Social Justice: Promoting Equality and Well-being
Social justice may be looked at as a reflection of equal and fair distribution of basic human rights, political freedom, fair living conditions, and distributive economic resources among the societal members. In essence, it is basically aimed at promoting equality and societal well-being. For example, a good action may be generally accepted as long as it would promote comfort and peaceful co-existence among most individuals in the society. Moreover, social justice seeks to promote economic, political, and cultural liberation for most vulnerable members of a society. However, social justice has been a tool applied in social work practices with an intention of promoting universal benefits without class conflicts, political, and racial discrimination among the people living in a particular society. Citizens are viewed equal from all angles of life in terms of basic needs and rights; thus, resources are redistributed to settle inequalities in the society.
Perspectives of Social Justice
Social justice can be viewed in various perspectives that create a better society. For instance, every individual in the society is entitled to equal social rights and basic liberations from oppression and discrimination in the community. The latter should be in a way that every member of the society is treated equally, regardless of their economic, social, and political background. Besides, economic resources and social imbalances must be considered in two circumstances; opportunities must be equal to all individuals in the formal employment and they must be to the advantage of the most vulnerable and least fortunate individuals of the society (Rawls 213). In other words, social justice should be constructed such that it focuses at bridging the gap between the poor and the rich.
The Three Perspectives
Notably, social workers have come up with three basic perspectives, which are important in understanding social justice as a means of redistributing resources meant to facilitate equality in the community. They include egalitarian theory of resource allocation, libertarian theory, and utilitarian perspective of resource allocation. In essence, utilitarian perspective puts more emphasis on actions of individuals in the society such that the greatest number of people would benefit from the actions, even if it meant infringing an individual’s right for the benefit of many in the society. Libertarians, on the other hand, argue that each person has a right to own resources they acquired legally, irrespective of the status of other societal members. The theory supports protection of diversity in the various individual interests and security in pursuing their own obligations. Finally, Egalitarian theorists advocate for equal distribution of rights and resource allocation in the society such that the most vulnerable members are entitled to certain benefits from redistribution of economic resources, social benefits, and political freedom.
Obstacles to Social Justice
However, social justice has met several obstacles emanating from human nature, scarcity of resources, and cultural barriers in the society. Thompson argues that the major obstacles faced by social workers in the effort to reconstruct social justice in the communities may have originated from racism issues, gender inequalities, socio economic status, and age differences (91). Besides, sexual orientation diversities, immigration issues, religion and cultural diversity across the members of a society also hinder the need for a just community.
Religious Diversity as an Obstacle
Diversity in religions has remained a barrier to effective social justice practice in the societies today. According to Rawls, communities consist of people with different religious backgrounds and beliefs (76). For example, a common practice may be considered right and just in one community, while the same practice may be viewed as offensive in other communities due to cultural diversity. The latter may hinder the practice of equal justice practice in the society as a result of diversity in understanding and interpreting various issues. Therefore, religious inequality interferes with the effectiveness and efficient practice of social justice.
Racial Discrimination
Besides, racial discrimination as a vice has negative implications and far-reaching effects on the practice of social justice. Some individuals face harsh discrimination in the community due to racial status. For instance, an individual may be barred from taking part in various activities and blocked from opportunities due to the skin color (Thompson 29). It is unfortunate that the individuals who are discriminated against are perceived to be inferior, which is actually a wrong perception. Therefore, their rights are infringed and they tend to be lagged in terms of development.
Gender Inequality
Gender inequality is also a major obstacle to the success of social justice in the communities. Most often, some communities perceive females to be less useful and important in the implementation process of issues in the society. Males dominate correctional institutions, while females are not considered in the law enforcement departments of the society. This has a negative impact on the efficiency of social justice application in the society. In addition, people living with various types of disabilities are discriminated against and are not actively involved in the judiciary systems of the society.
In Conclusion
In summary, social justice is a philosophical concern, basically constructed to promote and build equality among the citizens of a given community. Philosophers such as John Rawls, Aristotle, and other sociologists have made a great contribution to the study of social justice. However, the practice of social justice in the communities is facing a lot of obstacles that could be linked to scarcity of economic resources and inadequate human nature and behaviors. Such obstacles emanate from age difference, social status, racial discrimination, gender inequalities, and various types of disabilities; thus, creating hardship in developing a just society.
Work Cited
Rawls, John. Justice as fairness: A restatement. Harvard University Press, 2001.
Thompson, Neil. Anti-discriminatory practice: Equality, diversity and social justice. Macmillan International Higher Education, 2016.
