Definition of the Right to Equality

People are different. We have very different physical characteristics, intellectual capacities and social situations. These differences are obvious, but this does not mean that the difference between people has to be advantageous in all circumstances. For there to be an idea of ​​justice in a society, it is convenient to have a clear idea of ​​the equality. Differences between people are equalized through right. There are a number of historical documents (the declaration of human rights, of the rights of man... ) that express the idea that man has individual rights. One of the most important individual rights is the Right to equality.

Where does this idea come from? The ancient Greeks were the creators of the philosophy western. They reflected on nature and also on ethics and society. They were the promoters of the democracy and this is based on two ideas: isegory and isonomy. The isegoría means that all citizens are equal in an assembly, there is no one above the other. Isonomy means that we are all equal before

law. These two concepts are at the origin of equality and, consequently, in the concept of the Right to Equality.

The right to equality exists when a legislation he contemplates it and protects it. Throughout history this idea has been expanding. For many years women were not equal before the law (for example, they could not vote). The slaves were lower-ranking citizens and were not equals primarily because of their race. In some countries, the homosexuality is reason for discrimination legal. These examples show that the Right to equality is contemplated in the laws (mainly in the laws of nations democratic) to try that differences for reasons of sex, social condition or race between people do not discriminate against people.

Consider the symbol of justice: a woman with a scale and her eyes covered with a blindfold. The message of this symbol is simple, that justice is true only if it ignores the differences between individuals, that is, it considers that all people are exactly the same Before the Law. For this reason, we continue to talk about equality in many of the current debates. Gender equality exists when laws and regulations guarantee that men and women are in the same conditions. And there is the idea of ​​equal opportunities. This concept is key within the right to equality and means that, regardless of our personal conditions, we all have the possibility to participate in the same circumstances as the the rest.

Issues in the Right to Equality