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2 comments
At a base level, no human is inherently better than another, and so equality should be a basic human right
There is no reason why one person should suffer because of the conditions of their birth. Race, gender, class, sexuality, and any other social descriptor should not prevent someone from attaining the highest quality of life. It really is as simple as that...
Equality between social groups - especially in terms of [human rights] (https://www.equalityhumanrights.com/en/human-rights/what-are-human-rights) and [equality of opportunity] (https://www.britannica.com/topic/equal-opportunity) - is important. Whether it can ever be fully achieved is another matter, but we should always strive for it.
It is an inescapable part of human programming that [we find it harder to empathise] (https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/blog/close-encounters/201812/why-do-we-people-who-are-similar-us) with people who are different from us. This means that it can be easy, especially from a socially privileged position, to accept inequality.
But - divisions between social groups like race and gender does not affect [our basic common humanity] (https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescoachescouncil/2020/06/15/the-power-of-common-humanity/?sh=3562f90f50d0). We are all the same in a vital sense. This is why equality of human rights is the most important interpretation of the effort to 'make all groups equal in society'.
The other is in terms of opportunity - each individual is different. We can't enforce 'equality' in terms of a perfect balance between all social groups in all areas of society. But - rather than discrimination based purely on our identity within a social group, what should be worked towards is a consideration of the individual. Each person should, in theory, be given the room to succeed or fail based on their own capabilities.
Western society is [skewed in favour of certain social groups] (http://www.scrippscollege.edu/xbk/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/files/Power-Privilege-and-Oppression.pdf) - and it's something that we as a whole should not be complacent about. An equalising of opportunity can be worked towards by [providing for those whose choices are limited] (https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1525/ctx.2007.6.3.23). We might never fully achieve equality - but recognising the biases we have and attempting consciously to shift them, is an important step towards evening the playing field.
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