Sometimes, the perception that we live in a world in crisis absorbs us and we lose some perspective to recognize that, obviously, the world has advanced in many areas for the benefit of humanity.
However, aware that progress is largely due to historical struggles and social mobilization to demand rights and opportunities for development, it is pertinent to observe those pending issues that still, in the XXI century, continue to hurt us as societies.
At first glance, the latent inequalities around the world are presented as one of the debts that we have as a human species, if we aspire to create a future of justice and authentic peace, which translates into fullness and harmony for all.
The problem is that inequality represents an extraordinarily complex phenomenon, as it manifests itself in different dimensions: the economic gap between rich and poor; discrimination based on race or ethnic origin; historical oppression of women.
In addition, there are expressions of inequality that are beginning to appear strongly in the contemporary era, such as the lack of access to the internet in marginalized communities, or the impact of climate change that will have a greater impact on the most vulnerable populations and with less answer’s capacity.
It is undeniable that 100 years ago inequality was much more pronounced than it is today. What has allowed us to move forward to reduce the gap between the privileged minorities and the unprotected popular masses? Multiple factors: the universal democratic vote, the advancement of the feminist agenda, access to public education, anti-discrimination laws, and social programs.
In this order of ideas, through public policies and fiscal taxation (taxes), the governments of the countries of the world make an effort to promote the redistribution of income, attending to the needs of the most vulnerable, and generating strategies to compensate for inequalities that sometimes have dragged on for several decades -such as the segregation of some indigenous communities-.
Although I consider the action of the rulers and public institutions to be fundamental in order to continue advancing in the construction of more egalitarian societies, I am also convinced that blaming only the government authorities or the political class for the inequality gaps that remain is to fall into oversimplification, giving in to a sterile temptation.
It is time to change paradigms and for each of the actors in society to assume their responsibility to address inequality in its different dimensions.
Of course, betting on education and access to culture will be decisive. Countries with higher levels of schooling and whose population reads more books per year have lower rates of inequality. Promoting school scholarship programs and campaigns to encourage the habit of reading can be a first step.