Crossword Genius

However, strivers after equality want us to be (3,3,4)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

all the same

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'however' is the definition.
(synonyms)

'strivers after equality want us to be' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite understand how this works, but
'us' could be 'me' ('us' can mean 'mean' in some UK dialects) and 'me' is located in the answer.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for all the same that I've seen before include "even so" , "still > unimportant" , "Notwithstanding" , "everyone is in uniform" , "Despite anything to the contrary" .)

I've seen this clue in the Evening Standard.
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