Freedom Vs. Equality
Equality and freedom are essential pillars of our democracy, yet their tension has been fiercely debated for centuries. The US was founded upon the principle of liberty for good reason, as it is key to a functioning democracy. At the same time, without the fight for equality, we would still be stuck in colonial times where only property-owning, cishet white men had any say in government. As students and future global leaders, we must aim for the highest possible levels of freedom and equality that can reasonably coexist.
Instead of aiming for true equality, however, we should be looking to implement equitable systems. Equity acknowledges that each person has different circumstances, and should be given the resources and opportunities they specifically need for true fairness to exist.
Think of equity like this: three people of different heights are trying to reach a shelf. The shortest person would need a tall stool, the person of medium height would need a moderately sized stool and the tallest would not need anything. These different boosts would make them all the same height—equals—yet the amount of boosters for each person would vary. If we took an equal route, everyone would still be at different heights.
The US currently functions under unstable proportions of freedom and equity. Recently, our democracy has especially struggled with freedom of speech and equal rights. Since the recent inauguration of Donald Trump, many large corporations in America have gotten rid of protections against hate speech and/or discrimination. As the Washington Post reports, Amazon quietly got rid of protective rights for LGBTQ employees; Mark Zuckerberg discontinued hate speech filtration on Meta platforms, including Instagram and Facebook, according to AP News.
Many Americans argue that these initiatives uphold their constitutional right to freedom of speech. However, the freedom to spew hatred online or in the workplace infringes upon minorities’ rights to equal and fair treatment. A middle ground does exist: Companies could dedicate more resources to examining each instance of controversial speech on a case-by-case basis rather than using an algorithm or a flat-out ban on censorship.
Outside of corporate and political America, the conflict between liberty and equity is still very much a reality. The National Center for Systemic Improvement speaks about how the United States education system lacks equity.
“Schools serving more students of color are less likely to offer advanced courses and programs for gifted children than schools serving mostly white populations,” the database said. “Additionally, students of color are less likely than their white peers to be enrolled in those courses and programs within schools that have those offerings.”
A way to fix this inequitable circumstance would be to give more funds to schools serving more students of color and to offer advanced courses for all students. Currently, public education funding is contested by conservatives as they feel it infringes on their liberty by unnecessary taxation. Despite their views, equity is the best choice for students nationwide because it supplies the tools for success. Equity ensures that opportunities and resources can be distributed in ways that help all Americans reach their full potential, regardless of their background, creating a more informed and capable population more prepared to contribute to society in a productive manner.