WHEREAS:          the California State Student Association (CSSA) is the single recognized voice for over 487,000 students of the California State University (CSU) system; and

WHEREAS:          Caste is a structure of oppression that affects over 1 billion people across the world based in birth that determines social status and assigns “spiritual purity”; 1  and

WHEREAS:          There are four main caste groups: Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas, and Shudras, and those outside the caste system entirely, with lower caste Shudras and those outside the caste system, known as Dalits meaning “broken but resilient” and formerly known as “untouchables”, considered oppressed by caste; and

WHEREAS:          Caste-oppressed groups continue to experience profound injustices including socioeconomic inequalities, usurpation of their land, rights, and experience brutal violence at the hands of the “upper” Castes; and

WHEREAS:          25 percent of Dalits who responded to a survey, of 1,200 respondents, executed by Equality Labs reported facing verbal or physical assault based on their caste in the United States; and2

WHEREAS:          One in three Dalit students report being discriminated against during their education in the United States; and3

WHEREAS:          Two out of three Dalits surveyed reported being treated unfairly at their workplace in the United States; and4

WHEREAS:          60 percent of Dalits report experiencing caste-based derogatory jokes or comments in the United States; and5

WHEREAS:          20 percent of Dalit respondents report feeling discriminated