We need social solidarity, not social distancing

Leadership plays a crucial role in times of crises. In confronting unprecedented challenges such as the coronavirus disease (Covid-19), proper messaging is essential to galvanise people. In the Indian context, apart from region, language and faith, social diversity also plays an important role. The growing consciousness on social diversity is a significant step in dealing with exclusion and incidents of discrimination on the basis of birth. Therefore, any strategy to contain a crisis of this proportion must be inclusive.

When Prime Minister Narendra Modi used “physical distancing” instead of “social distancing” in Mann Ki Baat, it started a debate in India. In a deeply hierarchical society with traditional prejudices, social exclusion may masquerade as “social distancing”. That made intellectual leaders from the subaltern communities across the country question the term “social distancing”.

Not only in India, but voices from across the world challenged the usage of the term. Socially marginalised and racially segregated people, who are unfortunately at the bottom of the pyramid, unequivocally discarded the term “social distancing”. Rising international concerns eventually made the World Health Organization advocate for the use of the term “physical distancing”.

Caste still remains a fundamental component of the national conversation. It plays an instrumental role in shaping the structures of power and influence. Government data on social atrocities, published by the National Crime Records Bureau, recognises it as a cardinal source of tension in both rural and urban areas. The term “social distancing”, therefore, smells of archaic practices perpetuating casteism.

Read More