1. Equality of Opportunity
American ideal that we should pursue policies that create equality of opportunity for all citizens and that citizens should be free to maximize their fortunes/happiness under conditions of relatively equal opportunity
Equality of process not outcomes
Most American debates take this form of equal opportunity over equality of outcomes
Does equality of opportunity exist?

2. Myth of Equality of Opportunity?
Historic oppression and foundations of discrimination
Slavery and dehumanization of racial minorities
Jim Crow, residential segregation and forced neighborhood exclusion based upon race and socioeconomic status
Inheritance, property and wealth accumulation across generations
Unequal racial “starting points” – Rawls
Some will have to work “twice as hard” and be “twice as ambitious” to achieve the same level of upward mobility
Connections, rich social networks, and advantaged rolodexes
It’s not what you know but who you know
Exposure and occupational opportunities oftentimes vary by race
Unequal educational opportunities and limited access to financial capital

4. Race and (In)Equality of Opportunity
Structural inequality and racial minorities
Residential and neighborhood segregation
Suburbanization, “redlining”, and housing discrimination
Inner-city abandonment and concentrated “ghetto” and “barrio” poverty in modern America
Criminal justice discrimination & mass incarceration
Employment discrimination
Growing wealth inequality
Inheritance & property accumulation
Limited access to banking institutions & financial capital
Limited access to health insurance & health services
Limited access to educational opportunities
Limited access to automobile transportation & mobility
Limited access to healthy, natural & nourishing foods
Environmental racism: Lingering effects of asbestos & lead

5. Race and Equality of Opportunity
Centuries of oppression and subjugation led to unequal starting points based on race both historically and arguably in contemporary times
Unable to acquire and accumulate property and wealth across generations
Residue of slavery and Jim Crow remains today
Arguably, centuries of unjust accumulation of resources and exclusive opportunities accruing to dominant white population at the expense of minorities