Subject: Political Science Assignment No: Notes

Topic: Equality Class: X1

What is Equality?
Equality is a powerful moral and political ideal that has inspired and guided human society for
many centuries. It is implicit in all faiths and religions which proclaim all human beings to be the
creation of God.
It maintains that human beings deserve equal consideration and respect because of their common
humanity. It is this notion of a shared humanity that lies behind, for instance, the notions of
universal human rights or ‘crimes against humanity
In the eighteenth century, the French revolutionaries used the slogan ‘Liberty, Equality and
Fraternity’ to revolt against the landed feudal aristocracy and the monarchy. The French
Revolution Recorded” Men are born Free and equal in rights. Social distinctions can be based
only upon public utility .”
TWO ASPECTS OF EQUALTY
Positive Aspect:
 To Provide adequate opportunities to all.
 Every individual should get equal opportunities to develop one’s own potential up to their
best level.
NEGATIVE ASPECT:
 It refers to undue privileges to people.
 To remove man made inequalities in the society.
 No one should be discriminated on the grounds of colour ,race, religion, language.
SIGNIFICANCE OF EQUALITY

 Respects human rights

Equality is a fundamental human right and a key part of democratic societies. It ensures that all
people have equal rights and opportunities to develop their talents and skills.
 Combats discrimination
Equality is a fight against discrimination and the idea that some groups or individuals are
privileged over others.
 Provides equal opportunities
Equality means that everyone has the same opportunities to grow and develop their
potential. This includes equal access to education and public goods and services.
 Promotes equal consideration
Equality means that all people are entitled to equal consideration and respect because of their
common humanity.
 Reduces inequalities
Equality can help reduce inequalities of income and ensure equal opportunities by eliminating
discriminatory laws, policies, and practices.

 Equal Protection of Law

The principle of equality denies granting special facilities or rights to the class or any
individual of the society and enforcing the same law on all persons or classes is in favor
of that.
FEMINISM
Feminism is a political doctrine of equal rights for women and men.
Feminists are those men and women who believe that many of the inequalities we see in
society between men and women are neither natural nor necessary and can be altered so
that both women and men can lead free and equal lives.
 According to feminists, inequality between men and women in society is the result of
patriarchy. Patriarchy is based on the assumption that men and women are different by
nature and that this difference justifies their unequal positions in society.
 Feminists questions this way of thinking by making a distinction between “sex” i.e.
biological difference between men and women, and “gender” which determines the
different roles that men and women play in society.
 Feminists show us that much of the inequality between men and women is produced by
society and not by nature.
 Patriarchy produces a division of labour by which women are supposed to be responsible
for “private” and “domestic” matters while men are responsible for work in the “public”
domain.
 Feminists question this distinction by pointing out that in fact most women are also active
in the “public” domain.
 That is, most women all over the world are employed in some form of work outside the
home, but women continue to be solely responsible for house-work as well. However
despite this “double burden” as feminists term it, women are given little or no say in
decisions taken in the public domain.
 Feminist contend that this public/private distinction and all forms of gender inequalities
can and should be eliminated.
SOCIALISM
Socialism refers to a set of political ideas that emerged as a response to the inequalities
present in, and reproduced by, the industrial capitalist economy.
 The main concern of Socialism is how to minimise existing inequality and distribute
resources justly. Although advocates of socialism are not entirely opposed to the market,
they favour some kind of government regulation, planning and control over certain key
areas such as education and health care.
  In India the eminent socialist thinker Rammanohar Lohia, identified five kinds of
inequalities that need to be fought against simultaneously:
o inequality between man and woman,
o inequality based on skin colour,
o caste-based inequality,
o colonial rule of some countries over others, and, of course,
o economic inequality.
 Other inequalities did not matter or would end automatically if economic inequality could
be ended.
 Lohia argued that each of these inequalities had independent roots and had to be fought
separately and simultaneously. For him struggle against these five inequalities constituted
five revolutions.
 He added two more revolutions to this list :
o revolution for civil liberties against unjust encroachments on private life
and
o revolution for non-violence, for renunciation of weapons in favour of
Satyagraha. These were the seven revolutions or Sapta Kranti which for
Lohia was the ideal of socialism
MARXISM
 Marx wan an important 19th Century thinker.
 According to him the root cause of entrenched inequality was private ownership of
important economic resources such as oil, or land, or forests, as well as other forms of
property.
 He pointed out that such private ownership did not only make the class of owners
wealthy, it also gave them political power
 Such power enables them to influence state policies and laws and this could prove a
threat to democratic government
 Therefore to tackle inequality in society we need to go beyond providing equal
opportunities and try and ensure public control over essential resources and forms of
property
LIBERALISM
 Liberals uphold the principle of competition as the most efficient and fair way of
distributing resources and rewards in society.
 They believe that while states may have to intervene to try and ensure a minimum
standard of living and equal opportunities for all, this cannot by itself bring equality and
justice to society.
 Competition between people in free and fair conditions is the most just and efficient way
of distributing rewards in a society.
 For them, as long as competition is open and free, inequalities are unlikely to become
entrenched and people will get due reward for their talents and efforts.
 For liberals the principle of competition is the most just and efficient way of selecting
candidates for jobs or admission to educational institutions.
 Unlike socialists, liberals do not believe that political, economic and social inequalities
are necessarily linked.
  The problem for liberals is not inequality as such, but unjust and entrenched inequalities
which prevent individuals from developing their capabilities
Political Equality:
 It is important to eliminate any legitimate obstacles which may prohibit individuals from
a voice in government and deny them admittance to available social goods
 Certain basic rights become centered around equal citizenship like the right to vote,
freedom of expression, movement and association and freedom of belief
 These are considered necessary to enable citizens to develop themselves and participate
in the affairs of the state
Social Equality :
 The first step in the pursuit of equality is the Equality before Law or Political Equality
however it needs to be complemented with the equality of opportunities
 The pursuit of equality requires that people belonging to different groups and
communities have a fair and equal chance to compete for those goods and opportunities
 A certain minimum conditions of life can be ensured to all members of the society only
by minimizing the effects of socio-economic inequalities
 In India, it’s not only the lack of equal opportunities or facilities but a special issue that
may exist centered around some of the customs which prevail across the country, or
among different groups. For instance, women may not enjoy equal rights of inheritance
in some groups
 Significant role of states: It should make policies to prevent discrimination or harassment
of women in public places or employment, etc
Economic Equality:
 They exist in a society if there are significant differences in wealth, property or income
between individuals or classes
 Measuring degree of economic inequality
 Quantifying the relative economic difference existing between the richest and poorest
group of individuals
 Estimating the ratio of population who live below the poverty line
 With sufficient efforts there is always a possibility of improving one’s standard of living
in a given society. However, despite these the inequalities may still exist even in the face
of equal opportunities

Danger of Inequalities:
 Inequalities which remain relatively untouched over generations are more dangerous for a
society
  Division of classes: If in a society certain classes of people have enjoyed considerable
wealth over generations
 Violence and resentment may become widespread over time due to differences
 It would be tough to form an open and egalitarian society via reforms due to the power of
the wealthy class of people
Ways to Promote Equality
Establishing Formal Equality:
 The formal institution of inequality and privileges must be put to end
 Customs and Legal Systems across the world have protected the inequalities and
marginalized some members of the society and kept them from enjoying certain rewards
and opportunities
 Equality can be attained only when all of these privileges and restrictions are ended.
 Equality can be realised when the laws of the land and the government stop sheltering the
gross inequalities in any form as many of them have their validation
Equality Through Differential Treatment:
 In order to make sure that people can reap the benefit of the rights conferred on them,
they sometimes need to be treated differently
 Hence, for such scenarios, the fundamental differences between the people has to be
recognised. For example, disabled people for fair access to public buildings need ramps
and other such friendly infrastructure
 Affirmative Action has also been used by several countries in order to augment the
equality of opportunity
Affirmative Action:
 It isn’t adequate to set up proper balance by law and it is important to go to some more
certain lengths to limit and kill dug-in types of social disparities
 It is designed to correct the cumulative effect of past inequalities
 It can take many forms, from preferential spending on facilities for disadvantaged
communities, such as, scholarships and hostels to special consideration for admissions to
educational institutions and jobs
 India has adopted a policy of quotas or reserved seats in education and jobs to provide
equality of opportunity to deprived groups
 Special protection: Certain groups have been victims of social prejudice and
discrimination in the form of exclusion and segregation in the past and been denied equal
opportunities
 Time-bound Special Assistance: Special consideration will enable these communities to
overcome the existing disadvantages and then compete with others on equal terms
Criticism of Positive Discrimination:
 Against equality: Any provision of reservations for the deprived in admissions for higher
education or jobs is unfair as it arbitrarily denies other sections of society their right to
equal treatment
 Reverse discrimination: Equality requires that all persons be treated alike and when
distinctions between individuals on the basis of their caste or colour are made it reinforce
caste and racial prejudices

Reasons for Positive Discrimination:

 Guiding Principle: Distinction between equality as a guiding principle of state policy and
equal rights of individuals. A fair competition should be there where individuals are
equally considered for admission to educational institutions and employment in the
public sector. This should be their right
o Different circumstances: People from deprived strata may be at a disadvantage
due to historical reasons. Members of excluded groups such as dalits, women, etc.
deserve and need some special help
o The state must devise social policies which would help to make such people equal
and give them a fair chance to compete with others
o Any policy that the state chooses would have to be justified in terms of their
success in making the society more egalitarian and fair to all
o A distinction of treating people identically and equally should be made while we
reflect on the issue of equality
o On occasions we may treat the latter in a different manner but under such
circumstances too, the promotion of equality must be