Photo: Jacob Carlsen Kotri, Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan April 2008 The segregation of the so-called ’Scheduled Castes’ is complete in this teashop in Karachi. Men from the Kolhi caste are not allowed into the teashops owned by Muslims or dominant castes. Similarly, no other men than Kolhi men can enter a Kolhi teashop.

Photo: Jacob Carlsen Mura, Nepal, November 2007. A sex worker, mother of three and community leader involved in improving the lives of the Badi community, Gomati Badi, 28, is busy. Poverty makes Nepali Dalit women easy targets for trafficking along the Nepalese-Indian border, so Gomati fights for equal access to land, Dalit participation in the […]

Photo: Jacob Carlsen Mura, Far Western Province, Nepal, November 2007. Soni with her son in her bedroom. Children of Badi sex workers often have unknown fathers. Until recently, citizenship in Nepal was given according to the father’s name. Badi children were therefore unable to obtain citizenship in their own country. After protesting outside the parliament […]

Mura, Far Western Province, Nepal, November 2007. Bahadur Lohar, a Dalit, was born to become a blacksmith. He serves ten families and is paid once a year. The caste system has locked his family into a pattern of bonded labour for genrations. Nepal’s Dalits are now making demands for a more inclusive constitution. Photo ©: […]

Photo: Jacob Carlsen Tikapir Kailali, Far Western Province, Nepal, November 2007.

Photo: Jacob Carlsen Dhaka, Bangladesh, September 2007. In the village Nararan, Muslims walk down the main road in groups and make trouble. The Muslism carry drugs. When they get cought they say they got the drugs from the Dalits, and the police will make raids. There are 1200 citizens in the village, 11 toilets and no […]

Photo: Jacob Carlsen Litani, Haryana, India, October 2007. 14 year old Sukhwinder Singh’s father was an alcoholic and a gambler. At the age of 35, Balwan Singh saw suicide as the only way out of a loan of 474 euros he took from his landlord to sustain his drinking habit as well as buy medicine […]

Photo: Jacob Carlsen Litani, Haryana, India, October 2007. 14 year old Sukhwinder Singh’s father was an alcoholic and a gambler. At the age of 35, Balwan Singh saw suicide as the only way out of a loan of 474 euros he took from his landlord to sustain his drinking habit as well as buy medicine […]

Photo: Jacob Carlsen Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India, October 2007. Manual scavenger Niita Tank is suffering from illness and constant headaches because of her work. She is paid next to nothing and cannot afford medical care. To add insult to injury, those whose excreta she cleans abuse her and call her derogatory names. In India, former manual […]

Photo: Jacob Carlsen Prerna Hostel, Bihar, India, October 2007.