Mestenhauser Student Award

Vishal Jamkar is a Ph.D. candidate in Public Affairs at the Hubert H. Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities. Vishal accepts this award on behalf of "The Anti-caste Collective" of the University of Minnesota. Hailing from a caste-oppressed community in India, Vishal identified a glaring lack of awareness regarding caste scholarship and insidious practices of caste discrimination practised in the United States upon arriving at the University of Minnesota. Vishal took the initiative to establish a Critical Caste Study Group aimed at delving into scholarly works on caste. Additionally, he co-founded the Anti-caste Collective to raise awareness about caste, combat caste discrimination, and advocate for its recognition as a protected category at the University of Minnesota. Thanks to the collaborative efforts of the Anti-caste Collective and its allies, numerous schools and colleges within the University adopted caste as a criterion for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Eventually, the University of Minnesota emerged as the first University in the Midwest to officially register instances of caste-based discrimination. Vishal has been invited to share his research and insights on anti-caste scholarship and movements as a guest lecturer and panelist across University and activist spaces in India and North America. Accepting the Mestenhauser award, he aims to implore the University administration to officially include caste among designated protected categories and institute affirmative measures to encourage caste-oppressed students to join the University of Minnesota.