Social Inequality - Essay Sample

Introduction

Social inequality is evident through the presence of unequal opportunities for different social groups or categories within a society. Notably, it is characterized by recurrent and structured patterns of unfair distribution of wealth, rewards, goods, and punishments. Additionally, the intersectionality of two or more social categories generate varying experiences for people in each society and may give rise to favism and discrimination. Being a Black transgender woman in the US is a nightmare often filled with challenging experiences due to the interplay of their sexual orientation, gender, and race (Settles, 2006). On the other hand, whereas white gay men might face challenges, their plight in society is significantly privileged. The dangers of social inequalities are immense, especially if an individual belongs to a minority group (De Vries, 2012). Albeit both white and black members of the LGBTQ communities face some challenging experiences, the intersectionality of race, gender, and orientation give rise to social disparities between the two with the African American community being marginalized and suffering intensely.

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Experiences of an African Gay Man

Members of the LGBTQ community, especially African transgender women in the country are exposed to social inequality in various spheres of life. An interview with Mary (not her real name) gave an insight into how her kind perceives, experiences, and copes with inequalities in modern society. Just like other citizens, transgender women in the country want to live the American dream; nevertheless, inequalities and discrimination often hinder them from realizing their full potential. Mary often feels the burden of social inequality as a punishment for living their best lives; however, she believes that the future is luminescence.

At the age of 15, Mary explained her struggle with idealizing her true sexual identity. She claimed, "I realized my hips were blossoming and my sound did not break like for other teenage boys." At the age of 16, Mary realized that despite being born a boy, she was comfortable identifying herself as a woman and she was learning how to embrace her new identity. Nevertheless, she decided that she would undergo surgery after college to completely change her gender to female, something that she did not anticipate to cause her much pain later.

Just like other transgender black women in the US, Mary reminiscence how her life changed to the worst after the surgery. Unluckily, she lost her job after as a teacher after most parents felt uncomfortable with her interacting with their children. The interplay between her gender and race played a role in her discrimination something that the school board of governors had no option but to her go. White parents expressed their dissatisfaction with the "new" her claiming that children were being scared. Her direct transformation from a man to a woman and wearing women's clothes may have contributed to the scenario. Her shift to using women facilities in the school also made other gender insensitive teachers and students uncomfortable. Moreover, she failed to secure any other job despite being a qualified teacher, a situation that almost drove her to depression.

Moreover, despite her feeling a sigh of relief for embracing her true gender identity, she explained discrimination in an attempt to access social amenities. She narrated, "I was once stopped from using the female's washroom and was directed to the males." She felt offended and refused but the attendants were not moved by her explanation. She explained that being discriminated against is something her kind face in their everyday life. Moreover, given her considerable level of testosterone, she requires oestradiol hormone adequately to maintain her estrogen levels. However, accessing the hormone package is stressful given that most hospitals deny transgender women of color medication. Those that accept black transgender women either do not have the hormones or overcharge them. The disparities in accessing medical care among LGBTQ members is one nightmare that she had to live within her newfound identity.

Mary believes that the interplay between her gender, sexual orientation, and race caused her various challenges during her youth and early adulthood. She believes that social stratification places black women in the most difficult position, especially in a society that is largely gender binary. She acknowledges that social inequalities caused by the gender gap between men and women are higher when one is a transgender African American since she must face societal challenges twice. Currently, while she may have little to options to cope with the stigma and discrimination, she has created a sanctuary for similar transgender persons whom she helps identify their identity and fight for their rights as minorities. For now, she remains positive that in the future things will change for the better.

Interview With James

James is a white gay man who unlike many members of the LGBTQ community who often conceal their sexual orientation, is a proud gay man. He has celebrated every Gay Pride festival since 2014 openly. He has a good job and he and his partner benefited from a mortgage loan. Additionally, when he broke the news about his sexual orientation to some of his friends at work, they embraced him, and he started receiving some special treatment. For example, any material that would seem offensive in the office was removed to give him a comfortable place to work. He narrated a time that he was recognized in an appreciation speech by his boss for standing for coming out about is identity.

Additionally, in 2018, James discovered that he was HIV positive. Since then he has been under the care of his local physician, where he never misses on the antiviral drugs. Additionally, he claimed that "I rarely receive critics for being gay and even posts my life often on social media, while having a good time." The stigma associated with being a gay and HIV positive person is diminished for the whites compared to marginalized communities. Notably, James is aware of that he enjoys the privileges associated with gay men sleeping with men (GWMM). He believes that the interplay between his race-white supremacy-and sexual orientation has shielded him from being a victim of prejudice like most queer people from minority communities such as Mary. Instead, his status has made him a "hero" in such a way that he has been behind doors that he could have never opened as a straight person or a black queer. Nevertheless, he perceives the inequalities in health, employment, and stigmatizations as a burden to the minority races and remains positive that equality even within the LGBTQ community is achievable albeit not easy.

Comparison of Intersectionality of Social Categories

From the above cases, the intersectionality of race, gender, and sexual orientation are vivid among members of the LGBTQ community. In the case of Mary, she suffers the burden of oppression, discrimination, and inequality in access to social amenities due to the interplay of her race and gender. Health inequality is the most apparent social issue in society that adversely affect minority communities (De Vries, 2012). Noticeably, she lacks routine hormone supplements from local hospitals, and even being discriminated against while seeking primary care proves the disparity (De Vries, 2012). Members of the LGBTQ often face challenges in accessing drugs such as antiviral pills, hormones, or primary care due to discrimination because of the intersection of their race, gender, and sexual orientation. According to a study by the HIV.gov agency, African Americans comprise about 43% of people living with the virus ("HIV in the African American community"). Moreover, white LGBTQ persons have access to better healthcare compared to other LGBTQ minorities, which contributes to whites like James living with HIV to lead better lives. In 2016, 58% of people diagnosed with HIV were gay African Americans revealing intense disparity in healthcare ("HIV in the African American community"). The inequality in health is more apparent due to discrimination in resource allocation to black communities.

Additionally, Mary faced bullying, lack of opportunities, and unemployment due to the immense stigmatization towards queer people in her community. Queer black people face stigmatization even from their fellow community members who are not comfortable with varying sexual identity and orientation (De Vries, 2012). As a result, transgender people lack social support, which often leads them to depression.

On the other hand, white LGBTQ members enjoy white privilege in the US. GWMM does not know how it feels to be racially discriminated against for their life choices (Talwar, 2010). Notably, being gay often elevate them to heroes as opposed to victims of social inequalities. Whereas being a member of the LGBTQ community has its challenges, white people are overly represented in society and do not face any inequality (Talwar, 2010). The situation reflects James' life who has a mansion, good job, and social support not only from his family but also from work colleagues, something that Mary lacked.

Additionally, White LGBTQs enjoy white privileges in such a way that their struggles are entirely different from those of minority races (Coston & Kimmel, 2012). For example, white people celebrate the Gay Pride month, which allows same-sex marriages; however, the excitement is not felt across the black community. For them, the struggle for same-sex marriages is the least of their concern as they struggle with disparities in all spheres of life. Noticeably, Gay Pride magnifies the intersectionality of gender and sexual orientation, where social inequality between minorities and whites is large.

Conclusion

Social inequality is a major issue in society that needs to be eliminated. The interplay between gender, race, and sexual orientation provides a plethora of challenges and disparities between different social categories in the country. For transgender persons like Mary, the interplay between her gender and race is responsible for existing disparities in healthcare, employment, education, and social support. Notably, among the White LGBTQ, issues such as discrimination and lack of healthcare are diminished and are not promoted by their racial identity or gender. I believe that the government should ensure that there are enough medical supplies for minority groups such as transgenders and distribute them equally among all communities. Racial discrimination should also be eliminated in the provision of primary care to enhance the diagnosis of various chronic diseases that continue to cause suffering among minorities. Additionally, society should embrace diversity across all aspects of life and promote civility to ensure that vulnerable people have significant social support and enjoy their fundamental rights and freedoms without prejudice. Afterall, milestones to end social inequalities can only be achieved if the society changes its mindsets, uplifts the vulnerable, and promotes equity among all social categories, including the minorities.

References

Coston, B. M., & Kimmel, M. (2012). Seeing privilege where it isn't: Marginalized masculinities and the intersectionality of privilege. Journal of Social Issues, 68(1), 97-111. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-4560.2011.01738.x

De Vries, K. M. (2012). Intersectional identities and conceptions of the self: The experience of transgender people. Symbolic Interaction, 35(1), 49-67. https://doi.org/10.1002/symb.2

HIV in the African American community: Progress, but our work is far from over. (2018). HIV.gov. Retrieved from https://www.hiv.gov/blog/hiv-african-american-community-progress-our-work-far-over

Settles, I. H. (2006...