Mahatma Gandhi was
travelling in a train from Durban to Pretoria. He had a first-class ticket.
When the train reached Morrisberg, an English man boarded the train. He was
shocked to see a ‘coolie’ in the first-class compartment. He asked Gandhi to
get out.
‘I have a first-class
ticket, said Gandhi
The English man
continued asking Gandhi to get out. Gandhi asked him to get an officer of law
to intervene. The officer threw Gandhi’s luggage out and Gandhi too.
‘Get into the last compartment,
the English man sneered.
Gandhi sat on the
platform and watched the train go.
This was the beginning
of a story that the world knows.
The sense of
entitlement and privilege that certain people have over the other manifests in behavior
that are superior. This sense of superiority comes from color, wealth, caste or
gender. Societies have been trying for centuries to be egalitarian. Some have
succeeded partially and some are struggling.
With industrialization
came hope for economic freedom and thus equality. Corporates set up codes of
conduct to ensure that all are treated well.
If colonization ended and the British and the rest of the plunderers
left the shores of the country, a new colonization began.
The setting up of
foreign companies in Indian shores!
While it employed many and added to the country’s prosperity the old
deep rooted ugly face of racism reared. It is not strange to hear muffled
voices in multinational corporations complain about discrimination. It is
seldom addressed well
You are singled out and systematically pushed
to a corner to cut you to size. The reason being that you cannot be controlled,
or managed. Or the victimization is because of who you are. Processes that are laid down are violated to
browbeat the victim. The victim often an Indian or Chinese seldom says
anything. In the organization that I work for, we call it the EMI silence. EMI
is Equated Monthly Instalment that has to be paid to the bank every month to
repay the loan. The silence empowers the perpetrators. And then the corporate
crawls with racist, bigots and supremacist.
Racial discrimination
is also difficult to prove. It can be overt or covert. But we can feel it. When somebody dislikes
you for who you are and for something that you cannot change, that is racism.
When I was pushed to
the corner, I howled murder. My dignity and self-respect is of utmost
importance to me. I complained and wrote to everybody. I sought help from all
who I know. I was indignant to learn
that grown up men violate processes, conspire to sate the bigot in them. The
Swiss company that I work with had systems in place. But the system also failed
to detect leaders with discriminatory behavior and their punishment was not
swift and appropriate. The blanket of while silence was very heavy.
In the process, I also realized
why an abused person is loath to file a complaint. Because somehow the whole
narrative shifts to the complainant and not the perpetrator. The corporate
tries to stick unrelated things to dilute the essence of the crime. There is a
bro code! Of which lesser mortals are not part of.
Even in moments of
despair, I thought of Gandhi sitting on the platform with a first-class ticket!
He began a story,
And so, should we!