself to unlearning his racist and casteist upbringing, he felt the self-described “madness” of an inexplicable urge to wash his hands after...
(full context)
Chapter Twelve: A Scapegoat to Bear the Sins of the World
...day, Black Americans are scapegoated for the problems that disproportionately plague Black communities because of casteism and inequality. Scapegoating blames larger societal ills on those with the least power—and scapegoating always...
(full context)
The Radicalization of the Dominant Caste
...to get away with making such a scene—and with being so blind to the way casteism works in the first place. But another part of Wilkerson was happy to see her...
(full context)
Epilogue: A World Without Caste
...for another. Throughout his life in the U.S., he was outspoken about the horrors of casteism. As a Jewish person himself, he felt he could empathize with the plight of Black...
(full context)
...likely to remain with the dominant caste unless there is a concerted effort to overturn casteism, reject the price Americans currently pay for their caste system, and fight for justice.
(full context)
