[25] NEGOTIATED DISPLACEMENT: DALIT FEMINISM, MIGRATION, TRANSNATIONAL CARE ECONOMIES, AND GLOBAL FEMINIST PERSPECTIVES IN INDIA
ARTICLE INFO: Date of Submission: Feb 11, 2026, Revised: Feb 22, 2026, Accepted: Feb 24 , 2026, CrossRef D.O.I : https://doi.org/10.56815/ijmrr.v5i2.2026.254-264. HOW TO CITE: Barun Das (2026). Negotiated Displacement: Dalit Feminism, Migration, Transnational Care Economies, and Global Feminist Perspectives in India. International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research & Reviews. 5(2). 254-264
Abstract
This article examines the intersection of Dalit feminism, migration, and
transnational care economies in India within the framework of global
feminist perspectives. Situated against the backdrop of caste-based
marginalization and gendered inequalities, Dalit women’s migration—both
internal and transnational—is shaped by structural constraints as well as
opportunities for agency. The study foregrounds how processes of rural–
urban migration, participation in informal and global labour markets, and
involvement in care economies produce new forms of identity,
vulnerability, and negotiation. Rather than interpreting migration solely as
displacement or exploitation, the article conceptualizes it as a site of
negotiated agency, where Dalit women strategically navigate caste
hierarchies, economic precarity, and patriarchal norms across local and global contexts.
Methodologically, the study adopts a qualitative and interdisciplinary
approach, using textual analysis of Dalit feminist writings, policy review,
and secondary data on migration and labour. Guided by an intersectional
framework, it examines how caste, gender, class, and global economic
structures shape migration experiences.
The analysis demonstrates that Dalit women’s participation in migration and
care work is characterized by both exploitation and empowerment, mediated
through everyday negotiations with family structures, labour markets, and
institutional systems. While transnational care economies often reproduce
inequalities, they also create spaces for economic mobility, identity
transformation, and collective assertion. The article concludes that Dalit
feminism offers a critical lens for rethinking global feminism by
foregrounding caste as a central axis of power and by emphasizing
negotiation as a key mode of feminist practice. It calls for more inclusive
policy frameworks and feminist analyses that recognize the complexity of
Dalit women’s lived experiences in a globalizing world.
