Together we can.

To be Equal

What does it mean to be equal? What does equality actually look like to someone? To anyone for that matter? Equality is dependent on the measuring and who is taking the measurements. Equality to someone who is comfortable financially and has many other aspects of their life “in order” they view equality as in existence and fair. Whereas someone who is of less privilege, with more actual and not perceived struggles equality is something they strive to attain. Such disparate views of the environment in which we live is the direct cause of inequality. When one side views something as fair and just there is always going to be another side that views it as unequal and inadequate. With equality comes all sides being heard, with equality comes fair access to resources, to forward progression, to opinions and to the freedoms that are “free” but have a large price tag.

So if equality exists what would it look like? Now imagine a place where it doesn’t matter what neighborhood you are from, but rather what you have to bring to the world? What if the color of your skin was reversed and we as a people asked the Caucasian candidate to provide us with his birth certificate and throw bigoted comments at them based on something as trivial as the color of his/her skin?

Equal by definition is to be the same in value, size, quantity and degree. So in this definition to be equal it means in essence to be the same. So then why are some people born and then immediately made to be less than someone else? To live in this country and to have the opportunity to be anything we want is the American Dream. Truly the American dream should be attainable by all Americans, however there are those people who are born less equal than someone else. So what is equality then? Equality is to be born to the right parents, to have the right color of skin, to have the correct amount of money in the bank, to love the opposite gender, to learn the same way as everyone else. Right? Or is equality being born as a baby, raised as a child, and respected as an adult? Or is equality the notion that regardless of any of the above stated criteria you are born, you live and you are treated the same as your neighbor? You see equality is one of those things that is subjective. Everyone is equal when the scale leans toward you. It would be callus to say that people who believe that equality exists in this country believe it and think it because they themselves feel equal. Is that not where our opinions are determined; from our own personal experiences? Well if you answered no to that then you should rethink your own opinions seeing as they are truly not yours. Equality exists among people when the barriers to a life of equality are taken down and when the path to success is not paved with privilege but instead paved with perseverance.
Fighting your entire life for something is a concept that has died in our society as of late and from that lack of additional effort, or the will to continue fighting has gone away it is due in part to the fact that people on the long road to equality have lost sight of why they started down that road to begin with. I am reminded every day that equality is something worth fighting for. I choose to remain humble in my life because with humility comes consciousness. I am no better than anyone in this world, I have struggle, I have flaws and I also have dreams, and passion. It is when we decide not to focus on the fact that we are less, but focus instead on the fact that we have the ability to fight to be equal that is when we as the less win over the few that are more.
The long and lonely walk toward equality is something that all people have been walking for centuries. Where there is room for improvement there will always be room for inequality. Why is it that some get so much and others get so little? I believe love, peace, compassion and the will to be better not as an individual; but be better as a people, united in struggle, coming together in unity; that is when equality balances when we stop looking at what makes us different and we start looking at what makes us alike. Peace will come from people who feel and believe to be equal.

Challenge yourself to become aware of equality. Challenge yourself to stare inequality in the eye and demand something better. Challenge yourself to look past a persons place on the pyramid and focus on how that person got there and how they can continue to move forward. If this is too idealistic for some people I understand. That is sort of the point. I believe in ideas. I believe in change. And I believe above all else the only way to have either of those is to instill that in people.