EXPLAIN the phrase "like and equal are two entirely different things." How does this idea help Meg?

Meg’s recitation of the Declaration of Independence is a form of literary comparison in which L’Engle relies on one piece of famous writing to illuminate a particular characteristic in her own writing. Meg recites the lines about all people being created equal. This, the book suggests, is the genius of the document - it allows individuals to gain maxim freedom and expression. IT tries to turn the argument around, suggesting that Camazotz is the ultimate expression of equality. But Meg argues back that being “alike” and being “equal” are not the same thing.

This can be read as a political commentary. The years in which L’Engle was writing the book were some of the most tense years in U.S. / Soviet relations. Camazotz can be seen as a play on Russian society in which everyone was expected to be “alike.” L’Engle’s commentary on communism, thus, asserts that the political system is a perversion of true equality because it suppresses the creative impulse. By using the founding document of U.S. democracy, L’Engle makes a bold statement for the legitimacy of that particular political system.

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When Meg says "Like and equal are diffrent" what she means by that is when your equal you have the same value as everyone else. Like is when everyone has th same chariteristics.

When Meg says that “like and equal are two entirely different things” she means that people should have equal rights without being forced to be like everyone else. On Camazotz, everybody is exactly alike and people who don't follow this conformity is reprocessed, meaning their brains are re-trained to think exactly like everyone else on the planet Camazotz. Having equal rights and equal abilities is good, but once everyone becomes exactly alike, it is not good anymore.