Untouchable: The Badi and Dalit

Imagine belonging to a community labeled "The Untouchable," denied access to medical care, education, and job opportunities. Women and young girls as young as 5 are abducted from their homes at night. This harsh reality is faced by the Badi people, part of the Dalit caste (one of the lowest castes) in West Nepal. They endure exploitation, trafficking, and systemic discrimination.

Despite their circumstances, the Badi are known for their entertainment, dancing, and storytelling rooted in Hinduism. However, many women and girls fall victim to sexual exploitation, while men struggle to find employment. Though prostitution in Nepal is now illegal, kidnapping and trafficking young girls from different villages is still happening. Many times families are told that their daughters will be given a better life, they will receive a good education, will be given a good job, but the girls are taken over the Indian border and often are brought to brothels in big cities. Some girls who are removed from these awful situations can sometimes be reunited with their families, but others are no longer accepted as the shame is too much for their families to bear.

Many of the men in this community also have such difficult stories. Often they are raised without knowing their biological father, leaving them to face societal judgment and bullying. Miraculously, the men in this community who accept Jesus into their heart, find solace in God as their father.

Can anyone even try to imagine living a life, being seen as dirty just because of your last name? Are you horrified by their painful stories? I know that I am. Only the Holy Spirit has the authority to change individuals’ perspectives about the caste system. Learning about the Badi people evokes a deep longing in me for them to experience the love of our God, their unconditional and loving Father, their Creator.