“Caste Exists Only in South Asia” is a Myth

The belief that caste exists only in South Asia is a myth—one that erases the lived realities of millions across the globe.

While the word “caste” may be most commonly associated with India or Nepal, its logic—the division of people by birth, labor, and inherited stigma—is tragically global. These systems may go by different names, but they function the same way: branding communities as “impure,” assigning them to demeaning labor, and excluding them from public life.

In West Africa, the Haratine in Mauritania, Mbororo in Cameroon, and caste-bound communities in Niger and Gambia are consigned to “polluting” work like sanitation, butchery, or leatherwork—then denied access to clean water, housing, or education. In Nigeria, the Osu are still barred from public office, temples, and intermarriage—believed to carry spiritual contamination.

In Japan, the Burakumin were forced into occupations involving death and impurity, like slaughterhouses or tanneries—and continue to face exclusion in employment and marriage. Across Europe, Roma communities are stereotyped as “dirty,” segregated in schools, and denied access to basic services.

These systems may not use the word “caste,” but they run on the same fuel: the belief that certain labor makes someone less human, and that this inferiority is passed down through generations. The result is generational poverty, social segregation, and widespread exclusion.

This is not folklore. It is policy. It is prejudice. And it is power.

Internationally recognized as Discrimination Based on Work and Descent (DWD), this global form of casteism must be named—and dismantled.

“Caste is not just cultural—it’s structural. It’s not just South Asian—it’s global. And so must be our fight to end it – Sinoma Torotcoi, Europe Ambassador”

At The Inclusivity Project (TIP), we are building that global movement—led by communities who have endured this exclusion, and are now refusing to be erased.

We connect youth, grassroots leaders, and frontline defenders from around the world who are fighting casteism in all its forms. We create space for truth-telling, healing, advocacy, and transformation.

This is your invitation:

Join TIP. Be part of a growing global movement to end caste-based and descent-based discrimination—wherever it exists.

Scan the QR code to donate now and help us build a future where every voice counts. Every leader matters.

Become a member. Partner with us. Stand in solidarity.

Because no one should be defined by their birth, their labor, or someone else’s idea of purity.