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“This I Believe” A Philosophical Discussion on Social Justice

Bruce Mann

Seattle University

Social Justice

Anthony Longoria

November 28, 2014

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As a student affairs and higher education professional, social justice is foundational

to my role as an educator. However as the concepts and language of social justice become

more common, we must guard against losing sight of the core, liberatory meanings of social

justice. For me, social justice in professional practice means ensuring that all students,

regardless of their backgrounds, are given the opportunity to fully participate and thrive in

college while feeling validated, secure, and included. They in turn will leave with a deeper

understanding of the complexities of identity, privilege, and oppression, and be moved to

take action toward creating a world that is equitable and liberatory for all members. This is

achieved by encouraging dialogue and dialectical thinking, critically exploring identity,

challenging oppressive systems, advocating for the marginalized and underrepresented,

and seeing the full humanity of all students.

Student affairs is a full partner in education by enhancing and supporting the

academic goals and mission of higher education institutions through services and primarily

co-curricular educational programming (NASPA, 1987). Student affairs should be

fundamentally focused on supporting the holistic growth of our students by advocating for

and championing individual students, and working toward a system of equity on campus

and in society. The aims of social justice for the full and equal participation of all groups in

society that is built to meet their needs (Adams, Bell, & Griffin, 1997) mirror the mission,

goals, and responsibilities of student affairs professionals.

Ideally, by being a professional in student affairs I should automatically not just

have a responsibility, but an obligation to promote social justice in my work. However, not

all in student affairs and higher education live out this responsibility as the core nature of

our work. As I transition to my next professional role, I am committed to promoting social

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justice in all aspects of my work. As a white, cisgender male I believe it is my responsibility

to not just challenge oppressive systems and campus climates, but also to partner with

others to build new systems which value and validate the lives, stories, and experiences of

all of our students. Promoting social justice is our collective responsibility if we are to truly

educate the whole student for a life in service to the common good.

In my professional practice, my decisions and actions as an education in promoting

social justice are guided by my belief in the liberatory power of education and the words,

wisdom, and actions of those most affected and rendered invisible by oppressive systems.

Education can either be a tool of socialization to the oppressive status quo or can become a

practice of freedom and of liberation (Freire, 1970). I am guided by the philosophies of

Freire and hooks in working toward an educational system that promotes an engaged

pedagogy where students are equal partners in their education and central to the quest for

equity and liberation. From this foundation, I also commit to listening to those that are

directly affected by oppression and will help to amplify their stories and perspectives.

In addition to challenging systems and creating more equitable campus climates, I

will promote social justice in my work by providing opportunities for students to explore

the complex nature of their and others identities while gaining knowledge, understanding,

and skills around systemic, group, and individual levels of oppression. From my

perspective, self-work around identity, power, and privilege should be integrated into all of

our social justice education efforts. Staying in the cognitive, fact-based realm will only get

us so far, so we must be willing to engage students in the personal, affective dimension to

see radical growth in both individuals and society at large. We must be willing to extend

social justice education to all classes of students, not just our student leaders and those

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who choose to opt in. While it is much more difficult, we must be willing to reach out and

work with those students who retreat from and are resistant to conversations around

diversity, social justice, and inclusion. We must be willing to be bold in developing

innovative, engaged pedagogies that reach even our most reluctant students.

The personal challenges and barriers I currently face in promoting social justice are

around my own identity and learning. As a white, heterosexual, cisgender male, I still have

much personal work to do around understanding my own identity, power, privilege, and

complicity in oppressive systems. I continue to learn, continue to heal, and continue to

forgive myself for participating in and benefiting from systems based on supremacy. This

work is never done and will always be a challenge, but that just means I need to be diligent

and committed to improving.

The largest ongoing challenges that I do and will expect to face in promoting social

justice are primarily ones of attitude and tradition. Many on our campuses and in the media

have unfortunately framed social justice and diversity negatively, but that doesn’t mean we

either give up or shame those that disagree. Instead of avoidance or antagonism, I hope

that through opening up spaces for honest dialogue and promotion of dialectical thinking

we can begin to see some attitude shifts and the discarding of harmful traditions.

While working toward and promoting social justice is never easy, the alternative is

the antipode to the foundations of student affairs and higher education. It is our obligation

to prepare our students to transform the world for the better in service of the common

good, while creating a campus environment that allows every student the opportunity to

grow and thrive in a safe and secure community. We can realize this goal through social

justice education for our students, our institutions, and ourselves.

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Reference

Adams, M., Bell, L. A., & Griffin, P. (1997). Teaching for diversity and social justice, New York,

NY:

Routledge.

Freire, P. (1970). Pedagogy of the oppressed. New York, NY: Continuum International

Publishing Group.

National Association of Student Personnel Administrators. (1989). Points of view. Washington,

DC: National Association of Student Personnel Administrators.