These presidents were using the word in a way that stems from its centuries-old legal definition, said Barbara A. Perry, a professor and director of presidential studies at the University of Virginia's Miller Center. “As a concept of fairness of the law, equity is meant as a remedy: If someone hurts you the person can be punished and assessed compensatory damage to make you whole again,” she said. That legal sensibility shows up in usages by many former-lawyer presidents, from William Taft to Franklin Delano Roosevelt to Lyndon B. Johnson (a law school dropout), who at times came close to using the word as Biden has, defining equity as a measure of civil rights.
Barbara Perry
