The fight for racial equality has been a global struggle for centuries. Improvements have been made. However, the world still has a long way to go. I propose that this is because people place more emphasis on equality and not fairness. However, racial equity is more desperately needed than racial equality because it provides minorities with the skills they specifically need to succeed, while racial equality provides everyone with the same tools. However, in reality, minorities are so far behind that we need extra resources to reach a level playing field with our white counterparts. Racial equity, as well as the lack thereof, has personally affected my life by limiting my academic excellence and opportunities for success. However, it also helped me discover my passion, the achievement gap, something I intend to dedicate my life to and fight for. As Martin Luther King Jr. said, “Freedom is never given voluntarily by the oppressor, it must be demanded by the oppressed.” The achievement gap is a tool of oppression created because of the lack of racial equity in America. It is a problem that I intend to solve with my contribution, so that my fellow prisoners can be free. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Environmental Disadvantages and Socioeconomic Drivers of Racial Inequality The achievement gap is a problem that has existed in our society for decades and has yet to be solved. The gap refers to the disparity in academic achievement between different groups of students based on race or socioeconomic status. It is especially significant when comparing academic outcomes between white students and people of color, particularly blacks. The achievement gap became a nationally recognized problem when the Civil Rights Act of 1964 mandated Equality of Educational Opportunity, also known as the Coleman Report. The report has sparked much debate about whether the achievement gap can be closed. However, the improvement was minimal. It was written more than 50 years ago and the gap has only just closed. Researcher Eric A. Hanushek estimates that if the achievement gap continues to close at such a slow pace, it will take about 250 years for the black-white math gap to close and 150 years for the black-white reading gap to close. it fills. Hanushek calls it a “national embarrassment” and I agree. However, I plan to help close the achievement gap in college by using my university's resources and collaborating with my colleagues to determine an effective solution to close the gap and make it a "national cheer." The achievement gap does not exist because white people are genetically more intelligent than people of color, rather it exists because of a lack of racial equity, and this is evident in many different settings. For example, many people of color have environmental disadvantages. Children born preterm or with low birth weight are more likely to have impaired development and therefore fail and repeat school. In 2013, the preterm birth rate for black babies was 60 percent higher than for white babies and 44 percent higher than for Hispanic babies. Additionally, the rate of low birth weight among black babies was double that of white and Hispanic babies. Furthermore, federal data shows that in nearly every major American city, people of color are more likely to attend public schools where the majority of.