The Danger of “All Men Are Created Equal”

I wonder how much of the lack of empathy in the US is a result of the “all men are created equal” line from the Declaration of Independence. When I was younger, I always felt that this was a positive, uplifting message, but as I’ve grown older, I feel that perhaps while the intent was good, I’m no longer sure that it has a positive impact on society.

Disregarding the obvious (most likely incorrect) assumption about being “created”, I don’t like this line because I think buried in the phrasing is a notion that we all have the same capabilities to overcome setbacks, even those that are unfairly placed on some people and not others. And this makes it easier to blame people for their positions in life, regardless of if it’s truly anything that they have any control over. From the position of many, I get the sense that “I had my setbacks, and since we’re all created equally, you should also be able to meet whatever challenges you face.”

This of course ignores the fact that we aren’t really all equal in terms of ability (whether intellectual, athletic, or any of the other million characteristics that make us all unique), or that we all have to deal with the same level of setbacks in life, or even have the same opportunities. And that’s a pretty dangerous thing. If we recognized that we all have different challenges, and that we aren’t all equipped to handle things equally, perhaps we would be better at helping each other out, and do our best to make life fairer, even though it’s inherently unfair.