Pedagogy, public sociology and politics in India - What is to be done?

The current phase of economic liberalization may be understood in terms of a shift in the notion of the nation, especially the shrinking of the public sphere and the increasing exclusion of subaltern groups from public discourse. Disadvantaged groups can only strive for recognition by invoking the fictive ideal of 'community' with moral claims upon the nation-state. The engagement of sociologists in these struggles may entail suppressing critical issues, steering clear of questions about internal democracy, ideological contradictions or long-term strategy. To orient and equip students and younger scholars to engage in a public sociology that speaks to subaltern causes, we need to change the academy itself - its internal values and its terms of engagement with others outside it.