SEC339: Equality Labs, based in Oakland, Calif., advocates for the civil rights of the caste formerly referred to as “untouchables”: War Peace Crime and Punishment in Southeast Asia Assignment, SUSS, Singapore

Question

Equality Labs, based in Oakland, Calif., advocates for the civil rights of the caste formerly referred to as “untouchables” in a millennia-old system of social hierarchy that originated in India, but has proliferated across South Asia. Many Indians have moved to the United States to work in tech companies, and several Big Tech CEOs are of Indian origin, including Google’s Sundar Pichai and Microsoft’s Satya Nadella.

Some employees allege the patterns of discrimination have been replicated within Silicon Valley companies. Through its advocacy on content moderation, Equality Labs developed a strong network of Dalit tech workers. After the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) filed a lawsuit against Cisco alleging caste discrimination, their phone lines were flooded with reports about bias and the group once again began collecting data.