What is the difference between equality and equity anyway?
Barriers exist within our culture and keep certain groups of people out of where certain other groups of people want to be. This used to be more blatant in the form of Jim Crow laws and redlining, but it still exists today and affects people of all marginalized identities. For a long time civil rights activists fought for equality, but that did not eliminate barriers, it simply allowed a few more people the ability to pass the barriers and access that which most still could not. Today we fight for equity instead of equality. What does that mean, though?
Welcome to class! Let’s break it down.
Interaction Institute for Social Change | Artist: Angus Maguire.
You may have seen this image floating around social media. It comes from here. The image shows three people trying to watch a ball game but they cannot all see over the fence. In the first panel, each person is given equal access to the game in the form of a box to stand on. However, this doesn’t serve everyone equally despite them being given equal opportunities. The tallest person never needed a box to begin with and now has an even greater view of the field. The middle person can now see the game. However, the shortest person still cannot see and is still being prevented from viewing the game through the same barrier.
This is equality. Everyone gets the same. I read a silly book when I was a kid about a family whose parents were committed to treating their children equally so that when they had a new baby, they put all the children in diapers. Equality isn’t the goal we should be striving for after all.
Equity, however, looks at the needs of individuals and supports those needs. So now in the second panel we have all three people able to view the game because their individual needs are being met. The tallest person never needed a box, so instead two boxes were given to the shortest person. Not everyone received the same accommodations, but the end result was that everyone was able to have the same experience. This is equity.
(Liberation goes on to ask, “Why is there a fence at all?” We will get to this in a future class reading.)
Here is another version of this same idea (found here). The first panel shows four people who have been given bicycles. The bicycles are all the same kind and size. But this doesn’t work for everyone. One person uses a wheelchair as a mobility aid so they need a modified bike. The second person is too tall and needs a bigger bike. The third person fits this bike just perfectly, but the fourth person is too small and needs a smaller bike. In the second panel, they all have the right bike for each of them.
Barriers can be physical such as the fence or bikes in these graphics, or in the form of stairs to get into a building or a sign specifying that certain races are not allowed. But they can also be access to government aid, education, housing, or food. Barriers can do as little as keep someone out of a ball game or they can end a person’s life.
When I was in university a few years ago, one of my children was experiencing health issues and I needed to be able to see my phone at all times in case something happened. Most of my professors were very understanding, but a few had rules they felt strict about. “If I let you have your phone out, I have to let everyone else have their phone out, too.” I heard this over and over again, but it’s a fallacy. Most of my classmates did not have children in the hospital at that time so most people in the class had no need to have their phone out.
Furthermore, accommodations make communities better for everyone. A person who is normally abled, but temporarily injured, can use the same access ramps that were created for those with permanent or chronic needs. Imagine if we didn’t have the ADA to guarantee that buildings are accessible? Accessibility benefits everyone, not just the Disabled community.
Equity meets needs in a way that equality simply cannot. A one-size-fits-all approach never fits everyone, but providing accommodations for everyone makes an actual, measurable difference in the world. Keep fighting!
Homework Assignment:
Super easy this week! Share one of these images (please credit the original sources!) on your social media to help spread awareness. Or, if you prefer, you can share my Facebook post here.
