[Reader-list] Identification and social

[Saba Dewan]

I am reminded of a recent conversation. A up and coming trans Yamuna
housing society has a children's park located at its entrance. It has
swings, slides and
benches. However the society residents constantly complain that there is

no place where their children can go and play in the evenings after
school. When I pointed out the park they explained that since children
from the neighbouring
slum areas played on the swings during the day `their' kids couldn't be
sent there during the evening. Several complaints had been made to the
resident association to step up security and ensure that `outside'
children are
not able to sneak inside the park. Here, the `other' is a  small child
who by merely
playing pollutes/contaminates/devalues and threatens middle class
utopias !

Saba Dewan