The world has been under continuous evolution ever since the beginning. However, it is only of late that the speed of changes has increased drastically. The past century had several events that have led to change in the way normal society behaves. These changes have improved the standard of living and the quality of life for many, however they have also led to deep and strong divide been different societies and communities.
According to me, some major events that have shaped our society are:
- The World War II: The fragile tension between different cultures broke and although several innocent people lost their lives, it paved the way for many big companies to explore abroad and become global players. The United States and Soviet Union became two big leaders in global politics and economics.
- The Cold War: Till 1990, countries were divided into two major sections. First, the ones who supported the capitalist and democratic system of the USA and second, the countries who followed and believed in the communist and state governance of USSR.
- Berlin Wall: 1989, marked as a very special year for human history. The removal of the Berlin Wall signalled a win for the United States and paved way for the disintegration of USSR. This encouraged several countries to review their economic policies and make amendments. Globalisation has taken birth. It marked more free market and trade policies. Countries like India, China, Philippines and Vietnam slowly started making changes to become part of this global revolution.
The above are main three events that changed the way society functioned and dealt with other societies. Labour migration and technological advancement helped many countries and at the same time, reduction in human-resource in many.
We can now see that Globalisation is a major factor in the evolution of society. There are several social problems which are there in even present day and age which affect the way we behave and conduct ourselves as a society.
According to me, two main social problems that we face today are:
- Racism and Racial-Profiling: Many western countries had made advancement in labour reforms and labour laws over the years. So, when globalisation actually started taking place, it led to a change in the established balance. Labour movement, increase in volume of trade between countries and outsourcing; gave big corporations a cheaper alternative to manufacture and provide goods and services. They could hire labour at less than half the cost of those in their own countries. This is leading to a rise in unemployment and lack of proper utilisation of human resource in already developed countries. Because of these problems, the tension between people from different countries is rising and the issue is being politically driven. Hence, we see that rate of racial discrimination is on the rise and the tolerance level is falling.
The solution to this problem is for international governing bodies to ensure that work not only reaches the less developed and developing countries; but also stays and grows in developed economies. Only if there is regulated and controlled labour movement and outsourcing, will the problems of racism and social intolerance reduce.
- Poverty and Unemployment: Over the last 50 years, some countries have taken advantage of globalisation and their development has been phenomenal. However, several countries in Africa and Asia are lacking behind and the standard of living is very poor. The main cause of this problem is that many of these countries had to face problems of civil war, social unrest and international disharmony for several years running. This has also lead to dissatisfaction amongst the citizens of these countries, which in turn leads to global issues of crime, drug and human trafficking, terrorism and piracy.
The solution for this problem is for different political leaders to try and work out methods and help re-build the fragile economies. This will lead to steady growth and change the mindset of the citizens of under-developed nations.
There are several other socio-economic problems which are caused directly or indirectly by globalisation. However, unless we find a cure for racial discrimination and poverty; all the other problems will continue to grow. In conclusion, the global scenario is expected to change at an even faster rate by the year 2020 and if the current problems are not solved, they will continue to exist or even grow. It is important that in the coming decade, world leaders and global corporations find a way to solve the issues pertaining in our present society; so our economic growth can co-exist with social development in harmony.
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