Recent events made me reflect if a place we call Home is ‘Within the border of a State or Country’ or is ‘home beyond borders’.
When a war like situation forces you out of home.
Lately many Muslim community members had to take off from their homes in Gurgaon and other cities of Haryana/India for their hometowns following communal war like threats after public violence in Nuh this month. (Many such episodes have happened to other communities too) Threatened to be burnt or killed, many people left homes overnight fearing for their lives, with no clarity of when they will return to the home they built in Gurgaon. Most of them were domestic helps. One of them is a woman by name of ‘Sabina’ who has been working with us for over a decade. A strong girl full of grit who came to Gurgaon in search of work from Malda in West Bengal. Over the years she got skilled, learnt new languages, became financially independent, opened her bank account, contributing to changing income status of her family, got married, educating her daughter, saving for a better future, building her home and assets, moving from bicycle to sooty, by working with us and in many other homes. This parallel economy where one working family employs at least 2-3 women or help at home to keep the economic circle going is sign of economic progression. It is because of many like Sabina that woman like me have entered the workforce.
Suddenly, for no fault of her, she and her family were forced to leave their home early this month without certainty of coming back. This shook her own life with ripple effects on mine. This story of displaced families is against the progression, secularism, and democracy of our country. While we talk of India’s progression and how our policies are pulling people out of the vicious circle of poverty and providing them means to earn a living, taking the country one step forward. Acts of communal violence like these, undo many good things and take us a few steps back.
Living in exile in one’s own country.
I don’t know in what state she and her family are. If she has reached home, whether she has decent living conditions, is her daughter safe, what happened to her right to live freely anywhere in this democratic country, why did she become stateless suddenly, why this religion-based discrimination, and why no action. She and her family have overnight become refugees in their own country, living in exile. The scariest part is will ever return back and feel secure again? Will her daughter go back to the school? Will the monetary and social progress she made will be undone?
What hurts me the most is living in times, where we are witnessing two extreme sides of world’s cruelty. One, where war and climate change is displacing people out of their home into other countries. Second, where war like situation and climate is created to force people out of home in their own country. To force people, live without home is against human rights. Where are our policies to protect these families.
As we celebrate 77th Independence Day this is not a new dawn we should wake up to. Honorable President Droupadi Murmu in her address on the eve of Independence Day said, “Each Indian is an equal citizen, each one has equal opportunity, rights, and duties in this land. Each Indian has many identities like caste, creed, language but identity as Indian citizen is above all.” These two images don’t match up, situations of growing communal violence and this vision of India. We have to act and make change this happen.
Say No to hate. Stop and reflect situation and circumstance which make families lives different from yours, show empathy and respect, discuss in your network and communities what can be done to stop this situation where families like ‘Sabina’ are put down, ask your children if this is India, they are proud of, promote and encourage diversity in society, stand for people in need and protect them from hate speech. Think more and act now!
Hope there is hope. Hope to build home anywhere in the country. Hope to have a home without borders of State. Hope to build a progressive country in all aspects and perspectives.