Equality verse equity

What does it mean to treat people equally? What does it mean to discriminate? When people with vastly different cultures live in the same place, these can be very difficult questions to answer.

Is it right to treat all people equally? Is it right to treat everyone the same? What if they are not the same? I heard of an African mother in Darwin who thought it was racist that her children were not told to wear hats at school, when other kids were. However, I also heard of African kids in Tasmania being told to follow the no-hat-no-play rule only to become vitamin D deficient. Different skin means people can handle, and actually need, different amounts of time in the sun. But is it racist to have different rules for people with different coloured skin?

Is it racist to change the way I speak English when speaking to people who speak English as a 2nd (or so ) language? Is it racist for me to give whitefellas a strict time limit for presentations at an event, but let Aboriginal presenters do something unplanned? Is it racist to be annoyed when my whitefella friends are late, but not mind if the Aboriginal lady I pick up for church isn’t even home? Is it rude to sit down with a student at Nungalinya College for morning tea, and never even ask their name? Is it rude to show up at someone’s house unannounced and then yell out from the street to see if anyone’s home?

Or is it culturally appropriate?

These are the types of questions I constantly struggle with, and while some are obvious, some, I'm sure, I'll never work out. Please pray for wisdom and humility for me as I work cross-culturally, and pray for a better understanding of others Australia-wide, so that people can be treated in ways that they feel are fair and appropriate.