There is something harsh in it. Something almost arrogant, which says I have found the truth, the right, and I will force you to live by it. Equity is close kin to justice. It too is concerned with weighing and measuring, ensuring equal distribution of some good on two or more sides. And like justice, it is more a value of the head.
Compassion is a different sort of value.
Compassion is more a value of the heart. The roots of the word compassion mean to suffer with. Compassion doesn t stand back at a distance and ask whether equity and fairness have been achieved. Compassion moves in close, and says, I hear you brother, I feel your pain sister, and I will do what I can to relieve it, to make things better. Compassion is not always concerned with justice.