2004 Proutist Universal 1

Proutist Economic Development

Psychic Exploitation

Dada Maheshvarananda

Proutist Universal 2

Colonialism

• An incredible lust for gold, silver, land and other riches propelled the Spanish and Portuguese to invade virtually every part of South and Central America.

• With superior weapons, they enslaved and massacred the native populations.

• Colonialists also imposed inferiority complex.• “Your culture is primitive, your religion is defective, your

language is unsophisticated.” – they said.• This weakened the people’s will to resist.

Proutist Universal 3

Pseudo-culture

• When colonies gained political independence, capitalists changed their technique.

• Pseudo-culture means that which is fake, imposed, which does not uplift people:– It paralyzes the society;– It offers material pleasure, consumerism;– It undermine the people’s will and local culture.

Proutist Universal 4

Advertising• Portrays a very pleasurable life.• Makes people want the glamorous clothes, cars and

houses seen on TV. • E.g. Many Venezuelan children see their parents

struggling with insufficient money:

They start to feel backward and primitive. • So the media makes people want to be rich …

… and white!

Proutist Universal 5

The Exploitation of Women • Prout views the domination of women as a historical

process, linked to the larger problem of imperialism.

• In the Middle Ages, leaders of different religions, to maintain their power, created religious edicts to cripple women in every sphere and turn them into wage-less slaves.

• Now, in most countries men continue to earn more than women at every level of education.

• TV, films and magazines use women’s faces and bodies to advertise everything from cigarettes to car parts …

… turning women into commodities valued only for their sex appeal.

• In modern times, some capitalists have made huge profits from prostitution and pornography.

Proutist Universal 6

The Awakening of Women

To end patriarchal exploitation and discrimination:

• Free education for all • No social or religious discrimination • Economic self-reliance for women • Social justice

Proutist Universal 7

Join the Global March of Women

Proutist Universal 8

MTV:• Created in 1981;• 250 million households in 71 countries receive it;• Owner is Sumner Redstone, one of the ten wealthiest men in

the world, with assets of over US$10 billion; • The most influential educator in the world, but his only message

is to consume;• Parents and teachers have a hard time competing with this for

the attention of their children.

Media

Proutist Universal 9

Language Suppression

• People express their thoughts and feelings through language.

• In Venezuela there are 40 indigenous languages spoken.

• 170,000 people who live along the Colombian border speak Wayuu.

• Next is Yanomami, spoken by 12,000 Venezuelans.

• The other indigenous languages are in danger of extinction.

http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=Venezuela

• Every language should be given equal rights and recognition.

Proutist Universal 10

No suppression of language

• “ … the suppression of language has a very dangerous effect on the human mind. As a result of this unrelenting suppression, people will never be able to raise their heads and they will die a premature and unnatural death. The most important point in this regard is that such a linguistically suppressed group of people will always remain economically backward due to continuous psycho-economic exploitation. It is a matter of great regret that this tragedy is going on all over the world … .” – P R Sarkar

Proutist Universal 11

“Our Culture is Our Strength!”

• Samaj (social) movements, led by moral leaders, struggle to achieve economic democracy.

• They are social, economic and cultural movements for the all-round welfare of the people.

• The meaning of the word ‘samaj’ is to move together.• People should make every effort to carry those who

are lagging behind with them. This is the spirit of society.

Proutist Universal 12

Equal language rights

• PROUT clearly advocates that in every progressive and dynamic social system, all languages should enjoy equal rights, equal opportuni ty and equal recognition.

• One should also remember that this recognition should not remain confined to theory or to reading and writing only.

• Languages should be utilized in day to day life and in all related activities. In all spheres of life: offices, courts, railways, airports, trade, commerce, and private con cerns - the medium of expression should be the mother tongue.

Proutist Universal 13

And commonality is also welcome

• In the educational sphere there should be no bar in learning languages, in addition ot one's mother tongue, to expand the horizon and depth of one's knowledge.

• In the practical field, where there is some special or technical necessity, whether in public or private life, the compulsory use of one's mother tongue may create some confusion. In such circumstances an appropriate common language may be used.

• Concerning the spirit of society, it should be remembered that there is no conflict in propagating and popularising a particular language as a national or international link language or lingua franca, providing all other languages get equal scope for their development.