Did you know the caste system in India still exists today? I remember learning about in school but never thought much about it until my niece joined the Leadforward organization and told me she was going to help the “Dalit” or the “Untouchables” in southern India. The organization is based on the “teach a man to fish” premise. You know, it is better to teach someone how to catch their own fish as opposed to giving them fish. I wanted to do a post about it because Leadforward is a worthwhile organization and I wanted more people to know about it.

In a nutshell, the “Untouchables” are seen as less than human and are segregated from rest of the population. According to the website “They and the caste poor depend on dominant caste people for their livelihoods, struggling daily in slave-like conditions, poverty and hunger.” As you might expect women have a harder time than men and children often have to leave school to find work.

The Leadforward program educates children and gives them leadership training so that they can help their community break out of the cycle of discrimination and poverty. The program follows the theory that education is the key to empowerment of and progress toward a just society. Leadforward feels the education of women is particularly important, so more than half of their students are girls. “To educate a woman is to educate a family.”

Leadforward screens potential students and sponsors their education (starting in the six grade when they are old enough to leave home).About three-fourths of the Leadforward students stand in the top quarter of their classes, with many in the top ten and a surprising number first in their class. Leadforward intends to support their students through college and have graduated about fifty. They currently have 24 in college and expect to have as many as sixty college students two years from now. Obtaining that level of support will be a great challenge for the program.

If you want to know more about the organization here is the link to the website http://leadforwardinc.org/1701.html. If you would like to follow the adventures of an actual volunteer for the organization living and working in southern India here is a link to my niece’s blog http://leadforwardinc.blogspot.com/

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