ARE WE EQUAL?

WHAT IS MEANT BY EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES DOES IT REALLY EXIST TODAY?

Through history society has evolved and made major strides in the equality battle, but are we truly all equal? Every individual has their own opinion whether or not as a nation we have obtained equality. Depending on who was asked, I can guarantee you would receive a plethora of differing responses. We can only say that we are truly a untied equal society when the population all respond with the same answer concerning equality.


Equal opportunity can be defined as an approach intended to provide a certain social environment in which people are not excluded from the activities of society. The activities that every individual shall have include the right to education, employment, and health care. Equal opportunity ensures that discrimination against an individual’s race, sex, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, political belief, and mental or physical disability is not tolerated in society today. Without these laws today, discrimination of many types may go unchecked and as a result lead to a tremendous hardship to others.


One historical figure that symbolizes equal opportunity for all Americans is the Statue of Liberty. The Statue of Liberty is located in New York Harbor on the Liberty Island, and serves as an entry zone for new immigrants that have arrived to New York in hopes of living a prosperous life. The statue foreshadows a new life for the immigrants that are filled with optimism. The immigrants believe that equal opportunities will be available to them here in the United States, as they where unable to obtain these right in their homeland. Their goal is to seek the most beneficial opportunities to positively affect their lives and future generations to come.


Many people have different ways in which they define equal opportunity and many influential people have gone to extreme measures in supporting their theories. One person that had a major impact on defining equal opportunity is Bernard Williams. Williams strongly supports the gate theory that states if people had equal, starts, then they would have equal chances. I agree with this theory and I believe that in our society today we will not achieved equal opportunity. If equal opportunity in employment is presented to every individual then why does poverty and homelessness still exist in our country? I believe the reason why poverty and homelessness exist in our society is because an individual can only obtain equal opportunities when no barriers are present to prevent them from attaining their goal. As a result, I feel children do not start off life with equal chances because the barriers that were present in their family before they where born continue to exist.


Another reason why I believe equal opportunity does not exist in our society is due to discrimination in the school system. Schooling has a great impact on equal opportunity because money spent on school teachers, facilities, and books are not equally divided amongst the schools in our country and can make a tremendous difference in the type of education provided. For example, if a child is born into a well to do family their educational experience will be much more beneficial compared to a child that is born into a less fortunate family. Nevertheless, equal opportunity is not present because the well to do family has the ability to put their child through better schooling because of their financial status.


Equal opportunity is a goal our nation strives to provide for all individuals. However, I do not agree this goal will be fulfilled, given the fact that equal opportunities will not be available to all individuals because although the government supports these rights, it is the responsibility of the American people to further support these rights in order to effectuate equal opportunity. In today’s society, a great many people do not support the right of equal opportunity. As such, there is increasing violations of discrimination in the areas in race, religion, and creed.