Inequality is something that we all experience or witness in one form or another, and it is present in most aspects of our society. As part of our work for Goal 10 Reduced Inequalities, we gave students and teachers the opportunity to share their thoughts and ideas with us on Padlet. We were impressed by the number of responses we received and the interesting ideas people shared. If you haven't had a look yet, check it out using this link.
Inequalities in our community
We live in a very safe environment, so inequalities aren't immediately obvious, but unfortunately they do exist, however small they are. In their responses to our Padlet, several people identified aspects of themselves that they are aware could cause them to face inequalities in our society.
Gender:
One of the major gender inequalities that still exists in our society is the wage gap between women and men. As well as this, gender stereotypes can cause inequalities; they affect how people view themselves, the goals they feel they are able to achieve and the careers they choose.
Sexual orientation:
People face discrimination at work, in school and at home because of their sexual orientation. People should have access to all human rights, no matter who they love or which gender they identify as.
Race:
Many people face discrimination and unequal opportunities because of their race. Some people treat you differently depending on your race.
Mental health:
Mental health maybe isn't the first inequality that comes into your mind, but it is something faced by many people.
Depression: People all around the world face inequalities in terms of how their depression is treated. As for causing inequalities, depression makes many aspects of life difficult - from getting out of bed in the morning to concentrating on work to interacting with other people. Suffering from depression can impact a person's ability to succeed academically or in their jobs.
Anxiety and social anxiety: Both general anxiety and social anxiety have big impacts on your self-confidence and self-esteem, which makes many day-to-day activities more challenging. It can cause people to miss out on opportunities because they are too anxious to speak up, or they are convinced that they'll fail so they decide that it is safer not to try. If you are facing another inequality, having social anxiety might prevent you from seeking help and support because of a fear that you would just be bothering the other person with your problems.
how can we fight inequality as a community?
We received many suggestions for what we can do as a community to reduce inequalities, here are some of them:
Raising awareness: Educating other's about inequality is vital; if we don't know what the problem is, how can we fix it? There are a number of ways you can educate yourself about inequality: read books, articles and blogs, watch videos, talk to your friends, check out the links at the bottom of this blog.
Teamwork: Having everyone working together is one of the best ways to fight inequality; if we all cooperate, we can create a community-wide difference. Talking to other people is also important. Talking about inequalities can be difficult, so listening to someone who needs to talk to you about a problem is one of the best thing you can do. If you feel like you are experiencing an inequality or a discrimination of any kind, talking to someone not only gives you a sense of relief, but also the other person might be able to provide you with help and suggestions; talk to your friends, your family - whoever you trust - because acknowledging that an inequality exists is the first step in fighting it.
Acceptance and open-mindedness: Everyone is different, whether it's our personalities, beliefs, religion, sexual orientation, hobbies,... . To fight inequality we need to understand that just because someone is different, doesn't mean that their rights should be any different. We are all human, and should all have access to the same opportunities, resources and rights.
We can all work together to ensure that our community promotes equality, acceptance and open-mindedness; inequality is something that effects us all to some extent, and if we all take small steps by making sure we are accepting of differences and respect the people around us, we can help to fight inequality.
“We must work together to ensure the equitable distribution of wealth, opportunity, and power in our society.”
–NELSON MANDELA
Want to find out more?
Read the responses from students and teachers on our Padlet here.
Find out about Goal 10 Reduced Inequalities on the United Nations website.
Read articles on this website to find out about a number of different inequalities.
This website explains discrimination and inequality, and gives some suggestions for how to fight it.
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