Al-Akhdam
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Al-Akhdam
| Total population |
|---|
| ~500,000 - ~1,000,000 (5% of the Yemeni population) |
| Regions with significant populations |
| Sana'a, Aden, Ta'izz, Lahij, Abyan, Al Hudaydah, Al Mukalla |
| Languages |
| Religion |
Al-Akhdam or Akhdam (singular Khadem, meaning "servant" in Arabic; also called Al-Muhamasheen, "the marginalized ones") is a social group in Yemen distinct from the majority by their more African features. They are considered to be at the very bottom of the social ladder in Yemen.[1] They are mostly confined to menial jobs and living on the fringes of society.
According to official estimates, they numbered around 500,000 in 2004, while other estimates put their number as high as more than 1 million in 2007 (out of a total Yemeni population of 22 million).
In Yemen, they are popularly believed to be the descendants of Ethiopian soldiers of the Aksumite Empire that occupied modern-day Yemen more than 1,500 years ago and who remained there as slaves or servants of the local population after the occupation ended.[1] Most Akhdam live in slums at the outskirts of the major cities: 100,000 of them live in San‘a’, others are in Aden, Ta'izz, Lahij, Abyan, Al Hudaydah and Al Mukalla.
Though conditions have improved somewhat in modern times, Al-Akhdam are still stereotyped by mainstream Yemeni society; they have been called lowly, dirty, immoral and untouchables.[2][3] They form a kind of hereditary caste at the very bottom of Yemeni social strata. A 2008 New York Times report claims that Yemen has over 1 million of these discriminated and ostracized Al-Akhdam people, that is about 5 percent of Yemen population.[4][5][6]
Anthropologists such as Vombruck suggest that Yemen's history, and social hierarchy that developed under regimes such as the Zaydi Imamate, created a caste-like society.[7]
Many NGOs and charitable organizations from other countries such as CARE International are working towards the emancipation of the Akhdam.[8]
References
- ^ a b Robert F. Worth, "Languishing at the Bottom of Yemen’s Ladder", New York Times, (February 27 2008)
- ^ Marguerite Abadjian (April 22 2004). "In Yemen, lowest of the low". The Baltimore Sun.
- ^ "Caste In Yemen". Baltimore Sun. April 25 2004. http://www.countercurrents.org/hr-marguerite250404.htm.
- ^ Worth, Robert (December 7, 2008). "In slums without hope, Yemen's untouchables". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/27/world/africa/27iht-yemen.1.10463399.html.
- ^ Caste In Yemen
- ^ IRIN
- ^ GABRIELE VOMBRUCK (June 1996). "Being worthy of protection. The dialectics of gender attributes in Yemen". Social Anthropology 4 (2): 145–162. DOI:10.1111/j.1469-8676.1996.tb00322.x.
- ^ Yemen Times
External links
- The International Solidarity Network: The Al-Akhdam in Yemen
- The Akhdam of Yemen - A photogallery by The New York Times
- Akhdam - Imamate's caste system, Mahwa - Yemen's slums
- Worth, R.F. 2008, 'In slums without hope, Yemen's untouchables', International Herald Tribune, 27 February. Retrieved on 29 April 2008.
- IRIN 2005, 'YEMEN: Akhdam people suffer history of discrimination', IRIN News, 1 November.
- IRIN 2009, 'YEMEN: Girls, poor and black children most discriminated against - study', IRIN News, 15 March. Retrieved on 16 March 2009.
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