Issue Details
From Personal Testimony to Social Change: The Impact of African American and Dalit Memoirs on Civil Rights and Dalit Rights Movements
Simran, Dr. Ajit Kumar
Page No. : 123-127
ABSTRACT
Autobiographical narratives have long been instrumental in shaping social justice movements. This paper examines how African American and Dalit memoirs serve as powerful tools for raising awareness, mobilizing resistance, and influencing political and social change. By analyzing texts such as The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave by Frederick Douglass, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl by Harriet Jacobs, Black Boy by Richard Wright, Joothan: A Dalit’s Life by Omprakash Valmiki, Karukku by Bama, and Upara: An Outsider by Laxman Mane, this study highlights how personal testimonies of oppression and resilience have played a crucial role in shaping the Civil Rights Movement in the United States and the Dalit Rights Movement in India. The paper argues that these narratives transcend personal experiences, evolving into collective calls for justice and structural reform.
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