Which term denotes treating members of various social groups differently in situations where their rights ought to be equal?

The term that denotes treating members of various social groups differently in situations where their rights ought to be equal is discrimination. Discrimination involves unjust or prejudicial treatment of different categories of people, particularly on the grounds of race, age, or gender, among other attributes. It is a violation of the principle of equality, which suggests that all individuals should have equal rights and be treated equally under similar circumstances.

In contexts such as employment, education, and law enforcement, discrimination manifests when individuals from certain social groups face disparities in treatment based solely on their membership in those groups, rather than their individual merits or qualifications. This concept is crucial for understanding social justice and equality movements, which seek to eliminate such unequal treatment.

The other terms listed refer to different concepts. Denial could relate to refusing to acknowledge a problem or reality but does not specifically involve the differing treatment of social groups. Displaced aggression refers to redirecting feelings of anger from the original source to a safer target, while death anxiety describes fear or anxiety related to one's mortality. None of these capture the essence of unfair treatment based on social group membership as discrimination does.