POVERTY AND INEQUALITY

The US President Barack Obama said: “The nation cannot prosper long when it only favours the prosperous.”Evaluate this statement by examining inequality and poverty in the world today.

The US President Barack Obama said: "The nation cannot prosper long when it only favours the prosperous."Evaluate this statement by examining inequality and poverty in the world today

Introduction

United States of America has a long history of being closely associated to the promotion and preservation of world peace, justice and equality. All the people who have served the country in one way or the other relied on the propagation of an equitable world justice system where each citizen has the right to live and progress. Thus, in western societies like the U.S, the significance of equality and justice is unimaginable high. The recent President of the U.S, Mr. Barack Obama, is a man of principles. He showed to the world, the true spirit of all Americans: to live with harmony and peace at all costs. It is his spirit and enthusiasm that has led the world to accept the values of America as a widely-acceptable belief.

In this essay, we will evaluate one of the popular statements of Barack Obama that reflects his favour for equality and non-0discrimiantion in all societies. The statement "The nation cannot prosper long when it only favour the prosperous” can have many different angels, all encouraging a solitary spirit: promotion of the world peace and tranquility by giving people their equal rights, irrespective of colour, cast or creed (Solley, 2005, p. 200-219).

Are there different definitions of Inequality?

Inequality is a highly contested topic, which finds different meanings in different contexts. However, there are many misconceptions about inequality as a politic ideology. Inequality and its prevention remain high on a government's agenda, yet its practical implementation still remains questionable. In a definite sense, inequality is an economic or social disparity where some people (on the criterion of gender, colour, or creed) attain preference over their counterparts on the terms of getting their basic human rights, and other amenities and opportunities (Solley, 2005, p. 200-219). Inequality finds different meanings and interpretations, while their value seems to vary according to countries. For example, in one region inequality may simply mean a lack of opportunities to acquire education for females as compared to male. While one the other hand, inequality in the other part of the world may be the deprivation of basic human rights for aged people as compared to the youth. Hence, while we see that inequality, in its literal sense, can be deprivation or discrimination, it encompasses various groups of people from the society who may be a victim of inequality. Its trickle down effects are damaging and plaguing for the societal progress. Inequality gives birth to various social evils and problems, which can sometimes be irreparable (Shorvaldur, Gylfi, 2003, p. 557-579).

A society plagued by inequality is the one in which everyone does not acquire equal chance to flourish within the economic ...