All People Are Not Created Equal

All People Are Not Created Equal

Paige - Highlands Ranch, ColoradoEntered on November 11, 2006
http://thisibelieve.org/essay/19715/

The above “This I Believe” essay discusses the inequalities in society.  Paige talks about how the founding fathers believed that all men are created equal.  She then explains how she believes today’s society shows the opposite.  There was a time when I would agree with Paige.  Everyone is born into a unique disposition with different advantages and disadvantages based on race, gender, religion, socio-economic status, orientation… the list goes on.  

Being gay and growing up in the Mid-West, I was specifically aware of the inequalities present in my community: race, socio-economic status, gender, and orientation being the largest characteristics exploited by society.  Even though segregation has been outlawed, it still exists in the city.  The difference between public and private schools is the difference between going to college and not.  Public high schools have a 40% graduation rate, my high school has a 99.9% graduation rate.  College acceptance rate: about 20% and 99.9%, respectively.  While it is illegal to base a pay difference on gender, my mom is paid less than a man in her office that has the same position, less experience, and less time at the company.  While gay rights have improved in the city, there is a difference between the urban and rural perspectives.  Growing up, I would hear and sometimes see protests from the Westboro Baptist Church. (warning, the following link expresses very offensive political views of the WBB, proceed with caution. wiki article here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westboro_Baptist_Church)  During February of last year the WBB visited my high school to protest Catholic education, slander and libel the Jesuit priests, and express their views on the GLBTQ community.  At this time in my life I would have agreed with Paige in that “all people are NOT created equal.”  

However, as I have matured and thought over life, I have come to realize that the issue is not that we are “created” in inequality, but treated so.  To say that “all people are created equal” does not attempt to deny the socio-economic, racial, gender, orientation… differences in society.  Instead, it is said in an effort to foster equal treatment that sees past those differences.  To say that we are created equal but treated otherwise shifts the blame from “destiny” or “fate” to the people instituting hate and inequality.  Being born gay does not make me a minority subject to hate speech and prejudice.  But being born into a society that is prone to stereotypes, prejudice, and inequalities is the problem.  We cannot simply blame fate for society’s shortcomings.  We cannot change the situation we are born into.  We do not choose our parents before we are born.  We do not choose to grow up in rich or poor.  We do not choose our race or ethnicity.  We do not choose our orientation.  Fate is ambiguous, but people are definite.  We cannot hope to change fate without realizing the true cause of inequalities: people.  

I believe that instead of saying “All People Are Not Created Equal” is would be more accurate to say “All People Are Not Treated Equal”