Seattle, Washington this week became the first U.S. city to add "caste" discrimination to its anti-discrimination laws. The Ordinance (full text), enacted on Feb. 21, in Section 14.04.030 defines caste as:
a system of rigid social stratification characterized by hereditary status, endogamy, and social barriers sanctioned by custom, law, or religion.
The Ordinance begins with some two-dozen "Whereas" clauses. They assert in part that:
... caste discrimination is based on birth and descent, and occurs in the form of social segregation, physical and psychological abuse, and violence; and
... caste discrimination manifests in employment, education, and housing....
Time has a lengthy background article on the new legislation.
