Equity and Equality in the Society
Introduction
Understanding the difference between equity and equality is crucial in discussions about social justice and creating a fairer society. A society is doomed for failure if the concepts of Equity and Equality are not applied appropriately. Let’s explore the definitions of equity and equality and where and why they are applied and then discuss how they can make and break the society:
Equality: Equality refers to the state of being equal, where everyone is treated the same and has the same rights and opportunities. It emphasizes uniformity and fairness by ensuring that individuals are not discriminated against based on their characteristics or circumstances. The goal of equality is to eliminate discrimination and provide equal treatment and access to resources or opportunities for everyone, regardless of their background.
Equity: Equity, on the other hand, recognizes that not everyone starts from the same position or has the same needs. It focuses on fairness by addressing the specific barriers or disadvantages that certain individuals or groups face. Equity involves providing individuals with what they need to have equal opportunities and access to resources. It aims to level the playing field by taking into account historical disadvantages, systemic biases, and structural inequalities.
Lets take a quick example – If you look at a 400 m and 100 m running race track, one would find an interesting difference at the starting position of the athletes. On a 100 m running race, all athletes start on the same line and end on the same line. That’s equality – treating everyone the same manner.
Now at 400 m race track, the athlete at the inner most lane starts behind the next athlete who starts a few feet in front of him who starts behind the next and so on until the last athlete on the outer most lane starting ahead of everyone. This is Equity – compensating a few feet to every athlete considering the upcoming curvature of individuals’ lane at every turn to make sure every athlete is running exact 400 m.
In practice, equity may involve redistributing resources, providing additional support or accommodations to disadvantaged groups, and implementing policies that address the root causes of inequality. It recognizes that treating everyone equally may not result in an equitable outcome if there are pre-existing disparities or systemic barriers in place. Equity is applied in various contexts to promote fairness and social justice.
Is Equality applied Equally in this Society ?
Having understood the difference between both Equity and Equality, lets see its usage is impacting the society on certain issues –
Consider Law and Order situation – We might have heard statements like “All are equal in the eyes of law” or “Anyone who violates law, must be punished in the same way” etc., This looks good and idealistic, because the underlying principle is everyone should be afraid of same repercussions in response to a wrong doing .. But are they actually having that.. Please go through the scenarios below –
A car is speeding on a highway at 10-15 units over the posted speed limits. A cop stopped the car and imposed a $100 speeding ticket. If we are thinking that this is equality, is it yielding the right response if it is revealed that car one is Bugatti driven by a young man chilling with a bunch of his friends in it and ready to take $100 bill to offer as a tip at a valet the other car is a Toyota driven by a young professional running late for an job interview?
Equality here breaks the society here as in the true sense the repercussions of speeding is largely impacting a youngster running late for a job interview than a billionaire, who is barely impacted.
Similarly, showing equity in some cases is equally bad. Consider the societal treatment when a Women come out as domestic violence or rape victim vs Men coming out as same. Men are often laughed upon or even mistreated just because of their gender which is Equity wrongly applied.
Conclusion
Equality and Equality are more of a tools in delivering social justice in the society. If applied inappropriately, yield negative results. But if not properly understood, they spell doom for the society.
