Equality and equity
Equality is the willingness to treat all citizens in the same way, regardless of their gender, race, social position or any other characteristic or quality. In this article we will provide you the difference between Equality and equity.
Equity is the ability to be fair or to impart justice based on the principle of equality, but considering the individual needs and circumstances of each citizen.
The difference between equality and fairness is that with equality justice is applied to all citizens in a uniform way, while in fairness exceptions can be made, as long as the sense of fairness is not compromised.
| Equality | Equity | |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Principle or disposition to give all people the same treatment before the law, without discrimination. | Principle or disposition to give all people the same treatment before the law, without discrimination, but considering their personal situation. |
| Types |
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| Example | Human rights. |
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What is equality?
Equality is a principle that implies homogeneous treatment for all people, regardless of their characteristics or circumstances.
Equality is enshrined as a human right, as established in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights created and disseminated by the United Nations in 1948.
With this declaration, the States undertake to give their citizens equal treatment before the law, both to access their rights and to fulfill their obligations.
Gender equality
Gender equality contemplates that men and women have the same rights, as long as they are equal before the law. Therefore, there should be no gaps or differences based on gender to access opportunities.
This concept is based on the right to equality and non-discrimination contemplated in Human Rights, but it is also established and expanded in other documents:
- The Convention on the Political Rights of Women (1954).
- The Convention on the Elimination of all forms of discrimination against women (1979).
Equal opportunities
Equal opportunities states that all human beings should have the same opportunities to develop comprehensively. In practice it is a bit more difficult to exercise because social inequalities prevent starting from a common base.
However, States must fill these gaps with access to free education and health, among other rights.
Social equality
It refers to the enjoyment of civil, economic, political and legal rights of all citizens. In other words, social equality is the guarantee that all people have access to their fundamental rights
What is equity?
Equity is the ability to administer justice impartially, but considering the particularities of each case to avoid unfair or unfair sanctions.
It can also be understood as the ability to apply the same standard to all individuals, taking into account their personal circumstances.
Gender equality
It refers to the impartial treatment between men and women. To achieve this, the treatment can be equitable (considered as equal) or differentiated (taking into account their differences), the important thing is that the result of said action must be equivalent for both genders in terms of rights, benefits and obligations.
When this approach is applied, an attempt is made to resolve long-standing imbalances in access to rights and opportunities based on gender, for which concrete actions are proposed to correct these disadvantages.
For example, the right to vote for women is a measure that contributes to gender equality.
Social equity
Social equity are the measures taken to guarantee that all people have access to the same opportunities, considering their circumstances.
For example, all children have the right to access the educational system because they are considered equal before the law. However, in practice, children in remote rural areas are not always able to go to school. The State must then guarantee the means so that they can access that right.
The construction of a school in a nearby area, access to transport or the construction of roads are measures that allow the enjoyment of this right under the same conditions as other children in the same situation.
Equality and gender equity
Although gender equality and equity are often used synonymously, both terms have different scopes.
The difference between gender equality and gender equity is that the former is a provision that derives from a human right, while gender equity is an ethical consideration with which it is attempted to apply measures that correct the historical imbalance between the genders.
Therefore, it could be said that gender equality is the ideal, and gender equity are the actions that are carried out to guarantee the fulfillment of that right.
