New Internationalist  Mariamma’s shame  Issue 380  Mariamma, a
young woman from the paraiya community, was on her way home from
collecting firewood when Kumarasami, a high-caste landowner,
attempted to rape her. She managed to escape and ran home.
Afraid that his reputation might be in ruins, Kumarasami ca
Illustration by Savi Savarkar: Dalit painter and printmaker,
born in Maharashtra, India, in 1961. The symbols are Om and the
swastika, a Hindu symbol adopted by the Nazis.   The naattaamai,
the headman of the paraiya community, sent word for Mariamma and
Manikkam to be brought in front of him… the men gathered in
front of the community hall and sat down. The women stood behind
them, watching.  It was the turn of the junior naattaamai to
speak: ‘Silence everyone. Here is a case where our entire
community’s reputation is at risk. In a village where there are
many caste communities, if someone of our caste behaves
disgracefully, then it brings shame on all of us. As it is, we
paraiyas are treated with contemp