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Blockchain against racial inequality

Feb 19, 2020

“ Being able to rely on a system that sees everyone as equal would be a very significant and strong hurricane of changes for the society. ”.

Racism is, even nowadays, a word we hear constantly, and it is a social issue that has contributed to the persistence of race-based gaps that manifest in many different economic indicators. It has become a need to close down the persistent “wealth divide” between races, to broader economic possibilities. The earning gaps existing limit many people to achieve better living conditions and even though it might be true that this can happen to anyone, for minorities, it’s far, far more depressing, financial insecurity is in no way an equal-opportunity offender. This is when blockchain and cryptocurrencies come to the scene to answer this problem with a wide solution and I like to tell you why.

There is a big problem

Many people had been negatively impacted by their race or gender within the traditional financial system historically, not only creating earning gaps but also at the moment of choosing a person for a work or studies position. Whether by racism or even just cultural misunderstanding, many are the institutions that look through the mirror of color first instead of letting themselves be fairly convinced by the pure talents and skills of a person despite their race.

Blacks and Hispanics are known to struggle economically as a minority. In 2013, the median white household had wealth that totaled more than $140,000; Hispanics had only about $14,000. And black Americans had $11,000. People of color seem to be less likely to belong to the seemingly safe middle class. For instance, around 52 percent of white people, more than half of the population, are middle class. These groups are pretty far apart in terms of actual earnings, says Richard Fry, a senior researcher at the Pew Research Center. Under such a centralized and overwhelming system it looks like a hopeless situation.

This may sound exaggerated but one of the primary advantages of being wealthy is that the wealthy can buy more advantages which contribute to keeping such disparities and increasing them. If those who are wealthy are just one sector, and this one sector continues to take out the best for them unfairly then that will create a lot of disparities in many aspects of human life and the social structures. We need a solution that can bring balance, which is why blockchain comes to mind and an underlying solution.

Blockchain is blind

As a very contrasting characteristic of this decentralized system, blockchain is not controlled by a human organization and its not due to make any social and racial discrimination. Cryptocurrencies can help tackle racial injustice in the financial sector, since the blockchain and cryptocurrencies, as trustless technologies with pseudonymous functionality, would be like a blind institution which does not take into account colors to make financial decisions, this in comparison to traditional financial services is a really big deal.

If part of the problem is that the ways that families accumulate wealth are stacked against blacks and Hispanics, then being able to rely on a system that sees everyone as equal would be a very significant and strong hurricane of changes for the society.

“One of the primary advantages of being wealthy is that the wealthy can buy more advantages which contribute to keeping such disparities and increasing them.”.

By decentralizing and automatizing many processes through the blockchain, we can finally commence having a more mixed society where equality prevails. Whether to pay for a service, be employed, get a scholarship, medical attention, even something as delicate as criminal sentences, or many other aspects of the social ground, blockchain can change the way things have been done and take us out from that huge and heavy burden by giving everyone equal real chances and allowing us to also get to meet people by who they are first instead of leaving someone aside based on looks. Such is the case of blockchain crowdfunding which also allows people from every part of the world to participate equally supporting each other.

There are many ways in which this technology can be used to eradicate inequality, for example, since blockchain transactions could be arranged with smart contracts, every worker is ensured to receive their payments on time and it can also be arranged by work hours or labor so independently of how the person looks like, the system would follow the rules and compensate everyone rightfully as stated in the contract. Also, many are the blockchain initiatives to contribute to employment. The blockchain can automatically check all data: the skills and the experience needed for a job, going through every curriculum vitae of each person uploaded to the system and choose the best suite based on facts instead of race. Cryptocurrencies as well, are open to every person from every country which means that the “bank” to which many people don’t have yet access to, as ceased to be an imminent need.

Furthermore creating custom cryptocurrencies
 now is possible too thanks to blockchain initiatives such as MintMe, where anyone can get started with a digital coin issued for their own purpose.

By Mary Schwartz