Do colonialism and slavery belong to the past?

Justice has several meanings and purposes for different people. For some, this is doing the right and eliminating the wrong. For others, this is punishing those who have done things against the law. Justice is basically being fair and promoting equality among the people. But is justice seen and present in our world today?

People all over the world engage into different activities everyday. People also do what they have to just to raise their standard of living. These people strive hard to attain their goals and dreams just bring food on their dining tables. However, are all these people given the chance to be the best that they can be?

I believe that in order to be successful, a person must be determined, motivated, driven and responsible. He must acquire all the values of a leader to achieve his dreams. However, I also believe that these traits may be put to waste if a person does not have the proper resources. Just like the story of Bill Gate's success- he wasn't a very smart guy, but he was very interested with computers and technology that he decided to start a business in line with his field of interest. In addition to his passion for this, he was also fortunate enough to have the funds and resources to be able to reach where he is at the moment. He is one of the best contributors in the world of technology and this was also because of his capacity to fund his own inventions. Similarly, an issue today is the job screening process of companies. They prefer students that graduated from the top three schools alone, leaving the others helpless. This benefits me because I'm from De La Salle University- Manila but this is quite unfair.

At times, when people do not get what they wish for in this country, they resort to other alternatives, such as work as OFWs or settle in low paying jobs with rude bosses. A result of this is maltreatment and complete abuse especially if you go to Dubai, etc. What's unfair in this situation is that those who are maltreated and abused do not get the justice that they deserve.

Justice can be divided into two main ideas: Justice based on morality and ethics, and Justice based on law. The former refers to being righteous and basing your judgment on your morality. The latter refers to equality brought by law. This is when citizens of a country comply with the regulations and policies on the government because these policies promote peace and harmony amongst the people in the state. While Justice based on law is self-explanatory, Justice based on morality is a little bit more complicated. People have different views and perceptions on things and it depends on their culture and belief whether a specific action is right or wrong. In the same sense, the value of a person is evaluated here. The importance and the humanity of a person is necessary in determining right from wrong. To treat a person like an animal is inhuman, which leads to immorality and thus, injustice.

People should all be treated the same because we are all humans, treated in the image and likeness of God. It is instilled in a person how to treat a person because he himself is human. How does forgetting the value of a person now lead to slavery and violence?

Slavery happens when people from the upper portion of the social class force or ask people from the lower class to do something for them (i.e work in a factory) and do not pay these workers enough. This also happens when owners do not feed their workers because they are "just workers" and maltreating them is just right. This is present in our world today especially because of the existence of Industrialization and Capitalism. In working and earning money, workers don't get what they deserve because they are treated as slaves by their bosses. Here, we see how the value of a person is neglected simply because that worker/person was born unfortunate and poor.

Forgetting the value of the person may also lead to violence. A perfect example of this is the movie "Law Abiding Citizen". The leading man's wife and daughter were treated like animals by Darby, the antagonist and he wasn't imprisoned because he testified against his other teammate. The protagonist now plots a ten year plan on how to teach that police (who let Darby go) a lesson. The police had a deal with Darby and that's what the protagonist is so mad about. The death of his family was not given justice. Hence, his revenge through violence. He destroyed and killed many cities and people because of injustice. We see how violating the rights of a person leads to violence from the film.

I think that as humans, we all have this "idea" of how we should be treated. It is within us to know, perhaps through our conscience, what is right and wrong. If this respect that we have for people is violated, then this leads to violence and slavery because it promotes injustice and equality. Why do people have to be neglected and isolated, or discriminated just because they were born unfortunate? (in terms of all aspects like physical appearance, abilities, wealth, etc) This is what we should think about. For me, justice should apply to all. We must give chances to everyone. We must treat all humans the same. We must treat them with respect and dignity.

Justice is very crucial because it is the dignity and integrity of a person at stake here. I think we should all make sure that opportunities and chances are given to everyone because as long as injustice is present in this country, we will never rise up and be a developed country.