The Hidden Perils of Equity

The stark divide between genuine inequality and that which the grievance industry claims to be fighting, is now at comedic proportions. ‘I was the first Muslim leader of a western democracy, and I say Islamophobia has poisoned our politics’ Humza Yousaf told us earlier this week, without a trace of irony. That’s right Humza baby! You tell those ‘WHITE’ Islamophobes, so incompetently racist they elected you First Minister. That’s the anti-Muslim paradise of Britain incidentally, a nation so bigoted you’re more likely to be arrested for trying to prevent Muslim gang-rape, than you are for committing it.

Race-baiting politicians notwithstanding, inequality obviously exists – the question is, what (if anything) ought to be done about it? Personally, I think there’s a lot to be said for the old-school approach: ‘life ain’t fair son, you play the hand you’re dealt’. Modern society is thankfully more benign, offering a helping hand to those disadvantaged through no fault of their own. The Assisted Places Scheme of the 1980’s for instance (of which I was a beneficiary), aimed to provide a ‘ladder of opportunity’ for bright, working-class pupils – thereby not only supporting them, but theoretically according society the full benefits of their talents.

At the extreme end of the scale however, is the ideological quest for equality – which aims to force equal outcomes on society, no matter what. This is what politicians mean by ‘equity’, whether or not they realise it, and regrettably such is the direction we’re headed in.

As usual the US is ahead of us on this one – ‘When America sneezes, the world catches a cold’ as the saying goes, except in this instance it’s more a case of ‘When America starts toking, the world gets the munchies’. Take a trip across the pond to Maryland, and you’ll find Governor Wes Moore high as a kite, having gleefully pardoned over 175,000 marijuana convictions to give criminals ‘a fresh start’. This marks the largest US absolution in history, coinciding with Juneteenth, the commemoration of the end of slavery.

What’s the problem you honkie diehard, get with the times! Quite so, the problem is that the DEI sham is now being fast-tracked to its illogical conclusion: legislation according to identity. And I suggest to you, this should fill every single one of us with dread.

Here is Governor Wes Moore explaining the decision:

‘It doesn’t erase the fact that black Marylanders were three times more likely to be arrested for cannabis than white Marylanders before legalization. It doesn’t erase the fact that having a conviction on your record means a harder time with everything, everything from housing, to employment, to education.’

His sentiments were echoed by State Attorney General, Anthony Brown:

‘It’s about racial justice,’ Brown continued. ‘While this order applies to all who meet its criteria, the impact is a triumphant victory for African Americans and other Marylanders of color who were disproportionately arrested, convicted and sentenced for actions yesterday that are lawful today.’

‘Racial justice’, ‘racial equity’. If we’re going down this road, what’s to prevent the ideologues from putting their feet firmly to the floor? In Britain for instance, the authorities are already loathe to uphold the law in the face of non-white populations, why not go the whole hog and simply decriminalise mugging, stabbing and even murder – those are inequitable crimes, after all?

While the US may be ahead of us in the race for equity (e.g. the proposed minimum of $14 trillion required to “eliminate the racial wealth gap between Black and White Americans”), the seeds of this cancer have already been sown in fertile soil back in Blighty.

Consider the justice system alone: although women comprise just 2% of the UK prison population and already benefit from excessive leniency in the courts, government ministers have called for women to be spared jail in all but exceptional circumstances. Former shadow Justice Secretary, David Lammy, famously demanded BAME criminals be permitted to hide their convictions from potential employers, or preferably have their prosecutions dropped to “help tackle the bias against them”. And earlier this year, the Sentencing Council for England and Wales unveiled radical plans to eschew short-term jail sentences for everyone except white men.

With Britain about to be screwed six ways to Sunday by an incoming Keir Starmer, it’s worth remembering that the one thing the Left can be relied upon to get right is getting things wrong. Equity will simply get us there faster than anything else: indolence over diligence, mediocrity over excellence, and now finally, criminality over justice. Such feelgood ideology is always the opposite of what it purports to be, and whether wielded by the hand of left-wing administrations or their ‘Conservative’ comrades (in office but not in power), the outcome is largely the same: tolerance begets intolerance, diversity achieves uniformity, and equity (far from fairness) leads to discrimination.

It is with heavy irony that those hellbent on the enforcement of equity, are busily tearing up the first principle of justice: equality before the law. Handing out legal immunity according to identity is a dangerous game, and in the long-term will inevitably lead to violence on the part of those for whom Lady Justice refuses to turn a blind eye.

In the short-term, I advise you to identify as anything except Humza Yousaf’s favourite word: “WHITE!”

Frank Haviland is the Editor of The New Conservative, and the author of Banalysis: The Lie Destroying the West.

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