Saturday, October 4
ANNUAL CONFERENCE 2025
Forging Indian Diasporic Solidarity:
Confronting Oppression Within
For many, moving abroad promises freedom from the caste system. The reality, however, is that caste follows them, showing up in community gatherings, WhatsApp groups, on college campuses, and in professional settings.
Casteist discussions go unchallenged in workplaces. Oppressed-caste employees and anti-caste allies remain silent out of fear of retaliation. Anti-caste policies are vague. Since caste is disguised as “culture” or treated as a private matter, criticism of caste is framed as an attack on individual freedom. There are no social or legal protections for the caste oppressed or their anti-caste allies.
If anybody dares to voice out, those with caste privilege use power and money to silence the truth. We saw it in the fight over SB 403 in California, where protections for the caste-oppressed were blocked under pressure from wealthy donors. These battles make two things clear: that legal protection is absolutely essential for the caste-oppressed; and that the grave silence around caste oppression needs to be effectively challenged by all.
However, are conditions viable today, for anti-caste speech and action to emerge in mainstream spaces?
Join us in our annual conference to deliberate on how to create the conditions necessary to empower people to break the silence on the topic of caste. To have open and frank discussions on how to create social and legal protections against caste exclusion and oppression. Each one of us has a unique role in forging solidarity by confronting exclusion within. We can make an anti-caste future actually and truly possible, here and everywhere.
Also join us in celebration of legal victories on anti-caste litigations in the USA.
THE SPEAKERS
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Annapurna Waughray
Professor of Human Rights Law, Manchester Metropolitan University, United Kingdom
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Biju Mathew
Co-founder of the New York Taxi Workers Alliance and a founding secretary of the National Taxi Workers Alliance.
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Karthikeyan Mani
Writer, Director
(Puram, Madras Matinee - 2025) -
Sandy Perry
Vice President, South Bay Community Land Trust.
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Roja Singh
Assistant Professor, St. John Fisher University, Rochester, NY
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Prachi Patankar
Author and Activist based in New York
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Theresa Montano
Professor of Chicana and Chicano Studies at California State University Northridge, California Faculty Association (CFA) Teacher Education Caucus Tri-Chair
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Elizabeth Fetterolf
Chief Steward for the Social Sciences, Stanford Graduate Workers Union.
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Adam S Iqbal
International working group, Silicon Valley, Democratic Socialists of America
Schedule
| Registration & Meet-and-Greet: 9:00 AM - 9:40 AM |
|---|
| Session - I: 9:40 AM - 11:00 AM |
| Conference Introduction and Openning |
| Caste and Law - An International Perspective: Towards Recognition and Remedy by Prof.Annapurna Waughray |
| Stretch: 11:00 AM - 11:10 AM |
| Session - II: 11:10 AM - 12:30 AM |
| Poster Flash Talk |
| Political Struggle in Education Spaces by Prof. Theresa Montano & Prof. Roja Singh |
| Lunch + Poster Session : 12:30 PM - 1:15 PM |
| Session - III: 1:15 PM - 2:35 PM |
| Cultural Music/Song |
| 21st Century Immigration: Future of American Democracy by Mr. Sandy Perry & Ms. Prachi Patankar |
| Team: 2:35 PM - 2:40 PM |
| Session - IV: 2:40 PM - 4:15 PM |
| Resolutions and Fraternal Org Time |
| Fractures in the Multiracial Right: What Lies Ahead? by Prof. Biju Mathew, Ms. Elizabeth Fetterolf & Mr. Adam S Iqbal |
| Break: 4:15 PM - 4:30 PM |
| Session - V: 4:30 PM - 5:15 PM |
| Silicon Valley Evening Show with Karthikeyan Mani, Director of Madras Matinee |
| Session - VI: 5:15 PM - 6:15 PM |
| Celebration of legal victories on anti-caste litigations in the USA |
| Open Mic and Conclusion |
| Dinner & Kahoot: 6:15 PM - 8:00 PM |
Register
Here
!
Register Here !
Join us at the AKSC Annual Conference 2025 for a transformative discussion on the pressing issue of caste in the USA. Engage with experts and allies in a dynamic setting.
• Interactive sessions led by prominent speakers and thought leaders.
• Focus on anti-caste struggles and strategies in the USA.
• Opportunities for networking with like-minded individuals and organizations.
Gain a deeper understanding of societal dynamics and contribute to meaningful change by participating in lively discussions and interactive sessions. Be part of a community committed to social justice and equity.
Registration Fee: $40 Lunch and Dinner Included
Join us at the AKSC Annual Conference 2025 for a transformative discussion on the pressing issue of caste in the USA. Engage with experts and allies in a dynamic setting.
• Interactive sessions led by prominent speakers and thought leaders.
• Focus on anti-caste struggles and strategies in the USA.
• Opportunities for networking with like-minded individuals and organizations.
Gain a deeper understanding of societal dynamics and contribute to meaningful change by participating in lively discussions and interactive sessions. Be part of a community committed to social justice and equity.
* Registration Fee: $40 * Lunch and Dinner Included *
Get a special discount if you are:20 or younger (100% discount)Students (50% discount for UG/Masters/PhD)
Email us at akscsfba@gmail.com for the above discount codes.Registration has been closed.
Email us at akscsfba@gmail.com if you have missed the registration deadline but are still interested and willing to attend the event.
We invite submissions for a Poster Session as part of the conference, centred around the conference theme: Forging Indian Diasporic Solidarity: Confronting Oppression Within.
The session will be an opportunity to share research, community projects, organizing strategies, or creative interventions that speak to our shared themes: resisting global oppression, confronting caste in India and abroad, and building solidarities across movements.
Participants are encouraged to present work-in-progress, hypotheses and/or results relating to data-driven or qualitative research, or visual storytelling - posters can take academic, activist, or artistic forms.
If you do not have access to printing, we will gladly assist and print your poster free of charge.
Submission details:
Poster title and 150-200 word abstract
Name, affiliation (if any), and contact information
Deadline: 11:59 pm PST, 28 September 2025
Send to: akscsfba@gmail.com [with subject: Poster Abstract Submission: Conference 2025]
| Name | Poster Title (if Applicable) | University | Time Slot for Flashtalk (3mins each!) | Timeslot for Poster(7 mins each!) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dhananjay B | Indian Caste Bias in AI: Embeddings, Hiring, and Ethical Gaps | Stanford | 11:11:00 AM | 12:32:00 PM |
| Swagata B | Omissions and Assertions: Caste, Class, and Personhood in the Indian Diaspora | University of Buffalo | 11:14:00 AM | 12:39:00 PM |
| Monisha D | Could Belonging Portend Violence? The Impact of Hindu Nationalism on Support for Violence towards Dalit people | Stanford | 11:17:00 AM | 12:46:00 PM |
| Ashok K | Prohibiting Caste Discrimination Among South Asian Diaspora in Employment Under California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) | Indiana University, Bloomington | 11:20:00 AM | 12:53:00 PM |
| Rashmi K | Improbable transitions: unveiling chasms in rural India’s transition to cleaner cooking | UC Berkeley | 11:23:00 AM | 1:00:00 PM |
| Poojit H | Building a New Indian American Left: Diaspora Indians for Liberation | Stanford | 11:26:00 AM | 1:07:00 PM |
