Day 2: Equity vs. Equality

DAY 2 Of YWCA Spokane’s 14-Day Racial Equity & Social Justice Challenge

Thank you for dedicating time, space, and energy to your own personal deepening and understanding of concepts related to race, power, privilege, and leadership.

DAY 1 | DAY 2 | DAY 3 | DAY 4 | DAY 5 | DAY 6 | DAY 7 | DAY 8 | DAY 9 | DAY 10 | DAY 11 | DAY 12 | DAY 13 | DAY 14

If this is your first day of joining us on this 14-day challenge, welcome. If you are back for more after our first day of the challenge, awesome! We are glad you are here. From Monday, June 15 through Sunday, June 28, YWCA Spokane will send those who sign up for our challenge daily emails prompting you to make take time to learn about racial equity and social justice.

We encourage everyone to talk about what you are learning with friends, share on social media with #ywcaequitychallenge, and take time to reflect on your personal insights after each challenge using this reflection log.

DAY 2: EQUITY VS. EQUALITY

The words equality and equity are often used interchangeably to describe a condition of fairness that we hope to achieve in our society. However, there are key differences in these concepts to consider as we challenge ourselves to think more deeply about race.

Equality means providing the same resources and opportunities for everyone, regardless of their circumstances. Equity means meeting the differing needs of people by providing resources and opportunities specific to those needs.

While both equality and equity aim for fairness, equality treats people as if they are the same while equity recognizes that treating people as if they are the same does not mean treating them fairly. In fact, equity can mean providing more resources to a group that has been disadvantaged by circumstances beyond their control.

For example, a school board might deem it fair to allot the same amount of funding to each school in a city, even though each school’s demographics and academic outcomes differ. This could be considered part of an equal opportunity for education, but it is not necessarily fair. An equitable approach would allot more funding to schools with high numbers of low-income students and students of color, who have been disproportionately underserved by our education system.

In short, equality cannot be achieved without equity. Providing the same resources and opportunities to a diverse population can only be fair if we actively work to remove barriers that prevent people of color and other marginalized groups from fully benefiting from these resources and opportunities.

If you have…

5 Minutes	and	10 Minutes	and	30 Minutes
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Watch this video  from the University of Maine’s Rising Tide Center that visually walks you through the difference between equity and equality.	and	Read this article from the Center For Social Inclusion that defines racial equity and offers stages to arrive at equity.	and	Review this toolkit offered by Racial Equity Tools which includes research, tips, and ideas for those who want to increase their understanding and help work toward justice at every level.

daily Reflection

Once you have completed today’s challenge, take a moment to reflect on any insights you experienced. How did the challenge make you feel? What is something you learned? Did you notice anything about yourself after taking the challenge? Consider sharing this new awareness with a friend or group to help deepen your understanding of the information. Consider tracking your reflections on the below daily log or start an online group with friends to encourage daily sharing with each other about the challenge topics.

Challenge Reflection Log

Share each challenge online with #YWCAEquityChallenge

DAY 1 | DAY 2 | DAY 3 | DAY 4 | DAY 5 | DAY 6 | DAY 7 | DAY 8 | DAY 9 | DAY 10 | DAY 11 | DAY 12 | DAY 13 | DAY 14

Do you have resources you think we should share? We welcome you to let us know by leaving your comments here.