This lecture delivered by Roy was something that touched me and moved me but also is so powerful. With a commentary on India’s politics and the ongoing democracy and the effects of the BJP within the Indian community. Her words are that much more powerful because she has witnessed the effects first-hand, her words are haunting and terrifying but more than anything emphasises if something isn’t done soon enough then the future looks terrifyingly bleak and dangerous for all. With the insight into the treatment of Muslims in India, ‘The election campaign was marked by saffron-robed godmen openly calling for mass killing and a social and economic boycott of the Muslim community.’ It makes me wonder why this isn’t highlighted enough. Why is this not reported and why are world leaders silent or turning a blind eye.
‘We are currently in that dangerous place where there is no set of facts or histories that we can agree upon, or even argue with.’ A major factor again leads to intuitional racism. If you compare the coverage of the Ukraine war and how many reports and coverage they had- specifically white Ukrainians, compared to that of the Palestine war last year that is still ongoing, it is shocking but not surprising. Roy herself even commented ‘I say this while being acutely and painfully aware of the hypocrisy of the United States and Europe, which together have waged similar wars on other countries in the world. Together they have led the nuclear race and have stockpiled enough weapons to destroy our planet many times over. What an irony it is that the very fact that they possess these weapons, now forces them to helplessly watch as a country they consider to be an ally is decimated—a country whose people and territory, whose very existence, imperial powers have jeopardized with their war games and ceaseless quest for domination.’
It needs to end. Something has to be done, and quickly. If we all do our bit by sharing articles such as these, signing petitions, and constantly bringing this into a conversation, it all helps. We just have to pray that world leaders act on this sooner rather than later. ‘The fire they have lit will not burn along a designated path. It may well burn the country down. The blaze has begun. Alongside the Muslims of India and Kashmir, Christians, too, are on the frontline of their assault. In this last year alone, there have been hundreds of attacks on churches, statues of Christ have been desecrated, priests and nuns physically assaulted.’
A quote I came across in a book I recently finished. ‘Most people don’t change because they want to, but because they have to. People start living healthier lives after a health scare. Laws change because the people demand it and add pressure to our leaders. Most times the things that change happen after a lot of pain or strife’. This is so true and something that Roy also says, ‘We’re on our own. No help will come. It didn’t come to Yemen, to Sri Lanka, to Rwanda. Why should we hope otherwise in India? In international politics, only profit, power, race, class, and geopolitics determine morality. Everything else is merely a posture, a shadow dance.
This battle will have to be waged by every single one of us. The blaze is at our door.’
‘Our hopes have been cauterized, our imaginations infected.’
The full article can be found here: Arundhati Roy on Religious Nationalism, Dissent, and the Battle Between Myth and History ‹ Literary Hub (lithub.com)
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