Caribbean Studies

Names of Group Members: Gaveen Coates, Kerry Ann James, Audia Thomas, Neil Woodstock
Grade: 13 General Studies

Date: March 8, 2016
Subject: Caribbean Studies
1. Explain why human rights are an important part of social justice.

Social justice is the fair and just relation between individuals and the society. This is
measured by the explicit and facit terms of distribution, wealth, opportunities for personal
activity and social system while human rights are rights inherent to all human beings.
Therefore human rights are an important part of social justice because social justice
ensures that humans are given a fair chance at life in society. All humans are equally
entitled to their human rights without discrimination regardless of their nationality, skin
colour, gender, national or ethnic origin and religion and social justice provides this
opportunity to all humans; henceforth social justice is like the protector of human
because it gives an individual the chance not to be judge differently from any other
individual but to be provided with the same opportunities as other individuals and a free
will to get the same rights that all other humans deserve.
2. What is Universal Declaration of human rights?
The Universal Declaration of human rights is a declaration adopted by the United Nations
general assembly on the 10th of December, 1948 at the Palais De Chaillot Paris. It is an
international document that states basic rights of freedom, justice and peace in the world.
It declares the human rights are universal and should be enjoyed by all people, no matter
who they are or where they live. This document includes civil and political rights, like the
right to life, liberty, freedom of speech and privacy as well as it includes economic, social
and cultural rights, like the right to social security, health and education.
3. Explain the theory of Mutual Advantage.

Mutual advantage can be defined as the concept that recognizes that some level of
inequality exists in all societies, so for social justice to prevail everyone must benefit
from opportunities available in society. However the recipient must earn the benefit
rather than being given it as a right or because of a need. For example an unemployed
person on welfare must be committed to seeking a job.
4. List five discriminating scenarios that are evident in the Caribbean societies.
Age Discrimination
This refers to an act of treating someone less favourably because of their age. With regards
to age and the work place, discrimination that may occur includes firing because the
employer thinks that person is no longer capable of doing the job, persons are underpaid, do
not obtain fringe benefits, laid off and demoted because of their age.
People are also harassed because of their age. For example they may often times be told that
they are unable to do a job, continuous harassment may lead to low self-esteem and the
person may start underperforming due to harassment.
Disability Discrimination
Not all persons, in the labour force who are disabled and are able to work are employed. The
percentage of those who are disabled and are employed far exceeds those who are not. This
is because many employers discriminate persons who are disabled. They are of the mind-set
that they will not be able to work as efficient as someone who is not disabled even with
more experience and a higher level of education at times.
The law requires an employer to provide reasonable accommodation to an employee or
job applicant with disability, unless doing so would cause significant difficulty or expense
for the employer. A reasonable accommodation is any change in the work environment (or
in the way things are usually done) to help a person with a disability apply for a job,
perform the duties of a job, or enjoy the benefits and privileges of employment.
Reasonable accommodation might include, for example, making the workplace accessible
for wheelchair users or providing a reader or interpreter for someone who is blind or
hearing impaired.
Race or Colour discrimination
Many Caribbean natives are treated unfairly because of their race or complexion. People
are discriminated because of personal characteristics such as hair texture, skin colour and
facial features. The most common type of racial discrimination in the Caribbean is skin
colour which leads to activities such as bleaching and this makes such persons feel like
they have a sense of belonging. An example of racial discrimination is an employer hiring
a light skin person over a darker person even if the darker person is much more qualified.
Race/color discrimination also can involve treating someone unfavorably because the
person is married to or is associated with a person of a certain race or color or because of
a persons connection with a race-based organization or group, or an organization or
group that is generally associated with people of a certain color.
Gender Discrimination
Many persons are treated unfairly because of their gender. Persons believe that some jobs
can only be done efficiently by males while some believe that only females can do a job.
This is discrimination because anyone should be able to do anything once they have the
capabilities and are qualified in the area. For example nursing is seen as a career for
females, however there are a few males that have an interest in such an area but will not
do the career because they fear discrimination by the society. On the other construction
jobs are seen as jobs for males because it is believed that women do not have such
capabilities to work in such an area, they are not strong enough and are not as creative as
males in such an area, hence they have limited chances of being employed. This is
discrimination as some women are better than males in this area and should be given the
opportunity to showcase their abilities.
Religion/ Denomination Discrimination
Religious discrimination involves treating a person (an applicant or employee)
unfavorably because of his or her religious beliefs. Many persons only associate with
persons in their religion or denomination. Some employers only employ persons in their
religion or denomination even if persons of other religious beliefs are much more
qualified. Sometimes after employing someone an employer realizes that the person is of
a different religious belief they make every effort to fire, demote, lay off or they may
over work and underpay the person. This is a form of discrimination.
Religious discrimination can also involve treating someone differently because that
person is married to (or associated with) an individual of a particular religion or because
of his or her connection with a religious organization or group.
5. Identify two basic human rights that are guaranteed in a socially just society.
The great Nelson Mandela once stated Let there be justice for all, Let there be peace
for all, let there be bread water and salt for all, let each know that for each, the body,
the mind and soul have been freed to fulfil themselves. Human rights can be defined
as rights which is believed to belong to every person, while socially just society is
based on the concept of human rights and quality and can be defined as the ways in
which human rights are manifested in everyday lives of people at every level of
society.
Two basic human rights that are guaranteed in a socially just society are;
The right to vote/ the right to democracy

Citizens should have the right to participate in the selection of a new
government. In a socially just society, governance is essential, this will result
in free, fair and regular elections. For example in the just concluded local
election in Jamaica, citizens were the winner, due to their participation in the
election. This see Jamaica Labour Party winning by a marginal 32 to 31 ovr
the Peoples National Party. This will ensure that the needs of the citizens are
met and accountability, transparency and good governance will be their
hallmark of our political future.
The right to live

Everyone deserves to liv without fearing anyone or being scared of their life.
People should have the right to live their lives how they choose to live it
without any judgment and criticism.
6. Explain two ways in which a breach of social justice can affect the quality of life in a
country.
The way in which a breach of social justice affects quality of life is that ageism forces
many older persons to retire, thus robbing the society of a store of accumulated
knowledge, experience and wisdom. Exclusion further isolates older people as they
tend to believe stereotypes about themselves (self-fulfilling prophesy). The failure to
provide adequate help, medical care and relief for the elderly results in increased
morbidity and likely earlier mortality.
Groups that experience racial and social class discrimination in the labour market
become an underclass, resorting to crime, drugs, ect.
Workers in low paying jobs are unable to improve their standard of living.

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Names of Group Members: Gaveen Coates, Kerry Ann James, Audia Thomas, Neil Woodstock

Grade: 13 General Studies

1. Explain why human rights are an important part of social justice.

3. Explain the theory of Mutual Advantage.

The right to vote/ the right to democracy

The right to live

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