Welcome to Breaking Down Patriarchy. I'm Amy McPhee, All the Best. Last week on the podcast, we began a series on the country of India, learning about Hinduism and specifically the powerful female archetypes found in Hindu goddesses. This week, we'll continue our exploration of the Asian subcontinent, shifting our focus to the caste system and its

intersections with patriarchy. Several months ago, I was searching online for a book that could

address this intersection, and I found the title, The Trauma of Cast, Adolet Feminist Meditation

on Survivorship, Healing, and Abol abolition. I was really intrigued and excited about

this title, but the book hadn't come out yet, so I pre-ordered it, and I read it the day it came

out. I couldn't put it down, and I strongly recommend that listeners read or listen to this book

immediately. I thought it was one of the most important books I've ever read. And I want to start today's episode with a quote from the author,

Than Mory Saundera Rajan.

She says,

I write this book because progressive Americans of all ethnicities and faiths

need to know that justice and dignity and liberation are not just about the issues at home,

but about how we build solidarity across nations. I think that quote could be the theme of this entire season of the

podcast, but I specifically want to invite listeners today as we approach this subject of the

caste system. Let's do this in a spirit of solidarity and also

with a commitment to take action to show that solidarity. So without further ado, I am so honored

to introduce our guest today, the author of the trauma of cast, Thinmori, Sanderarajan. Welcome

Thinmori to the podcast. Oh, I'm so glad to be here and thank you for having me.

Thank you so much for coming. And I want to start out with just a very brief bio that I got on your web page, which is far too modest, Thin Mory. So I'll ask you to introduce yourself in more detail. But just for listeners, Thin Mory,, Sandra Rajan, is a Dalit American commentator

on religion, race, caste, gender, technology, and justice. She is the executive director of

equality labs and the author of the trauma of cast, which as I said is the book that we're going to

focus our discussion on today. So could you start us off then Mori with just a little bit more of a personal bio, where you're from and what led you to

do the work that you're doing today? Sure. So I was born in East L.A. and a South Asian American who grew up,

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