Chronicles Women's Social Movements in India

The small groups of rural women in India fighting for change is something the rest of the world needs to take note of, says Mangala Subramaniam, an assistant professor of sociology and women's studies. Since the late 1990s, Subramaniam has studied social movements in India, particularly the women's movement in India and the dalit - poor, rural low-caste women in India - as they organized in their small villages.

Her book The Power of Women's Organizing: Gender, Caste and Class in India will be published this month.

In a press release she says:

"Unfortunately, many people in America and Europe are not aware of or know about the vibrancy of women's movements in Asian countries, such as India. And many people especially do not think about rural women in India organizing to fight for rights such as educational opportunities as well as to challenge discrimination based on social inequities of class, caste and gender. Studies of women's social movements outside of the west - America and Europe - are necessary in this increasingly globalizing world."

>> read the whole story at OneWorld.net

>> Review of The Power of Women’s Informal Networks: Lessons in Social Change from South Asia and West Africa. Bandana Purkayastha and Mangala Subramaniam

>> Information about her dissertation: Translating participation in informal organizations into empowerment: Women in rural India
Mangala Subramaniam

The World Social Forum is a place where social movements meet. Two years ago, it was held in Mumbai, India. I've written a summary: Inspiration from India: Hindus and Muslims eat breakfast together; Christian nuns join Tibetan monks in a chant. See also "Just like apartheid": The dalits are engaged in a fierce struggle to stop the ancient discrimination.