"Striving for equality within the body of Christ is hardly Paul's prescription here, more like the opposite."

Actually Paul is speaking directly to the question of how to achieve equality in Christ.  But the method he espouses is radical to the human spirit.

The way to strive for equality, according to Paul?  We should each empty ourselves and adopt the attitude of a Servant.  We should esteem our fellow believers Higher than Ourselves.

If we all did that, there would indeed be the equality in the Body of Christ that Paul describes in Galatians 3:28.

And then James explains why the believers of his day, and of ours, fail to achieve this ideal.  It is because of our selfish desires for dominance and power and gratification.  These desires exist within ALL of us, regardless of gender or ethnicity or social status.  A very tough message but all too true.