DEFINITION
Egalitarianism is difficult to define because it involves perceived and real power relationships between people.   Assessing whether a decision or behavior leads towards egalitarianism is difficult because relationships are complex, numerous, constantly changing, and can not be evaluated objectively.  Theoretically an egalitarian society exists when people have equal access to power, share responsibilities equally, and are able to pursue their full potential as humans.
 

WHY WE HOLD THIS VALUE IN COMMON
The members of Du•má believe that the best organization system for our community is one within which power and responsibility are distributed equally.  Each member should have easy and equal access to political power and no member may own special power privileges.  Likewise, all members are expected to share the workload in an equal fashion and are equally responsible for the daily operations as well as the long term well being of the community.
 

THE REALISTIC LIMITATIONS OF HOLDING THIS VALUE IN THE CONTEXT OF OUR SOCIETY
We would like to carry on as many of Duma's activities as possible in a manner that contributes to a more egalitarian society.   However, we also recognize that our society systematically perpetuates inequality amongst people.  The existence of these systems and their past and present effect on our lives make the task of creating an egalitarian community more complex and not fully obtainable.   Nevertheless,  we are doing the best we can to minimize and reverse the oppression associated with power structure in our society while providing a model for society to overcome the inequity amongst people in our society.
 

WHAT'S EXPECTED OF DU•MA MEMBERS TO UPHOLD THIS VALUE
From experience we have found that to create a sustainable community requires a willingness of members to invest personal energy towards eliminating oppression, taking responsibility for personal actions and possessions, and thinking in a "consensual manner."

Oppression
In working towards becoming an egalitarian group we believe it is important to recognize that most people in our society have been denied a wide variety of privileges, rights, and opportunities based on their gender, race, class, religion, able bodiedness, sexual orientation, and age.  Most of the systems (legal, education, economic, etc.) in our society have been structured in such a fashion that they are prejudiced in favor of those people who belong to a privileged group.  This is true in areas such as political power, personal freedom, employment, income, housing, education, health, physical safety, emotional well being, recreation, as well as many others.

Ending oppression begins with an awareness of the privileges and oppressive messages (stereotypes) bestowed upon each person by society as a result of their  background.  Awareness must be followed by a commitment to change our behavior and thought patterns that limit the potential of others to fully be who they are.  For example, to end racism, we need to unlearn societal messages that Asians people are smart, Mexicans work hard, and blacks are violent.  We must pay attention to the subtle ways that we are inclined to treat one another differently based on what category we fall into.  Thus, our daily lives demonstrate our  desire to end past and present oppression.

Personal responsibility
For each member of the community to feel a sense of equality, each person must take responsibility for their own actions and possessions.  If some people are affected by another's action without their consent, then a unilateral power relationship has been established.  For example, in day-to-day life, if one person is unable to enjoy a common space because someone else has left their clothes in the space, then the person who left the clothes has control of a common space.  In a larger context, many environmental issues involve control over common resources.  The person who drives an old car belching exhaust impacts many people without their consent.

As members of a community striving towards egalitarianism, we must be aware of how our actions affect one another.  If we suspect that our individual actions (or inaction) will significantly affect someone else, then it is our personal responsibility to obtain their consent.  It's also our responsibility to communicate to others when they fell affected by someone's actions.  This is particularly true with agreements that we have made with one another such as house jobs.  How can we have equality if only some people uphold their agreement to do jobs that benefit the entire group but no one speaks up about it?   In essence, "responsibility accompanies freedom."

Decision-making
We are committed to using the consensus decision-making process as an essential part of pursuing egalitarianism.  We believe that including everybody's thoughts and feelings in every decision will result in a more equal distribution of power than occurs in the traditional voting system.   Because the consensus process is inclusive rather than alienating, we believe it provides a firm foundation for a sustainable community.  Personal responsibility accompanies the decision-making process as well because consensus requires full participation.    For the members of Du•má, consensus is both the process used during meetings as well as a philosophy that guides our actions and informal decision-making.
 

THE DIFFERING ABILITY FOR PEOPLE TO UPHOLD THIS VALUE
We also recognize that as individuals and as a group we have a limited capacity to assimilate changes in our lifestyle that lead towards egalitarianism.  For example, eliminating sexist language is easier for most people to adopt as part of their lifestyle than it would be for us to pool all of our income and share all our expense.   For a variety of reasons (age, class background, cultural background), some people take longer to assimilate changes in their lifestyle than others.  We hope to provide a supportive atmosphere to help one another and the group towards a more egalitarian household at a realistic rate that doesn't strain the social fabric of the community.
 

EXAMPLES
The following partial list provides examples of activities that individuals and/or Du•má as a group believe contribute to egalitarianism.   We have incorporated some of the examples into our daily lives to differing extents; other examples hopefully will be possible for individuals and/or the group in the future.
 

• challenging traditional gender roles
• providing access to people with different abilities
• organizing a political campaign to support the Equal Rights Amendment
• refraining from talking "down" to children
• recognizing the privileges white people take for granted
• providing workshops on class issues to the community at large
• creating a job redistribution system that provides equal opportunity to all members
• confronting one another about behavior that is oppressive to others
• supporting one another financially
• ensuring that there isn't a seniority
• practicing non-violent conflict resolution
• forming study groups to understand sexism, homophobia, racism, classism, etc.
• identifying internalized messages that threaten our self-potential
• developing an affirmative action policy for new members

THE CLOSE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN THIS VALUE AND THE OTHER VALUES WE EMBRACE
Egalitarianism is closely associated with other values Du•má embraces.  To create a healthy, enduring community,  we must treat one another as equals or else the group will become divided into people with excessive power, and those who don't.  But to treat one another as equals in a society where inequality pervades requires personal awareness of the destructive attitudes that we carry with us that is oppressive and restricts our understanding of individuals.   As we understand one another as individuals, we come to honor and appreciate the diversity of cultures and experiences people bring with them.   Further, we come to realize that trying to live ecologically sustainable lifestyle is impossible unless we begin treating other species with same respect and reverence that other humans deserve.