Justice for Dalit women

 

Dalit Mahila Swabhiman Yatra is urging communities to create conditions for change at the local level and strengthen Dalit women leadership. The first phase of the yatra travelled through Haryana, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Orissa and Maharashtra. The yatra culminated on 12 March, 2014, in Delhi with a public meeting where women shared their experiences and expressed collective declaration for their rights and dignity. The second phase of the yatra began in Bihar in September 2014 and then travelled through Madhya Pradesh in October 2014 bringing more and more Dalit women together. While the first phase focused on sexual violence and challenging the impunity, the second phase of the yatra aims at building Dalit women leadership. It also aims at establishing linkages between violence and larger community assertions for land, water and other resources, including access to political power.