RE: We Are All Racists
If special treatment is required then that is not equality. They are mutually exclusive. Equality means being treated the same as everyone else. Special treatment is NOT being treated the same so it is not equality.
However, there are some exceptions and that may be what you are thinking about. Equal pay. Is a doctor making $250/hr the same as a guy making $10/hr. No they are not. Yet equality is about starting out with equal opportunity. The choices you make and the consequences of those choices are not something we should be focusing on.
When it comes to Racism that involves skin or other traits that you cannot change. In such a case you want to be treated equal. Special treatment just is like riding a see-saw it will eventually tip the racism the other direction. People WANTING special treatment or believing they deserve it doesn't have anything to do with equality. Which is why it is called "Special" treatment. Meaning they are treated different from other people. As long as we have people that think they need or deserve special treatment then educating racism, and other forms of bigotry out of us is impossible. The special treatment simply fuels the fire. You either want to be treated the same as everyone else, or you believe you are special and deserve some form of treatment that everyone else does not get. I will not endorse this. I see it as a huge part of the problem.
However, your examples about needs due to things beyond your control are a no brainer. When it comes to racism and bigotry though you either want special treatment or you want equality. You cannot have both.
Equality might not be a good concept. It's a flawed concept. We don't need to give people equal treatment in every area. Under the law we do. But we don't need to always follow that rule because there are times where equality might lead to a less good result for self and the majority of others. So it really should be a matter of what outcome it could generate.
No brainer huh? Like that rare gift common sense. You have constructed your world in a very black and white way and you clearly define your, "needs due to things beyond your control" in a very narrow way to include merely some of the physical aspects of life.
Actually, No I haven't. I was speaking about Racism and Bigotry. The examples you provided had nothing to do with racism or bigotry. They were examples of where equality cannot function yet they had nothing to do with racism or bigotry which was the topic and the areas I mentioned. With regards to those topics you either want equality or you want special treatment. If you wish to expand it beyond the context of the discussion then you have a valid point.
Well, it is of course, up to you whether or not you want to extrapolate by applying my examples to your discussion. It shouldn't be that difficult to see skin colour as creating a need, "due to things beyond your control", the need being fair treatment across the board but in lieu of that, special treatment occasionally to create some balance overall. It might be helpful to your understanding if you didn't make the assumption that people want special treatment when, if fact, all they want is to be treated like a regular joe. The powers-that-be provide the special treatment and maybe they go about that in the wrong way but the underlying concept is fine.