Lower Caste and Class Women in India Transforming Social Action

Collective action to achieve social change has a long history in India, from the independence movement to current forms of gender activism. This paper details the experience of scheduled caste women in undertaking collective action for social change. Emerging from the self-help group movement, these women have used their collective strength to counter gender, class and caste based discrimination throughout India. Through their actions, the disparate groups of lower caste and class women have changed the theoretical narratives of intersectionality, postcolonial feminism and social movements. Drawing on field research in West Bengal, India with lower caste and class women engaged in collective action, this paper explores specific examples of how these women have shaped their social and political contexts. Details of how collective action and activism have been harnessed by NGOs using a rights based approach are examined. A further assessment of the limitations of these movements and the institutional and political barriers to their success is further explored in this paper.