Thomas Jefferson, the third president of the united states, once wrote, “We hold these truths to be scared & undeniable; that all men are created equal & independent” (Jefferson 193). Indeed, these words couldn’t be any truer in this day and age. The term Inequality was first defined with a mathematical link as being the difference in size and degree. But if one is asked to define inequality today, he would most likely not give its initial mathematical definition. One would define it as a lack of equality between individuals based on many factors, such as their income, gender and ethnicity. Inequality officially held its new and changed definition during the time of slavery; and that is when inequality reached its peak.
It is certain that most of us have faced some type of unfairness in our lives; whether it be in our workplace, our educational institution or in any other social environment. That is when we witness someone getting a better reward than us, when in reality they didn’t put in the same amount of effort as we did; and that is because that individual may have an advantage over us. That advantage may be linked to their social class, gender or race. Thus, inequality, unfortunately, is a common predicament that most of us have experienced and will keep on experiencing in our day to day life. The distinction in our society’s social classes, genders and ethnicities is the most common factor that animates the sense of inequality.
Through the distinction of each social class, one can face inequality. What distinguishes a social class from the other is the amount of income a class earns. Therefore, the main factor that determines the belonging of an individual to a social class is his income. In other words, the wealth of an individual determines his places in society; and it is evident that the higher one’s social class is, the higher his advantage over others will be. For example, one who is born into a financially stable family won’t have to worry about the quality and level of education he will be receiving in the future.
127 our experts are availableright now
Unlike middle or low class individuals, who aren’t offered the luxury of choosing between the best educational institutions. These individuals face a battle of whether getting a higher education is financially worth it or not; and if they end up making the decision of attending college, they will most likely end up having to carry student loans and having to pay them off through a period of their lifetime. Even if a middle or low class individual ends up getting a college diploma that does not guarantee him a successful career; and the reason behind that may be because he doesn’t have the right social connections that will lead him to better career opportunities.
The following is one of the leading advantages of belonging to a higher social class because those relations may determine one’s success; hence, a financially secure future. Additionally, it is recognized that financial inequality is increasing throughout the years, where the rich is becoming richer and the less-fortunate aren’t witnessing any improvements. Such instability is leading to various economic problems, due to the lack of unification between all social classes; that is because each individual chooses to live in a neighborhood based on their income. Therefore, each class will live in a different social environment.
By experiencing gender discrimination, one can face inequality. “As a girl I was kept under strict surveillance, since virtue and modesty were, by cultural equation, the same as family honor.” (Coffer 104) expresses Cofer in her essay, where she writes about all the obstacles she faced living as a Puerto Rican woman, which include the inferior and degrading way she was treated by the opposite gender. Cofer mentions all the limitations that were forced upon her and other Latina women; and being culturally forced to live in a virtual box, where the freedom of speech and physical expression is nonexistent. It is not shocking that gender discrimination is still present to this day; in many countries women aren’t seen to be equal to men, where both genders don’t have the same rights.
These countries, whose illiteracy rate is significantly higher than other developed countries, still choose to prioritize men over women in terms of educational rights. Although these social issues are not present in advanced countries, women still experience gender inequality. In the last couple of years, women in the US have voiced their opinion about the salary gap between both genders. Having men being paid more than women for the same amount of effort being put in their work is a pure illustration of what gender inequality consists of. Thus, a majority if not all women face the predicament of proving their equal worth to men in our society.
