Ideas in place of fear: reducing inequality and fermenting justice

Submitted by Kathryn Busby on 29 January 2010

Read the new Compass Thinkpiece by Danny Dorling.

Very few say they agree with injustice, or that inequality is beneficial. In the world's rich countries injustice is caused less and less by having too few resources to share around fairly; it is increasingly maintained by widespread adherence to beliefs that actually propagate it.

These beliefs are often presented as natural, innocent and long-standing, but they are mostly modern creations - what appeared fair and normal yesterday will often be seen as unjust tomorrow. Changing what is understood by injustice today means telling some people, usually those in high office, that what they consider to be fair is in fact in many ways unjust.