The themes that the anti-globalization protesters bring to the discussion are of extraordinary importance. However, the theses that they often bring to it, sometimes in the form of slogans, are often oversimple.
Amartya SenThe success of a society is to be evaluated primarily by the freedoms that members of the society enjoy.
Amartya SenEven in areas like the most depressed region of India in terms of female education, namely Rajasthan, which has [one of] the lowest female literacy [rates] in India. Even there, 80 to 90 percent of the parents would like their girls to go to school. And indeed, about 80 percent would like them to be made compulsory.
Amartya SenThereยs a clear and strong connection between fertility reduction and womenยs literacy and empowerment, including womenยs gainful employment. If you look at the more than 300 districts of India, the strongest influences in explaining fertility variations are womenยs literacy and gainful economic employment.
Amartya SenThe increasing tendency towards seeing people in terms of one dominant โidentityโ (โthis is your duty as an Americanโ, โyou must commit these acts as a Muslimโ, or โas a Chinese you should give priority to this national engagementโ) is not only an imposition of an external and arbitrary priority, but also the denial of an important liberty of a person who can decide on their respective loyalties to different groups (to all of which he or she belongs).
Amartya SenI think just as armament had a major impact of a negative kind in the world, education is something which has a major impact of a positive kind in the world. And I think the American population, with its humanity and with its concern about the future of the world, has a real reason to think about what it can do to help the world in expanding education.
Amartya Sen