Listening : Equality

Extract 1 : What is equality ?

What is equality ? Equality is the state of being equal especially in status, rights and opportunities. Thus equality means
each individual or group of people is given the same resources and opportunities regardless of their circumstances. In
other words, equality refers to the right of every individual to equal treatment and opportunities regardless of factors
like gender, race and social position. But it must be noted that equality is not always about treating everyone the same.
It is about treating people in such a way that the outcome for each person can be the same. This means putting things in
place to support people to achieve similar outcomes. For a person who is blind, it may involve having screen readers on
your computers and removing obstacles in your building. For someone from a minority background, it may involve
having affirming messages in your youth space so that young people know that diversity and difference is valued. It is
important to note that a quality of outcome can be achieved by making sure that everyone is supported to have access
to resources and decision making and to be recognized, valued and respected. When supports are not put in place, it
usually results in exclusion even if this is not intended because people from marginalized situations do not feel or know
that they can attend a group even if the mission statement says it is open to all. Equality versus Equity. The words
equality and equity are often confused because at a glance they appear to mean the same thing. They both have to do
with the way people are treated used in the fields of law government economics and so on. Often these terms are used
to describe actions laws or rules that are attempting to end or oppose injustice or unfair treatment of people. However
equality and equity are not synonyms and the methods used to achieve them are often very different. On the one hand,
equity recognized each person has varying circumstances and needs and