This Note proposes statutory language for a legislative amendment to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that would add “caste” as a protected class. In light of the injustices caused by caste discrimination and the rapid growth of the South Asian American population, a federal response to caste-based employment discrimination is necessary. At the same time, conservative Hindu organizations, such as the Hindu American Foundation, have devoted significant resources to challenging state and local measures addressing caste discrimination, including through legal claims grounded in the First Amendment. While these claims have yet to prove successful, the alignment of far-right Hindu organizations with the Trump administration and freedom of religion claims supported by the current U.S. Supreme Court majority make careful consideration of these arguments particularly important.
Accordingly, this Note conducts a case study of city, state, and university initiatives that prohibit caste-based discrimination. It evaluates these measures according to two criteria: historical and factual accuracy, and resilience to First Amendment challenges. After identifying the linguistic features necessary to satisfy these criteria, this Note proposes statutory language to amend Title VII.