Category: Equality

Racial inequality in the United States is still a contentious issue. The demographic population of the US may be a possible explanation for this social ill because as commentator Ben Wattenberg importunes, the United States has become the “world’s first multinational society” (Lee, 2012, p. 2).

Today, most nations across the world look up to the United States in awe of its immigration status in view of the relevant laws and policies. The US has comfortably managed to accommodate all races from Blacks to White to Asians and Hispanics within its borders. However, racial inequality remains the greatest vulnerability suffered by the United States’ democracy. Despite being the orchestrator of the Universal Bill of Rights, the US suffers gravely from a systemic cancer of racial imparity.

This malevolence dates back to the ages of slavery, during which the role of the united states cannot be underestimated as it had the largest number of slaves within a localized geographical location (the South). Moreover, even after the ban of slavery in the US, it was notoriuious for continued infringement of human rights by discrimination even after the abolishment of slavery after the Civil War (Vorenberg, 2001, p.104).

Nevertheless, since the 1960s, the United States has come a long way in the abolishment of discrimination and bias based on diversities. There have been three key legislations, viz. The Omnibus Civil Rights Act of 1964, The Voting Rights Act of 1965, and the Free Housing Act of 1968 that assisted in the fight against racial iniquality by legislating the desired socio-political, economic, and cultural outcome of a free United States.

After the Civil War, Americans were under the impression that the social ills leading to the civil strife that culminated in the war would come to an immediate end.

However, the continuation of these social atrocities until as late as 1998 was proof that it would take more than just a few new laws and declaration to rid people of the racial bias that had been so deeply entrenched in their minds and lives. The history of slavery dates back to the early seventeenth Century when a Dutch ship arrived in the New World loaded with African slaves (Buell, 2004).

At one point, there was a severe shortage of labor to run the plantations and these human machines were perceived as the only way out. They were strong, resilient, and clearly built for hard labor and harsh living conditions, which suited their maters’ needs. Consequently, slave trade soon became a lucrative business and ships continued to arrive with armies of Africans who at first had been sold off by their own communities into slavery as outcasts, but as the demand grew, the slave dealers began to kidnap slaves for trade.

This went on for more than three centuries and so by the time slavery was being abolished in the early 20^th century, whites had become accustomed to treating African Americans with contempt. There was a time in history when it was not conceivable that an African could read.

The white masters did not believe that slaves had the intelligence to grasp any knowledge. With this kind of background, it is in fact commendable that the world has come so far as to accept black people in almost equal standing. In The United States, Blacks are actually ranking above Hispanics and some Asians in terms of development (Sowell, 2013). However, the issue of racial inequality still survives and policy makers are running out of ideas on what laws to install to get rid of racial inequality for the last time.

However, if history is an indicator, legislation alone shall not solve this problem. Immediately after the Civil War, policy makers came up with the Omnibus Civil Rights Act, of 1964. This Act is the mother of all antidiscrimination legislations and it covered racial, ethnic, and even sexual discrimination (Lee, 2012). Title VIII is an addendum to the Act and it tackles discrimination at the workplace, religious discrimination, and sexual harassment at the workplace.

It also made segregation illegal and empowered the Attorney General to institute suits against institutions and agencies such as schools and employers who discriminated against their students and employees respectively, based on race among other variables. The second Act was the Voting Rights Act 1965. This Act established federal regulation over matters that were hitherto reserved for state and local jurisdiction only, such as political issues to do with voting and minorities’ rights.

In 2006 when it was most recently amended, the Republicans in the House sought to abrogate the federal oversight capacity of the Judicial Department to no avail. The third Act was the Federal Housing Act of 1968 “that prohibited racial discrimination in the sale and renting of housing” (Bonilla-Silva, 2006, p.94). It covers all houses including those that are individually owned and occupied.

Unfortunately, these legislations did not successfully eliminate racial inequality because although the law required compliance in certain institutional settings, it could not act as a watchdog in every social aspect of racism. For instance, it could not prevent racist comments between individual citizens.

This shortcoming in the law’s capacity to address the issue of racial inequality adequately culminated in several instances of hate crimes that were egregious violations of human rights policies and in the case of James Byrd Jr., it cost his life (Petersen, 2011).

In 1998, at Jasper County in Texas, three white men, viz. Lawrence Russell Brewer, John William King, Shawn Berry killed James Byrd in a shocking act that was described by one prosecutor as psychopathic racism. These three men were out on a drinking spree when they saw a black James Byrd walking down the street.

They offered him a ride and a beer then began to ridicule him with racist sentiments (Federal Bureau of Investigation, 2005). At first, he ignored the barbs, but eventually a fight ensued, which culminated in his throat being slit, black paint being smeared on his face and finally, being chained by his feet to the back of their truck and dragged for three or so miles until he died after getting decapitated.

Soon afterwards, investigations began and since it was such an egregious act of racial violence, the Federal Bureau of Investigations coupled up with the Justice Department and the state to nub the perpetrators. Eventually, the three men were arrested, prosecuted, and the jury found them guilty of murder (Welch, 2007).

King and Brewer were given the death penalty as the jury ruled unanimously that they should be put to death, while Berry got a life sentence. One of the questions asked of the jury in such instances is whether it believes that the perpetrator shall kill again if not put to death first.

Racial inequality continues to be a contentious issue in the US democracy and statistics indicate a consistent pattern since from as early as 1968 up to date. If a hierarchy were to be applied, whites would be on top, followed by blacks in some instances, and the other races respectively. Worryingly, the newer races in the US economy are already surpassing or threatening to surpass the African American population in matters of poverty and employment (Lee, 2012, p. 7).

However, the solution perhaps lies in education as educated individuals, irrespective of race, seem to live in a respectable standard, but this is also not a foolproof remedy because there is still a gap between equally educated counterparts among the races. Consequently, more time is required for further unification of races in addition to all the preventive legislations and policies aimed at eradicating racial inequality as well as education. As time lapses, people’s attitudes seem to improve by abandoning long-held idiosyncrasies.

Reference List

Bonilla-Silva, E. (2006). Racism without Racists: Color-Blind Racism and the Persistence of Racial Inequality in America. Oxford, UK: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.

Buell, T. (2004). Slavery in America: A Primary Source History of the Intolerable Practice of Slavery. New York, NY: The Rosen Publishing Group.

Federal Bureau of Investigation. (2005). Hate Crime Statistics 2004. Web.

Lee, C. (2012, May). Racial Inequality: America’s Achilles’ Heel- Full Chapter You are here Today’s American: How Free? Web.

Petersen, J. (2011). Murder, the Media, and the Politics of Public Feelings: Remembering Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Indianapolis, IN: Indiana University Press.

Sowell, T. (2013). Intellectuals and Race. New York, NY: Basic Books.

Vorenberg, M. (2001). Final Freedom: The Civil War, the Abolition of Slavery, and the Thirteenth Amendment. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

Welch, K. (2007). Black Criminal Stereotypes and Racial Profiling. Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice, 23(3), 276-288.

Introduction

The United States is one of the nations where racial discrimination has been a common practice for a very long time. However, there has been a concerted effort in this society to fight this vice. This country is composed of people of different races. Many people from other nations around the world have acquired the citizenship of the US hence becoming a part of the nation.

Historically, there have been serious incidences of racial inequality. Although this is believed to have been reduced tremendously, there are still some elements of racial inequality and discrimination in several institutions. This research paper seeks to specifically explore the extent of racial inequality in schools and other learning institutions and its effects.

It is worth mentioning that a considerable part of the United States’ population has been going to school to a given level. Although a smaller percentage might not have got the opportunity to attend the formal learning institutions, they have had a chance to attend other technical institutions. In these learning institutions, several instances of racial discrimination have been reported. Several schools in American cities are full of Afro-American and Latino students, who are considered the middle class.

In addition, the same schools have an inexperienced staff that lacks knowledge and skills and is less diversified (Dubourdieu 47). Currently, schools for students from the Afro-American and Latino families are moved to the suburban district schools that are believed to be poorly equipped and less qualified teachers work there, while the students from the white families occupy the best-equipped schools with the most experienced staff.

This segregation in education has a very high impact on the performance of students from both sides. On average, the rates for graduation in public high schools differ.

For the whites it is 83%, for blacks 66.1% and 71.4% for Latinos. Comparing the number of students with bachelor’s degree within the age bracket of 25-29, the whites have the highest one with 39%, followed by the blacks with 20% and lastly the Latinos with 13% (Moore 47). These differences show that both the Afro-Americans and Latinos are highly disadvantaged in education and in the overall outcome, while the whites are advantaged.

In the United States, there are also different technical institutions for the whites and those for other groups. Due to their favoring education atmosphere, students from the white families end up getting the best results and hence the best employment positions in the nation unlike the blacks who end up performing poorly, which lead to their segregation in the job market.

According to Street, apart from allocating funds to schools to do what is supposed to be done, there are three other core factors that influence the outcome of students (114).

These factors include families which students come from, the experience of the teaching staff and availability of other students to create a competitive environment. The above mentioned incidences of discrimination clearly show that the rate of racial disparities is very high. To create positive and equal outcome for all students in the United States, there is need to address this racial inequality in schools.

Ethnicity is very crucial for any grown or growing nation as it brings people with different ideas, talents, and abilities together. Combining these deferent efforts is resulting to competition hence a healthy nation. The researchers care very much about this racial inequality in the leaning institutions in the United States because of the following reasons. First, it is in schools where societies are molded. Talents and gifts, therefore, are developed in the learning institutions.

Bringing racial inequality in such a critical field in society means bringing the nation’s economy down since it is highly determined by the education sector. The second reason why the researcher cares a lot about this inequality is the desire to have unity and equal performance from students, no matter whether it is a white or a black person. The researchers believe that people have got different abilities despite the ethnicity.

An Afro-American student may have the best unique skill compared to a white one, and both should be given an equal opportunity to demonstrate it. To achieve this, anyone else should care and the society together with the nation should care at most, because achieving equity is not a one man’s battle. Hence, the society should put their hands together in fighting this vice.

Inequality Section

Racial inequality is a vice that is highly practiced and felt in America. The whites, Latinos and Native Americans are greatly discriminated in many areas. Racial inequalities in other areas besides education result from their poor performances in schools. The 1992 study report in America shows that the racial family background contributes little to the education outcome of students (Moore 47).

Therefore, this shows that, it is the nature of an educational institution that determines the performance of students, in particular, the expertise of the teachers, availability of learning materials, and the competition atmosphere that a student is exposed. Having looked at the racial inequality in the field of education in the United States, the next question one should ask is what causes these racial inequalities, which can be answered by looking at the following key areas.

Historical

Naturally, racial inequality arises when there is a believe by people coming from a certain race that they do hold a better position and are better placed than other groups. In the historical sense, the United State of America used to kidnap children from their homes, after which the kidnapped children were sold for slave purposes.

The most common race suffering as a result of the US intrusion was the Africans. The same act was performed by the Europeans when they imprisoned or killed all those people who were considered as Native Americans and lived in reservations in the North America. This process took place for a very long time to an extent that even after the trade of slaves was outlawed, the European countries continued to practice it.

Even their children were taught to not associate with the non-whites as they were considered inferior. The Europeans also trained not to think of equal treatment with the inferior non-whites. There was a time in the United States in the 1960’s when it was stated in the law that the whites should not intermarry with the non-whites and by doing so one would be breaking the law, an offence that called for punishment.

These historic deeds and teachings led to the racial inequalities in the United States to date in a tremendous way. The cause of racial inequality in schools in this country has, therefore, historic grounds since the Caucasian people were taught not to even think of equal treatment with the non-whites in all grounds from their childhood.

Political

The learners view political leaders as celebrities because they are the leaders of any given nation. In addition, political leaders have a great influencing power in the racial inequality. Whatever politicians do or say, they has got a direct or indirect influence on people in the addressed field. In the United States of America, political leaders have a lot of power and authority bestowed to them by the government. Once their speeches are announced it is at once noted whether they have any hints of racial discrimination.

In case they do, this fact directly leads to racial inequality up to the learning institutions’ level. A good example where political aspect can be seen to cause racial inequality in schools is a situation where a politician may decide to only provide a school of the Caucasians with the leaning materials or behave in a way to side and support only the students belonging to the white family against the Afro-Americans.

This action directly influences the racial inequality in school and among the students themselves. The former president and a politician George W. Bush argued that racial disparity was costing the nation a lot and there was a need to address the issue if Americans wanted to realize their dreams about a super power state.

Legal

In the past years, the United States had no legal consideration on legal inequalities. Due to this fact, the racial inequality was a normal thing, as it was then considered that the non-whites were inferior to the superior whites and the law did not allow the two groups to communicate in any way.

There are no legal grounds to address this issue of inequalities’ factor that largely contributed to the racial discriminations in the learning institutions in the present time. Currently, the United States has enacted polices that address matters emanating from education to avoid racial discrimination: At the same time, the acceptance and need for racial equity and integration as per the policies have been ignored and assumed in the state.

Social considerations

From the social perspective, discrimination has had negative consequences in regard to the learners. For a long time, the American society has been embracing racial inequality in its social system. There were different social classes based on the skin color, which had a massive negative effect on the students, especially those who were discriminated against.

Policy Suggestion

Several policies related to racial change have been enacted for the last five decades in this country. When the United States gained independence in 1776, the first constitution that was written by the founding fathers stated that all Americans were equal, both men and women, black and white, Hispanics and the Native Americans (Loury 56).

This clause in the constitution of this country was a guiding policy towards elimination of all forms of discrimination, especially the racial one. It is truly said, however, that the American society forgot these words very soon and as a result, there appeared rampant racial discrimination in the country. This fact necessitated enacting of other laws to help curb this vice.

In 1945, Alaska’s Anti-Discrimination Act was empowered to help curb this vice. Several other policies have been enacted to ensure that racial inequalities are eliminated in the educational institutions of the country. The leadership in these institutions has a role to play in fighting inequality of races. They have to ensure that there are policies within the schools’ charters that strictly bar any form of racial discrimination from any quarter within their institutions. These policies should be enacted and practiced within these institutions nowadays.

The prevailing political condition in the United States has given a new positive look at the state on racial inequality situation. The ‘Obama care’ has brought a new picture about racial equity. He introduced health care that is accessible, affordable, and available to everyone despite the race or color of skin, which has greatly helped fight racial inequality.

This was a clear indication that despite the existing laws that foster equality, the government still has an important role in fighting racial inequality in schools. Although this law was introduced in the health sector, it passed message to the entire society, including schools, that all Americans were equal, and had the right to be citizens of this country, hence should not be discriminated.

Another policy suggestion that should be considered as a way of eliminating discrimination in this country is to amend the constitution to reflect a more unified country.

Although the constitution of this country does not tolerate racial segregation, there have been some loopholes that have allowed discrimination at various societal to flourish. These loopholes should be eliminated. Another policy suggestion is to come up with affirmative action that would take care of the minority within this society. This will ensure that these minority populations will feel represented.

This will lower discrimination against the minority. Strengthening civil societies will also enhance reduction of discrimination in this society. This can come in the form of commissions focused on eliminating all forms of discrimination in the society. The commission will work closely with the government to ensure that no form of discrimination is witnessed in the country.

As an activist, I would consider coming up with a radical policy where there will be mass action when a government official or prominent person engages in an activity considered racial. To enforce this policy, there will be a lobby group that would lead in such mass actions.

Although the policy may meet resistance from the government, but cooperation of the public will be enough to support it. It may be true that enacting this new policy may bring problems such as looting during mass actions. However, when awareness is created among the demonstrators, such incidents will be eliminated.

Works Cited

Dubourdieu, Elaine. Race and Inequality: World Perspectives on Affirmative Action. Aldershot: Ashgate, 2006. Print.

Loury, Glenn. The Anatomy of Racial Inequality. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2002. Print.

Moore, Wendy. Reproducing Racism: White Space, Elite Law Schools, and Racial Inequality. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2008. Print.

Street, Paul. Racial Oppression in the Global Metropolis: A Living Black Chicago History. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 2007. Print.

Introduction

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) has become a powerful model for guiding people in different societies and countries to promote the principles of freedom and equality. Such a practice can make it possible for human beings to live harmoniously and achieve their maximum potential. The purpose of this paper is to apply the concept of equality to explain why people should strive to reveal and show that there are real human differences instead of surmising that they exist.

Thesis Statement

Since people do not apply the values of equality in a systematic and unswerving manner, there is a need for societies to acknowledge that there are real differences among populations and present evidence-based strategies to address them.

Arguments for Supporting Existing Differences

The notion of equality guides and empowers people to avoid prejudice and discrimination against others. This element has become a fundamental aspect of human rights laws across the globe. According to it, persons with diverse backgrounds require equal, fair, and just treatment. Unfortunately, the world has failed to apply the dictates of these policies proportionately (Gobineau and Collins 29). Consequently, the rights and liberties of many groups have become just a dream. Several reasons can be presented to explain why societies should accept that there are striking differences rather than surmising that they exist.

The first one is that the move to reveal each difference will present superior solutions and empower mankind. This is true since people’s commitment to the ideas of equality is founded on specific cultural standards. For example, many groups and races continue to promote unique intergroup interactions and relations that have existed for hundreds of years. Such aspects are informed by issues of power, status, income, and age (Peterson 150). This concept explains why social dominance orientation (SDO) remains a powerful model for explaining why all human beings in a specific community will never be equal.

The concept of rights vs. duties is the second argument that explains why people should expose the unique inequalities among populations. For instance, individuals from minority races focus mainly on personal rights while ignoring group liberties. Those who have financial resources can engage in court battles to have their expectations addressed by the government (Gobineau and Collins 52). Individuals from high power ethnicities focus on duties rather than rights. According to them, minorities are required to obey existing laws o guidelines. The proposed practice will guide more human beings to draw a line between rights and duties.

The role of cultural dynamics forms the third argument for supporting the need to expose the true differences and gaps in inequality. Peterson indicates that people tend to have group-based identities and expectations (162). This is true since many cultures expect men to be in control and guide women and children. According to them, this is in accordance with natural law that all creatures should respect and follow. Similarly, religious teachings present similar ideologies and concepts to their followers. These attributes make it impossible for communities to implement the principle of equality uniformly.

Counterarguments

Some scholars have indicated that equality is not a reality in many parts of the world without providing supportive facts. They argue that more women and disabled persons are finding new opportunities than ever before, including leadership and decision-making. They also explain how societies in both the developing and developed regions embrace the principle of equality by providing similar rights, freedoms, and resources to all people (Gobineau and Collins 48). According to them, the existing differences are small and might not affect people’s outcomes or experiences.

Responses to Such Counterarguments

Despite the above counterarguments, the notion of equality has become a mirage in many countries. While the UDHR guides human beings to respect and treat each other uniformly, cases of prejudice have persisted for many years. Accepting that such differences are a reality means that more people will not encounter difficulties. Instead, this acknowledgment might present evidence-based ideas for improving human coexistence and mitigating human differences (Gobineau and Collins 97). People should, therefore, ignore every opposing idea and focus on superior measures to promote equality.

Conclusion

The above discussion has explained why human beings should show the real differences when focusing on the principle of equality instead of surmising that they exist. This evidence-based practice will present superior measures for minimizing such gaps and ensuring that equality becomes a reality. Individuals who are opposed to these ideas should appreciate the challenges of such differences and examine how they tend to disorient human progress.

Works Cited

Gobineau, Arthur, and Adrian Collins. The Inequality of Human Races. Creative Media Partners, 2018.

Peterson, Wesley F. “Is Economic Inequality Really a Problem? A Review of the Arguments.” Social Sciences, vol. 6, no. 4, 2017, pp. 147-171.

Introduction

Nowadays, we have the opportunities to be the active participants of the social problems solving. In the past, people struggled for gaining these opportunities. However, it does not mean that the nature of social issues changed dramatically. Quite the opposite, the nature is, essentially, the same but the methods of their solving and the attitude of public towards them have undergone changes.

The aim of this essay is to analyze the newspaper and magazine articles devoted to the problem of social inequality and economic welfare.

The Articles Analysis

The first article, which I am going to present, is The Future of Fair Labor by Jefferson Cowie. The author gives the overview of the historic process of the labor legislation reforming. Cowie emphasizes the importance of Franklin D. Roosevelt’s legislative act addressed to the employers and workers.

The President’s initiative laid the foundation of the modern employment legislation. “It outlawed child labor, guaranteed a minimum wage, established the official length of the workweek at 40 hours, and required overtime pay for anything more” (Cowie n.pag.).

However, the author of the article states that the current situation in the field of employment regulation and legislation is rather vulnerable. It seems that the current legislation is too flexible in the sense that it gives to the employers the opportunity to find the loopholes. As a result, the substantial part of employees works the abnormal hours and does not obtain the appropriate remuneration. The author claims that it is the role of the government to ensure the efficiency of the current employment legislation.

The second article is The 1 Percent Are Only Half the Problem by Timothy Noah. The economic inequality is the major theme of the article. The author touches upon the problem of social stratification based on the differences in the economic welfare of the American population.

Although he indicates to the significant gap between the wealthy individuals, whose weight in the total population accounts for only 1%, and the other part of the population, the weight of which is 99%, he argues that the problem should not be considered only in the context of the average income.

Noah claims that the access to education is the crucial factor of the social and economic welfare. The rise of the educated class should be taken into consideration (Noah n.pag.). The problem is twofold: on the one hand, the gap caused by the income inequality narrows, and, on the other hand, the educational gap widens.

The Cuts that Keeps Bleeding is the third source, which deserves the special attention. It presents the statistical information on the dynamics in government spending on education. According to the data presented in the article, the funding of the education has been reduced by 28% since 2008 (“The Cuts that Keeps” 11).

It is clear that the decrease in financing affects the quality of education. The statistics shows that the number of course offerings has decreased by 15% since 2008. The data support the opinion regarding the educational gap increase. It is not surprising as the cuts in spending limit the access of people to the higher education and they contribute to the social and economic inequality.

Conclusion

In summary, the analyzed articles are devoted to the problem of social and economic inequality. The authors emphasize the role of government regulation. Although the situation improves in certain areas, there are still the urgent problems requiring the legislative changes and government initiatives.

Works Cited

Cowie, Jefferson. “The Future of Fair Labor.” The New York Times. 24 June 2013. Nytimes.com. Web.

Noah, Timothy. “The 1 Percent Are Only Half the Problem”. The New York Times. 18 May 2013. Opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com. Web.

“The Cuts that Keep Bleeding.” By the Numbers, 30 (2013): 3. Print

Introduction

In today’s society, the role that women play in all facets of life cannot be overstated. The title given to the article accurately indicates the core issue that the article seeks to address; empowering of women in the work environment.

The authors propose that affirmative action is one of the surefire ways to ensure that women make a notch in the male-dominated science and engineering field, a view which is echoed by Layne (2009, p.166) who asserts that the combination of affirmative action and bureaucratic formalism are the core reasons for the advancement of women in the aerospace industry.

The article also acknowledges that there have been significant strides made in the battle for female representation in the workplace. However, research by Niederle, Segal & Vesterlund (2008) indicates that despite the achievements that the fight for gender equality has brought, there is still a disparity in the labour market whereby men are disproportionately allocated to professional and managerial occupations.

It is with these undertones that the authors expresses disappointment at the pace at which changes are taking place especially in the engineering field. The authors go on to contend that in some cases, it is the young women themselves who are the Achilles heel in the development process since they deem engineering work as “dirty” and therefore better suited for their male counterparts.

This is contrary to the older women folk who regard science and engineering as the front which will provide the “best opportunities for the next generation”. Only by offering forums for female students can this mindset be changed therefore ensuring that even more women are represented in science and engineering.

A critique of the article

The agenda of this article is clearly stated out and the arguments presented therein only serve to reinforce it. The main issue proposed by the article is the empowerment of women through higher education and other schemes and programs. This is because getting more women enrolled into higher education programs implies better access to top managerial position by the women (Long 2004).

In particular, the article looks at the science and engineering field which has traditionally been a male stronghold. The paper contends that only through affirmative action can managing diversity be established. In addition to this, the article concedes with the views expressed by Prasad (1997, p.64) who asserts that education is of equally vital importance in ensuring that females contend favourably in the work environment.

This article is written from both a political and socio-economic point of view. On a political note, the article hints at the government and other institutes being responsible for developing radical strategies to increase race and gender diversity in the work place.

Many countries have developed such measures as a result of which progress has been made in the increasing of women’s representation in decision making as a direct result of the special measures put in place (Konrad, Prasad & Pringle 2006, p.496). However, most of the bias of the article is on the social dynamic whereby work inequality and a review of the currently held perspective of engineering by women is called for.

The theme of inequality in the high level jobs is addressed by the article. The article reports that most of the high position jobs are still dominated by men and it is only through the employment of long term strategies that this status quo can be offset.

This long term strategies involve empowering women from the base level therefore making them more inclined to undertaken courses that are normally male saturated. This is seen to be the only way through which women can gain meaningful employment and increase female representation not only in the job market as a whole but also in professions like engineering and science in particular.

The article reinforces the notion that the battles that are waged by the modern day feminist movements are very different from those waged by the feminist organizations of the early 80’s. In the early years, the organizations where concerned with such issues as equal pay, increase in female education opportunities, equal employment opportunities and granting of women the same rights as men (Thomas1992).

Observably, all of these issues have effectively been achieved in the UK as a result of the past lobbying and change in the cultural perception of women. However, as the article suggests, women cannot be expected to compete on equal footing on grounds which have been predominantly male oriented.

As such, the feminist organizations of the present day are strategies of empowerment which diversification of work place and a shift in the traditional mode of operation so as to ensure the involvement of minorities (women in this case) in the organization structure (Konrad, Prasad, Pringle, 2009, 486)

The article suggests that most organizations have to appreciate the fact that differences do exist among employees and if these differences are properly managed, they can become an asset to work being done more efficiently (Kandola & Fullerton 2003, p.7). In most engineering jobs, women are perceived to being unable to conform to the working patterns that their male counterparts adopt and as such are deemed to be unable to compete with men without assistance.

Kirton and Greene (2005, p.217) articulate that this thoughts are adverse to the women since the various provisions made to them are seen as benefits rather than entitlements. Organizations should therefore rethink their ways and make changes to adapt to the dynamic workforce which is increasingly being made up of women.

The article aims to make both an emotional as well as logical appeal to its readerships. On an emotional level, the article highlights the plight of women who were once reduced to only apprentice roles in the work environment with the men taking the roles of executives and other high level jobs. The article the proceeds to tell of the great strides that women have made in righting this wrongs. The expression of these statements is no doubt meant to evoke feelings making the reader sympathetic to women and their cause.

Logically, the article gives facts and figures which can be crosschecked to ascertain the truth. The article gives solid steps that can be taken to ensure that women are better empowered through the use of education and special programs and forums. These logical steps articulated in a concise manner will no doubt appeal to the philosophical reader.

One of the strengths of this article is that it does not restrict itself to merely echoing statistics but goes ahead to state the credible sources from which this figures have been obtained. This is especially useful for a reader who would be interested in following up the various issues raised in the article.

The citation of the sources also adds to the credibility of the articles contents since if one is in doubt, they are afforded with an opportunity to countercheck the various claims made. The article also gives concrete programs that have been set out to further the female cause by assisting young students in their decision makings.

The major weakness of the article is in its brevity. As such, the reader is only afforded a brief glimpse into the subject before the authors move on into a different matter. In addition to this, the article assumes a myopic stance by assuming that forums and other low key programs of the sort can undo the social perception of sciences and engineering as male domains. With time, this perceptions that have been drilled down through our various socializations can be washed away but it will take more effort and time than the article suggests.

Conclusion

The overall presentation and clarity exhibited by this article are excellent given the issue being discussed. However, it has to be admitted that this article is far from being conclusive in addressing the various issues that it raised.

Given the shear scope of the issues that the article sets out to talk about, the authors should have dedicated more space to talk about the issues so as to provide the reader with a most solid grasp of the subject as opposed to merely skimming over the issues.

Despite this deficiency, the article does achieve its principle objective; to set the reader thinking about the need for programs that promote the interest of the female student in scientific and engineering fields.

References

Cornelius, N 2002, Building workplace equality: ethics, diversity and inclusion, 2nd ed, Cengage Learning EMEA.

Kandola, R S & Fullerton, J 2003, Diversity in action: managing the mosaic, CIPD Publishing.

Kirton, G & Greene, M A 2005, The dynamics of managing diversity, Butterworth-Heinermann.

Konrad, M A Prasad, P & Pringle, K J 2006, Handbook of workplace diversity, Sage.

Layne, M 2009, Women in Engineering: Professional Life, ASCE Publications.

Niederle, M Segal, C & Vesterlund, L 2008, How Costly is Diversity: Affirmative Action in Light of Gender Differences in Competitiveness, Stanford University.

Prasad, P 1997, Managing the organizational melting pot: dilemmas of workplace diversity, Sage.

Thomas, R 1992, Beyond race and gender: unleashing the power of your total work force by managing diversity, AMACOM Div American Mgmt Assn.

Introduction

Good health does not just happen; it is a habit of smart choices and sound clinical care. Findings say that good nursing is vital for good health and essential for the development of body’s physic but the avalanche highly depends on resource accessibility. Major causes of illnesses in the United States relates to poor diet, sedentary lifestyle and lack of good nursing guide/care. People will stay for long without considering the health checks only to run for the treatment when it is already too late. They link their ignorance to the financial ability.

Social capital and health inequality

Throughout medicine and society, there has been a major concern over whether or not a person’s health outcome is the result of individual influence or his or her social surroundings and network. In class, students gain knowledge of various properties of social relationships as distinctive structural factors, and assessment of how they intertwine with the production of health.

This paper will take in hand the issues of understanding and demonstrate how social relationships, specifically social capital, can become the defining factor for influencing individual health, as well as the health outcomes of an individual’s social network members.

In various ways, the people around us can affect our health outcomes. However, it is a common credence that this is highly dependent on an individual’s social capital, or the resources embedded in social relationships. According to Lin and Song (2009, 149), people will rarely assess the quality of nursing or health care they receive or seek but will rather analyze the costs involved; including the installments premiums and the direct costs.

They also concentrate their decision on the recommendations their families and friends offer, their personal plan over doctors’ checkup visits and how convenient the location might be.

Social capital directly affects both outcomes net of social support. Examples among well-ascertained diseases antecedents include the social relationship between capital and support. There is a wide need for further research in connection to the influences of social capital on health issues.

As applied by Lin and Song (2009, 150), the social capital theory applies to the inequalities of health. According to them, these capitals involve embedding resources into social structures, which are accessible or mobilized through rationale actions. This is an indication that resources are allocated depending on the need as per the outlaid allocation structure for instance educational wise or authoritatively.

The social capital differs from economical capital based on the personal view. Personal capital includes the human economic and cultural needs. They emerge through the individual perspectives, which control them.

The social network identifies strong allies who provide important suggestions over matters requiring key decision-making. The occupational and structural position a person holds within a network determines the decision one makes with regard to health matters. In accordance with Lin and Song (2009, 151) writings, the social capital theory determines the type of information one gets as well as reinforcement by the individual’s identity.

Although individuals possess power to influence administration of health, the link between an individual and the networked set determines the physical and mental well-being of an entity. The common characteristics interprets the social behaviors of every person within the link Lin and Song (2009, 152).

Conclusion

The perspective of social networks brings about the causes and consequences of various network perspectives such as integration, support, cohesion and capital. Closely related networks members have diverse effect and pressure over one’s health issues or decisions pertaining health matters.

This is due to the degree of socially created connections, impartiality, reliance, reciprocity as well as short of conflicts. The resource dimension regarding the position an individual holds in the networked member group remains the main determinant of social capital.

Works Cited

Lin, Nan and Song Lijun 2009. “Social Capital and Health Inequality: Evidence from Taiwan.” Journal of Health and Social Behavior 50: 149-163

Introduction

One of the most profound social issues within the realm of employment has to be that of equality within the workforce. When one examines equality it brings to task the notion of diversity within the workforce. The notion that equality and diversity are mutually exclusive is one that has raised much concern especially within contemporary society. It has been argued that programs which focus on diversity do so at the detriment of equality. This can be examined especially within the scope of the marginalization of individuals with disabilities. This paper will examine the scope and ramifications of equality and diversity of individuals with disabilities and will illustrate that equality can be achieved through diversity especially for disabled individuals in the workforce.

Disability Movements

As a direct result of the adverse experiences of people with disabilities and the many barriers restricting their activities, the subject of disability was one that was politicized and had demanded attention by the political systems much like the other Civil Rights movements.

For the first time, the disabled represented an interest group and their cause was motivated by the growing concern that individuals with disabilities were systematically victimized and will continue to be violated until something was done to bring attention to their plight (Ward & Meyer, 1999). Through sustained activism and advocacy, disability was transformed from a simple cause to one that had taken on a rights-based connotation (Yongjoo & Haider-Markel, 2001).

The fight to end the systematic discrimination of the disabled was one that was marked by serious limitations on social and political participation. This discrimination prevailed despite the ongoing governmental efforts aimed at improving inclusion of individuals with disabilities. An example of this can be seen in the fact that the employment rates among individuals with disabilities had not been significantly impacted after the passage of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.

Many disability activists and advocates consistently questioned the efficacy and integrity of governmental programs designed to support the efforts of individuals with disabilities and their families in securing full participation of individuals with disabilities in society. In fact, the Disability Rights Movement has been criticized on the basis that it was a mere duplication in legislative action with regards to the marginalized. It was felt that disabilities policies (especially the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) were unnecessarily litigious, counter-productive, and failed to represent the collective interests of the stakeholders.

These differing interpretations of policy effects facilitate the need for more effective communication with regards to disabilities as well as a more comprehensive understanding of the varying perceptions of stakeholders’ as they relate to the rights and personal characteristics of the disabled (Fleischer & Zames, 2001).

The impact of social movements and interest groups on the delineation and definition of the issues involved remains ambiguous to a great extent as there is a wide range of limitations faced by individuals with disabilities. Essentially, individuals often vary in the problem definitions they choose to adopt (Rochefort & Cobb, 1994). As with any other civil rights movement, the involvement of citizen as well as their attachment to social movement groups varies with some individuals adopting the issue definition advocated by the social movement while others deviate from this definition. Issue definition at the individual level, however, remains vital because it determines whether individuals exhibit a propensity to make claims on government during policy implementation.

This in turn affects the overall impact of the program and reiterates the point that the sole purpose of the government is to respond to the needs of its constituents. The practical implications of this are such than when the demands of the different groups are viewed together; these demands serve to influence program funding as well as to refine the focus of governmental initiatives. Essentially, our frame of thought with regards to social problems relies on the operational definition we utilize when referring to them.

Throughout the course of the addressing the social model of disability, one general theme remains evident. That theme relates to the notion that much of the inherent inaccessibility to services for individuals with limitations has a strong socio-economic tie (Lieberman, 2002). This is most evident in the comparative incomes of individuals with limitations and those without. The first salient point to be made here is that there is a general correlation between income and political participation. Essentially, individuals of higher income generally participate in political activities while individuals of lower socio-economic status are actively engaged in their day-to-day survival (Milbrath & Goel, 1977).

In fact Verba, Scholozman & Brady (1995) purport that individuals of higher socio-economic status possess more civic skills when compared to their lower socio-economic counterparts. This effectively accounts for the difference in participation in politics and alignment with movements for the disenfranchised based on socio-economic status. Furthermore, political participation has a strong association with the development of a more intimate understand o the political environment taken within a social context.

As a direct result, personal involvement in the political process facilitates a clear understanding of the adverse effects of policy and prompts action on the part of the civic minded individual. The implications of this are such that there has been a class-based determination of policy as it relates to individuals with impairments and the end result is the expectation that middle and upper class individuals are more likely to encourage initiatives aimed at ending marginalization of the disabled (Lieberman, 2002).

The most poignant contributors to the Disability Movement have to be the body of legislation which denounces exclusionary practices in both education and employment. Even this body of legislation has proven to be discriminatory in nature in that it utilized generalizations in its descriptions of individuals with limitations. These individuals have been described as individuals with special needs and as such they have been further marginalized. A look at the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) seems to be illustrative of this fact. This act was effective in ensuring that disabled individuals were offered the necessary services in order to achieve maintain employment. It however, did not eliminate the preconceived notions with regards to individuals with disabilities and individuals with disabilities continued to be marginalized.

The push to normalization has also been instrumental in ensuring that there is an assurance of education for the developmentally disabled for the first time in 1970. As such, the achievements were remarkable and have changed the lives of many disabled individuals.

Despite this remarkable achievement, some of the ideas within the Social Model of disability proved problematic in that the inclusion of individuals with disabilities facilitated unwarranted attention to the disabled. In lieu of full inclusion of all individuals with developmental disabilities, some theories dictate that such individuals should engage in a constant process of self-regulation to avoid drawing attention to their perceived difference and thereby increasing their chances of social acceptance and ‘passing’. Once again this is reverting to the individual treatment of individuals with disabilities rather than unilateral inclusion (Tregaskis, 2004).

The Disability Movement has made significant changes in the lives of individuals with disabilities. These changes include the inclusion of individuals with disabilities within both the educational and employment segments. It was instrumental in the passage of several prolific pieces of legislature. We have seen a transformation from a medical model of disabilities to a social one. Despite this the attitudes of many individuals have seen very little transformation.

Individuals with disabilities are viewed as “abnormal” and their needs are minimized by virtue of normalization movements. Individuals with disabilities have special challenges they face each day. These challenges include inaccessibility of services. Much of this is due to the physical barriers these individuals face. Over the course of time, this inaccessibility is changing but as much as the services are made accessible to individuals with disabilities, the stigmatism and marginalization remains.

This will not change until each and every one of us becomes cognizant of the challenges faced by individuals with disabilities and attempt to treat individuals with disabilities as we would able-bodied individuals. On the most fundamental level, these individuals need to be treated with the same respect and dignity afforded each person by virtue of being human.

After having examined the social and legal ramification of the marginalization of individuals with disabilities, it is prudent that we examine this from an empirical standpoint. In so doing, Lock, Jordan, Bryan & Maxim (2005) examined the notion that there are clear and concise barrier placed on individuals with disabilities. Their empirical study entitled “Work after stroke: focusing on barriers and enablers” addressed individuals who were disabled by virtue of having a stroke.

The study participants were individuals who had suffered strokes and as a direct result were disabled to varying degrees. In their research, they utilized the qualitative research methodology of focus group discussions to ascertain the effects of a disability on maintaining gainful employment. They conducted five focus group discussions with 49 participants. The participants consisted of thirty-seven (37) stroke survivors and twelve (12) of their supporters.

The resultant data was analyzed in a manner that identified general themes across individuals within the groups. In so doing, the rehabilitation process, the agency in which the individual worked prior and after the stroke, the general social climate and personal attributes were identified as barriers and enablers. The study found that the most influential barriers to successful reintegration into the workforce were the institutional structure and practices as well as the attitudes of some of the individuals within the workplace. They found that many individuals within the workplace systematically and categorically marginalized the individual stroke suffers.

This body of research was poignant in that it examined individuals who had acquired disabilities and were able to clearly see the difference in treatment as a result of their disability. Essentially, they offered a baseline for comparison in that they were able to ascertain the difference in treatment as a direct result of their disability.

Stereotypic Images

Another body of research I found very applicable to the current discussion of the discrimination faced by individuals with disability is one which deals with stereotypic images of these individuals. Heenan (2005) discussed the reliance of individuals with disabilities on disability benefits.

The author examined the notion of whether this reliance served to perpetuate stereotypical images of individuals with disabilities as essentially being parasitic organisms who utilize the system as a means of proliferating dishonesty and as a means of enabling them to remain idle instead of being viable and contributing members of the societies in which they live. It is purported that such stereotypical images proliferate oppression and discrimination and the author indicates that students being trained in them field of social work should be aware of the stereotypes present and be trained in enabling the individuals they serviced in overcoming the effects of these stereotypes.

The participants in this study were first year social work students who would eventually administer services to a wide variety of individuals of different abilities. The training module was divided into three sections. Those sections were a section on historical issues, one on theoretical issues and one on contemporary issues. The historical issues section was devoted to tracing the development of social policy. The theoretical issues section focused on developing analytical skills and the contemporary issues section provided a sound foundation for further study. This teaching strategy was administered over the course of a two week period which involved six hours of active teaching.

The students were divided into groups and administered questionnaires to assess their perception of disability before and after taking the prescribed curriculum. This end result of this study was the notion that it was important to introduce a training module early in the education of social workers as a means of preventing their personal biases from interfering with the services rendered to their clients. This body of research was important in that it pointed out the need to have formal training in order to prevent the effects of stereotypic images. This can definitely be extended to the population at large.

After having examined the ramifications of discrimination both from a legal and a social vantage point, it is prudent that we realize that the fight for equitable treatment under the law is one that is far from being won. Each day many individuals are discriminated against based on their disabilities. They are denied access to services as well as physical access to many places. The laws are in place to prevent this discrimination but the society as a whole still remains very influential in preventing these laws from being enforced.

In order to truly understand the scope and ramifications of this, it is necessary to understand the proliferation of stereotypic images of the disabled. It is felt that in order for a disability to be recognized it has to be visible. This does not take individuals with disabilities such as back injuries into account. Those individuals are viewed as being lazy and out to exploit the social services system. As individuals in the helping professions, it is important that we work to change this perception. In so doing, we can assure equitable treatment of all irrespective of their disabilities.

References

Fleischer, D.Z. & Zames, F. (2001). The Disability Rights Movement: From Charity to Confrontation. Pennsylvania: Temple University Press.

Heenan, D. (2005). Challenging Stereotypes Surrounding Disability and Promoting Antioppressive Practice: Some Reflections on Teaching Social Work Students in Northern Ireland. Social Work Education, 24(5), 495–510.

Lieberman, R.C. (2002). Ideas, Institutions, and Political Order: Explaining Political Change. American Political Science Review, 96(4), 697-712.

Lock, S., Jordan, L., Bryan, K. &Maxim, J. (2005). Work after stroke: focusing on barriers and enablers. Disability & Society, 20(1), 33–47.

Milbrath, L. & Goel, M.L. (1977). Political Participation. Chicago: Rand McNally.

Rochefort, D. A., & Cobb, R. W. (1994). The politics of problem definition: Shaping the policy agenda. Lawrence, KS.: University of Kansas Press.

Tregaskis, C. (2004). Constructions of Disability: Researching the Interface between Disabled and Non-Disabled People. New York: Routledge.

Verba, S., Schlozman, K.L. & Brady, H.E. (1995). Voice and Equality: Civic Voluntarism in American Politics. Cambridge, MA.: Harvard University Press.

Ward, M.J. & Meyer, R.N. (1999). Self-Determination for People with Developmental Disabilities and Autism: Two Self-Advocates’ Perspectives. Focus on Autism &Other Developmental Disabilities, 14(3), 133-139.

Yongjoo, J. & Haider-Markel, D. P. (2001). Tracing Issue Definition and Policy Change: An Analysis of Disability Issue Images and Policy. Policy Studies Journal 29(2): 215-231.

After hearing about the events happening in Tuscaloosa, Alabama and in some other Southern American cities, I decided to form my own six words about race. They are: “Racial equality should not be difficult”. The process of segregation in some schools, described as a natural happening, truly is not normal. To my mind, it is a harmful and unreasonable process that leads to social degeneration of some areas.

The question of racism and segregation has been bothering the American society and the society of the whole world for generations. A certain progress was achieved in this field over the last several decades, yet, there are still unresolved issues that bother various ethnic groups. For years people of color have been fighting for their rights in the white societies.

Several decades ago the world’s society started to understand and admit the equality between all people. Segregation happening in some American schools nowadays does not only slow people down on their way towards complete equality, it also reverses this process and erases some of the achievements our society has made through all this time.

To my mind, racial equality should not be difficult. The United States of America is one of the most multinational countries of the world, most children from the early age are taught to treat all people according to who they are, not how they look. The fact that since childhood people are taught to live and interact in a diverse society on a daily basis and deal with cultural differences without discriminating or offending others has made a great positive impact on the development of equality in people’s minds.

Re-segregation leads to isolated existence of people of different ethnicities, it results in the appearance of judgments and prejudices. If this process continues and becomes wider, our society might come back to the way it used to be years ago. The fact that the desire to isolate, divide and segregate still exists today in some parts of our country means that the people’s minds are not open towards tolerance and equality. The nature of humans is to fear and reject most of changes.

Unfortunately, in some States people are still stuck within the old-fashioned ways of thinking. The stereotypes can be overcome, the prejudices can be defeated, but for this to work the prejudiced parts of the society need to be willing to see the good sides of the changes. The roots and causes of modern segregation have to be examined and new techniques of dealing with them have to be worked out.

The racial equality in the whole world should not be difficult. And it is not, as soon as people open their minds and stop thinking in frames and dogmas. Equality is a natural thing. It has always existed. Segregation and division were invented by people. Human minds are brilliant and full of amazing abilities. One of them is the ability to judge, this ability brings a lot of good, but it also can cause some harm.

Inequality is one of the unproductive sets of beliefs artificially designed by humans, initially, in a society with old-fashioned perceptions and morals it had an explanation. These days inequality is nothing but an ancient and pointless stereotype, a rudiment that is an empty shell with no contents and no meaning. Therefore, in the moment when people open their minds and start listening to their hearts, the racial equality stops being difficult to achieve.

In the public sector, discriminatory practices include any deeds that segregate the quality of public goods such as healthcare and education depending on characteristics like ethnicity, race, sexuality, disability, gender, age, and nationality among others. Private sector may also explore discriminatory practices.

For example, a fast-food organisation explores discriminatory practices if it offers different and/or separate eating areas for people who come from different racial backgrounds. Such an organisation can also offer different qualities of foods and services to such people. This situation suggests that anti-discriminatory practices uphold equality, diversity, and rights of all people amid their demographic and psychographic differences.

Equality refers to the state of affairs in which people in a society or even isolated groups of people possess a similar status. Social equality upholds equal rights as stipulated by the law on property rights, freedom of speech, equal access to public social goods and public services, assembly rights, and voting rights. Equality also covers health impartiality, social security justice, and monetary fairness (Thorvaldur & Zoega 2011).

Diversity refers to differences among people within an organisation based on their diverse religious and moral believes. It also includes professional disparities together with their ability differences based on their gender, ethnic origin, racial background, sexuality, and age among others.

People have the right of access to quality public goods. Civil rights address any infringement of people’s freedom by privately established organisations, other people, or even the government (Hudson 2009). Rights should apply without discrimination on the grounds of faith, disability, or sexual orientations.

Embracing diversity has incredibly benefited the society in terms of health and social care provisions with regard to arts, language, diet, tolerance, social cohesion, employment, and expertise. The need to embrace diversity has translated into the establishment of healthcare policies that seek to promote quality healthcare in an anti-discriminatory manner to all US citizens.

This plan ensures equity and equality in terms of access to healthcare for the American citizenry. Indeed, Daley and Feit (2013) confirm that healthcare professionals have the duty to offer services of equal quality to people, irrespective of their differences.

Campaigns against exploration of discriminatory policies and their practice along diversity lines have been effective in fostering social cohesion and promoting diversity tolerance so that all people can access quality healthcare regardless of their linguistic differences or employment status.

Cultural diversity has the impact of creating different cultural artefacts such as foods or diets. With the embracement of diversity, people freely consume other communities’ diets freely without considering the communities’ cultural status. This situation has the implication of creating a healthier American citizenry.

Upholding diversity makes it possible to promote equality and individual rights in health and social care settings. In a healthcare environment, this goal can be achieved through compliance with guidelines and rules that are applicable when practitioners provide services to clients.

These guidelines include the promotion of anti-discriminatory policies, ensuring confidentiality of health-related information, promotion of individual dignity and civil liberties, protection of people from abuse in care homes, respecting individual identities and beliefs, and/or offering individualised care (Moore & Savage 2012).

Equality and individual rights in terms of empowering patents/service users in a hospital can be actively promoted through offering services in a fashion that is similar to the one that is applied in care-giving homes. In terms of staff development and training in a youth club setting, equality and individual rights can be promoted by providing a room for registration and participation in training and staff development programmes without any discrimination.

References

Daley, C & Feit, D 2013, ‘The many roles of social workers in the prevention and treatment of alcohol and drug addiction: A major health and social problem affecting individuals, families and society’, Social Work in Public Health, vol. 28 no. 4, pp. 159–164.

Hudson, D 2009, The Right to Privacy, Infobase Publishing, New York, NY.

Moore, L & Savage, J 2012, ‘Participant Observation, Informed Consent and Ethical Issues in Nursing Practice’, Nurse Researcher, vol. 9 no. 4, pp. 58-69.

Thorvaldur, G & Zoega, G 2011, ‘Educational. Social Equity And Economic Growth: A View of the Landscape’, CESifo Economic Studies, vol. 49, no. 4, pp. 557–579.

It is evident in almost all organizations today. “Forms of social inequality include gender inequality, racial inequality and even caste inequality” (Dines & Humez 24). This concept paper will examine media patterns in relation to social inequality. The media sector has evolved and broadened in all continents, with regard to both the job sector and media content.

Some of the common kinds of media analysis entail assessment of “media content for the information it relays concerning race, sex, social class, and other matters of social marginalization” (van Dijk 52). The media is observed to focus on irrelevant things, while disregarding material that pertains to social diversity that is central in our communities.

In doing so, the media “presents images that are consistent with stereotypes and the dominant ideological portrayal of society” (van Dijk 52). This is done at the cost of people who have been historically marginalized in society, including women, people of colour and the poor. Social inequality refers to circumstances where people in a community lack the same social standing.

One of the key issues in the examination of media content looks at the trends assumed by unfairness leading to bias. An example of bias in the media can be illustrated by observing the ratio of men to women in society, and placing that ratio to the available job opportunities in the media. A ratio of 1:1, implying an equal number of both men and women in society, should be reflected in the work place.

But if there are more men than women, then the trend of gender favouritism is said to be against women. “The significance of media content will be examined as a reflection of: media producers and their ideologies; audience preferences and desires; social norms, belief and values; and its influence on audiences and the society in general” (Dines & Humez 25).

The books ‘Gender, Race and Class in Media’ by Gail Dines and Jean McMahon Humez and ‘The Network Society: Social Aspects of New Media’ By Jan van Dijk contain relevant information concerning cultural studies, by examining the role of the media in perpetrating common stereotypes of historically marginalized people.

The books provide relevant information concerning analysis of advertising, music, sexual representation and TV. The book ‘Media Society: Industries, Images, and Audiences’ by David Croteau, William Hoynes and Page covers the topic ‘Social Inequality and Media Representation’, which is explained in details analyzing the media in the current society.

An example of a concept involving social inequality in the media is the trend of hiring people for jobs they do not deserve by favoring them for various reasons like their gender or race. Inequality in the media is a big issue, where job opportunities matter, as it denies qualified candidates a chance to get a deserving job in the media industry.

An example in the television sector is whereby stations may refuse to hire people of different race as their managers. Another example is where women are given roles of promoting kitchenware or washing machines in television advertisements while men get advertisements that portray them as successful professionals (Dines & Humez 27).

Social inequality is an issue that we must try to do away with in order to progress in this industry. Sometimes discrimination against certain gender or race may lead to companies losing out on efficient workers and leaders. Although these norms have declined bringing changes in the media industry, concealed racism and gender inequality are still evident in the media. It will take much effort to control social disparity in the society (Dines & Humez 29).

Works Cited

Dines, Gail, and Jean M. Humez. Gender, Race, and Class in Media: A Text-Reader. Thousand Oaks, California: Sage Publications, 2002. Print.

Van Dijk, Jan. The Network Society: Social Aspects of New Media. SAGE Publications: Thousand Oaks, California, 1999. Print.