Social Justice Advocacy

Our Advocacy

We believe that social justice advocacy must be fed by sustained acquisition of knowledge and experiences. We seek students who are intellectually curious about solutions to social justice issues. The need for theoretical grounding in dominant ideological perspectives and public and social policy is woven throughout the programmatic initiatives. The ability to situate and interrogate a social justice concern within a larger political and structural analysis is the operating framework for the Social Justice Program.

A lecture series in collaboration with the Women’s Research and Resources Center and the Ida B. Wells Distinguished Lecture and Performance Series has served as a cornerstone of the Program. The opportunity for members of the Social Justice community to engage with public social justice scholars including Kimberle Crenshaw, Anita Hill, Angela Davis, Deborah Roberts, Evelynn Hammonds, Alice Walker, Jelani Cobb and Carol Anderson, is a very special feature of the Program. Students read assigned work either written or recommended by the scholars and engage them in conversations.

In support of our goal to contribute to the intellectual development of students participating in the Social Justice Fellows Program, a Poverty and Social Justice course was created and offered as a curricular option to underpin the Social Justice Fellows Program. During the fall 2017 semester, an Aesthetics of Activism course was offered. Additionally, Social Justice Fellows have been encouraged to enroll in a number of existing courses to support their interests in social justice advocacy, such as the following:

• Violence Against Women
• Women and Resistance Movements
• The Sociology of Health
• The Sociology of Law (Rituals of Citizenship theme)
• Food Justice
• Refugee Issues
• Environmental Justice and Advocacy in Education
• Additional course offerings are encouraged and are being planned.