Equality vs. Equity & Justice
Hi friends!
In this blog post, I’ve chosen my favorite quotes from an article published by George Washington University to explain the difference between equality and equity. I really enjoyed their article, so instead of recreating it, I’m going to be pointing you toward this resource.
Before though, I want to share that in conversations I’ve had with different people lately, equality seems to be the focus of what people think we need. I realized that many folks didn’t know the difference between equality and equity, so that’s why I want to share this resource. Our systems, processes, and policies that we live by every day (local, state, and federal) haven’t always been designed as equitable or just. They have been designed intentionally to favor one group over the other because of discrimination and the idea that one group is superior to the other. I have witnessed instances where policies were unintentionally created to disproportionately favor one group over another, and that happens when folks are not properly represented when decisions are being made, when folks making decisions are “blind” to the inequities in their communities, or when folks do not check their biases before making decisions.
My hope is that by reading this blog post and the GW article, folks will keep in mind the idea that we’ve got to develop systems and policies that don’t create or perpetuate injustice but create equity for the people affected. Making informed decisions, considering all people, having folks who represent the population at the table, and striving always to improve and do better are essential pieces to getting this right. We’re all humans and will make mistakes, so let’s learn from those and continuously improve.
Please comment on this blog post or start a conversation with me on Instagram (@KaylaFaheyAhrndt) to continue this conversation.
Quote 1 — What is the difference between Equality and Equity?
“Equality means each individual or group of people is given the same resources or opportunities. Equity recognizes that each person has different circumstances and allocates the exact resources and opportunities needed to reach an equal outcome.”
Quote 2 — What is Equity, and what is Justice?
“Equity is a solution for addressing imbalanced social systems. Justice can take equity one step further by fixing the systems in a way that leads to long-term, sustainable, equitable access for generations to come.”
Quote 3 — The World Health Organization on Equity
‘According to the World Health Organization (WHO), equity is defined External link as "the absence of avoidable or remediable differences among groups of people, whether those groups are defined socially, economically, demographically or geographically." Therefore, as the WHO notes, health inequities involve more than lack of equal access to needed resources to maintain or improve health outcomes. They also refer to difficulty when it comes to ‘inequalities that infringe on fairness and human rights norms.’”
Quote 4 — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Equity
“The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) refers to health equity External link as "when everyone has the opportunity to be as healthy as possible." As such, equity is a process and equality is an outcome of that process.”
Quote 5 — Race Matters Institute on Equity
“Or, as the Race Matters Institute describes, ‘The route to achieving equity will not be accomplished through treating everyone equally. It will be achieved by treating everyone equitably, or justly according to their circumstances.’”
