Unequal Paths: How Spatial Opportunity and Affirmative Action Shape Social Mobility Among Ex-Untouchable Castes

This article examines the pathways to upward social mobility for historically stigmatized groups, whose advancement is constrained by stigma, discrimination, and spatial segregation. While existing literatures on affirmative action and residential inequality offer valuable insights, they rarely speak to each other, leaving key mechanisms and intra-group disparities underexplored. I argue that historically contingent processes shape the organization of spatial opportunities within neighborhood environments. These opportunities in conjunction with affirmative action determine who achieves upward mobility. Drawing on a mixed-methods approach – including a unique dataset on the occupational class of disaggregated ex-untouchable castes, longue durée historical ethnography, interviews, and cartography – I compare mobility outcomes across 12 ex-untouchable castes in Ajmer, India. The case of the Kolis illustrates how historically enriched residential environment enabled greater access to affirmative action and entry into the middle class.