Equality vs. Sameness in American Political Society

Posted on 14. Jan, 2010 by James Devere in American Politics

Barack Obama’s quest and campaign promise to “fundamentally change the United States” is in full swing.  It is not a new effort and the change has been underway for years.  The changes are simple; what is underway is a redefinition of the term equality in the American psyche.

Equality is defined as a state of being essentially equal or equivalent; equally balanced; “on a par with the best.”  Our founding documents are sprinkled with the sentiment of equality.   On par with the best, particularly, harkens to the development of a society where no matter your station of birth one could succeed.  Our founding fathers did not create a classless society; they opened the door for movement between different social and economic levels.  Laborers were still laborers but they had the opportunity to keep what they earned, they had the opportunity to own property, and their children had the opportunity to become doctors, lawyers, entrepreneurs, or even starving artists, if they chose.  

At the time of the nation’s founding, Europe was in a state of change.  England was faced with a burgeoning merchant class while many countries on the continent were still struggling under a feudalistic system.  Colonial Americans had already begun a light-speed jump over Mother England in terms of opportunity and had seen what equality of opportunity could do for society.  The colonial system encouraged and rewarded ingenuity and risk, creativity and hard work were often enough to raise one to a new station in life. 

Breaking from the British governmental system, and a colonial empire that was still under royal charter, further encouraged early Americans to include Equality of the Law as a tenement in our founding.  Tyranny, as it was called, and a distrust of a strong central authority lead to what President Obama calls “negative rights” being placed in the Constitution. The negative rights are those that protect us not from ourselves but from our government.  They form the Bill of Rights and are the cornerstone of our society.

Sameness, on the other hand, in a societal context, is what judicial activists believe is intended in the Constitution. It is an equality of outcome rather than an equality of opportunity; it is social equality rather than judicial equality.  Sameness is what would lead a wizened Latina woman, as Judge Sotomayor described herself, to come to a different conclusion that other justices.  Sameness is defined as a quality of being alike; it is also defined as monotony.  Sameness is what our Administration strives for on the outside and social justice is the tool to achieve it.  Equality can not be the pillar of a government that is committed to sameness.

The opportunity provided by the American system of Government has proven itself time and again.  In the past two centuries America has produced countless success stories and thousands of innovations.  Great leaders, inventors, entrepreneurs, and artists have emerged from every walk of life to reach the pinnacle of success. 

What will sameness bring us?  Here from a report in the East Bay News is an example of where we are headed as a society.

Equality of opportunity is the not the same thing as equality of virtue.  Work ethic, intelligence, and perseverance have as much to do with success in this country as birth.  A government can only give its people so much.  But beyond freedom and opportunity, there is little that a people need to succeed. 

Equality is not sameness, and sameness is neither a virtue nor a basis for economic development.

Tags: American Politics, Constitution, equality, rights, sameness, society