Co-hosted by the International Inequalities Institute, and the Joseph Rowntree Foundation
The existing belief systems and narratives relating to fairness, equality and justice which we use to make sense of our lives, shape and modify how we perceive and make judgements about wealth inequality.
Some of these beliefs (like meritocracy) tend to lead to justification of the existing system and can act against people a) perceiving inequality accurately; b) judging it negatively; and c) believing it is the government’s job to intervene to redistribute. As such they exert a strong counter-pressure against arguments in favour of redistribution. Is it best to challenge these beliefs, or to acknowledge them and work within the constraints they set?
This workshop is built around two conversations followed by an activity. Conversation 1 will focus on identifying the narratives that shape public understanding of wealth inequality (for example, meritocracy). Conversation 2 will consider different approaches to working within or challenging these narratives. Using these two conversations as a stimulus, we will then continue the collaborative development of our ‘key terms toolbox’, and ethical story-telling principles for wealth inequality, this time focusing on causation and moral judgement as elements of frame-building.
