CBSE Notes For Class 6 Civics Chapter 2 Diversity And Discrimination

CBSE Notes For Class 6 Civics Social Science Chapter 2 Diversity And Discrimination

India is a diverse country. There are eight major religions in the world and all of these are practiced in India. There are more than 1600 languages and more than a hundred dance forms.
Diversity is not always recognized because people feel safe and secure with people who look, talk, dress, and think like them.
Sometimes, people meet other people who are very different from them. They find them strange and unfamiliar.
People also form certain attitudes and opinions about others who are different from them. For example, people see villagers as ignorant while they see people in cities as money-minded and lazy.
When the opinions of people about other people are always negative, then these become prejudices.
Prejudice means judging other people negatively or seeing them as inferior.
When people think that only one particular way is the best and right way to do things, they often disrespect other people who may have different ways of doing things.
For example, if one thinks that English is the best among all languages, he/she starts to judge other languages negatively. As a result, he/she might not respect people who speak languages other than English.
Prejudice can be formed about many things like people’s religious beliefs, the color of their skin, the region they come from, the accent they speak in, the clothes they wear, etc. Sometimes, people may get hurt because of strong prejudices.

When people fix someone into one image, it creates a stereotype. Stereotypes can be formed with respect to religion, sex, race, or economic background.
People have unique qualities and skills that make them different from others but stereotypes prevent us from seeing each person as a unique individual.
Stereotypes fit large numbers of people into only one pattern or type. They all prevent us from doing certain things that we might do well.

Discrimination takes place when people act on the basis of their prejudices or stereotypes. It can take place for several reasons as follows
Cultural Discrimination People may be discriminated against because their customs or practices may be seen as inferior. People who may speak a certain language, follow a particular religion, live in specific regions, etc may experience discrimination.
Economic Discrimination People may be discriminated against due to their economic backgrounds. People who are poor experience discrimination in offices, hospitals, schools, etc.
Some people may experience both economic discrimination as well as cultural discrimination because they are poor and belong to groups whose culture is not valued.
For example, tribals or certain other religious communities.

Equality is a value that can be achieved after doing a struggle for it. People’s struggles and positive actions by the government are necessary to achieve equality for all Indians.
During the struggle for freedom from British rule, the people were also involved in the struggle to be treated more equally.
Dalits, women, tribals, and peasants fought against the inequalities they experienced in their lives.
Dalits organized themselves to gain entry into temples. Women organized to demand equal rights to education as men.
Peasants and tribals organized to fight against money lenders and high interests charged by them.
Many Indian National Movement leaders fought against inequalities, of which Dr Ambedkar was the most prominent.
The leaders of our country wrote the constitution in a way to included such provisions in the Constitution that would ensure equality for all the citizens of India.
The Constitution of India specified the right to equality for the poor and other marginal communities.
The writers of the Constitution advocated respect for diversity and ensured equality irrespective of citizens belonging to different communities, religions, languages, etc.
Thus, India became a secular state where all religions and faiths have been practiced and followed without fear of discrimination.
Untouchability has been legally abolished by law. People are free to choose the kind of work according to their wishes and government jobs are open to all people.

Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar (1891-1956) is called the father of the Indian Constitution. He fought for the rights of the Dalit community as he was born into the Mahar caste, which was considered untouchable.
His first experience of caste-based discrimination took place in 1901 when he had gone with his brothers and cousins to meet his father in Koregaon (now in Maharashtra).
Ambedkar was the first person from his caste who went to England to become a lawyer. He encouraged Dalit children to get an education and urged them to take on different kinds of government jobs in order to move out of the caste system.
He led many efforts for Dalits to gain entry into temples. Later in life, he converted to Buddhism in his search for a religion that treated all members equally.