Equality of opportunity is a popular political idea that attenuates that people should have a level playing ground where people can compete for positions and advantaged offices in society. The political class promises the citizens pursuance of equality of opportunity by creating jobs and protecting them, among others. However, I concur with Matthews (2015) that the idea needs to be more coherent and achievable in the real world because it fails to consider factors that perpetuate societal inequality.
Societal disparities are associated with different factors, some of which are genetically acquired. Matthews (2015) indicates that genetic, environmental, and poverty factors play a significant role in the experienced social inequalities. For instance, I have observed that children from areas with high levels of lead exposure have low IQs, which reduces their capacity to concentrate and perform academically and at a job. Such factor increases their chances to continue languishing in poverty even after being given equal opportunity for acquiring education (Etzioni, 2002). Establishing good life for all is paramount to the unrealistic idea of equality of opportunity.
Policies developed by the political class to pursue equality of opportunity distract society from addressing the issues that contribute to the inequalities, depriving people of good life regardless of their social class. For instance, an opportunity for all students to join colleges does not mean that all will excel and secure good employment because their genetic makeup and family background influence their performance in different subjects (Lukianoff & Haidt, 2015). People desire fairness in the distribution of income and wealth and equality, a distractive political idea (Bloom, 2018). Indeed, the government can strive to achieve equality of opportunity and effectively protect rights for all (Lincoln, 1994). However, the ability to grab and utilize those opportunities differs due to genetic and environmental factors, leading to disparities between those who do and do not succeed.
Therefore, inequality through fairness in the redistribution of resources is an effective approach to achieving a good society. Thus, the government should shift its goal from pursuing equality for opportunities to establishing a good life for all, making everyone feel better, regardless of their social class.
References
Bloom, P. (2018). People don’t actually want equality. They want fairness. Evonomics. Web.
Etzioni, A. (2002). The good society. Seattle Journal for Social Justice, 1(1), 83–96.
Lincoln, A. (1994). Gettysburg address, 1863. Lakeside Press.
Lukianoff , G., & Haidt, Jonatha N. (2015). Coddling of the American mind. Web.
Matthews, D. (2015). The case against equality of opportunity. Vox. Web.