Seattle becomes first US city to ban caste discrimination
22 Feb 2023
Yogesh Mane, a Seattle resident who grew up as an untouchable in India, broke into tears as he heard the council's decision. "I'm emotional because this is the first time such an ordinance has been passed anywhere in the world outside of South Asia,” he said. "It's a historic moment." C.H. Srikrishna, who is Hindu, believes the ordinance does target his religion. "When you say it originated 2,000 years ago, that is implicitly blaming Hinduism,” he said. "That bothers me. I feel betrayed.”