Immigration and Freedom

by Chandran Kukathas

It seems unlikely that we will find a society all of whose members are perfectly equal along any, let alone most, of a number of dimensions: income, wealth, leisure, health, longevity, or happiness. Yet it is no less unlikely that we will find people who are truly equal before the law in a society marked by overwhelming inequalities along all other standards. The struggle for legal equality requires for its success not merely the formal establishment of a principle of equal treatment but a social transformation in which the least fortunate or powerful are protected by the law and can avail themselves of what is needed to secure that protection. In this regard, equality is vital for freedom, for if the less well-off are unable to protect their interests—or defend their persons—against the privileged, then freedom can be little more than an advantage of power and not a condition enjoyed by all inhabitants of a society. The crucial question here, of course, is: which equalities matter?