In the Name of ‘Poor and Marginalised’? Politics of NGO Activism with Dalit Women in Rural North India

Abstract

Assertion by the Dalits or ex-untouchables is one of the most significant developments in contemporary India. Dalit women have actively participated in Dalit movements and in women's and development NGOs activism. However, their voices and perspectives are said to have been marginalised by movements and NGOs alike. This article unpacks the complexities, contradictions and challenges that are produced, reproduced and subverted in NGO activism with Dalit women by examining a women's NGO and its relations with Dalit women, the state and international donors in rural Uttar Pradesh in north India. Which factors contribute to an NGO choosing to work with Dalit women? Specifically, what implications does having roots in a state-sponsored initiative have for the NGO under study? Does external funding necessarily change the character of activism with Dalit women? CanDalit women take on leadership roles in NGO activism with other Dalit women? The article explores these questions using interviews, observations and documentation collected and analysed in my doctoral research.