Inequality can simply be defined as the differences in size, circumstances and degree between related phenomena. However, social inequality can refer to a situation where individuals in the society lack equality in social status. According to sociologists, the society is a stratification system based on hierarchy of honor, prestige, privilege. These factors lead to inequality within the society. According to these sociologists, inequality defines the people on the society who gets what, why they get them and how they get them. Inequality places disparities in gender, race, class, income level, and education level. Inequality is characterized by unequal rewards and opportunities for statuses or positions within the society. Inequality positions individuals unfairly with regard to access to a variety of social commodities.
Recently, The New York Times Newspaper published news about Income inequality, which included commentary and archival articles. According to this news event, it is suggested that much darker picture of the effects of technology on labor has emerged; notes highly educated workers are likely as less educated ones to find themselves displaced and devalued (Krugman, 2013). This disputed the notion that education could provide a solution to the rising income inequalities. In the same newspaper, while comparing the ratio of average income of Mississippi in the last 80 years, the disparity between the poorest and the richest in the society has dramatically shrunk. Finally, the newspaper article elaborates that the America’s super-rich are flourishing while the ordinary citizens lag behind.
The societal issue that represents a threat to equality in my opinion is higher education. I the current society, higher education have been made exceedingly expensive for the ordinary students. In this case, the rich members of the society access better education services while the poor students only rely on sponsorships, which are also awarded unfairly in favor of the middle class. In this regard, education system faces a societal inequality threat. The factors to consider when determining how to address the threat to equality include income, class, access to social commodities, race, gender, and accountability.
Reference:
Krugman P., (June 14, 2013). Income Inequality: Income Inequality Chronology. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/subjects/i/income/income_inequality/index.html
