ABSTRACT
Social inequities are a global phenomenon. The United Nations provides a guiding social equity framework. All countries have groups of citizens—often characterized by differences in gender, race, ethnicity, religion, and/or class status—where important differences in opportunity exist. These differences are meaningful because they are embedded within a larger social and historical context which may seem “normal” within each particular nation-state, but which may be viewed as nuanced, insignificant, and strange to those unfamiliar with that nation’s particular historical fabric. These differences are often sources of embarrassment for countries on an international stage, because it reflects the stark realities of enduring inequities fueled by historical and contemporary bias, prejudice, and discrimination.
