Zebadiah Hall, Vice President for Diversoty, Equity and Inclusion
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Jessica Nelson, Advisory Board
Affiliation: Culture Gender & Social Justice | |
Melissa Alexander, Advisory Board
Affiliation: College of Law | I joined the Social Justice Advisory Board because I
believe that working on social justice, and aiding and encouraging other people who
do, can help make concrete changes that improve lives. Studying health law exposes
the myriad ways that structural inequality undermines health for vulnerable populations.
Approaching health policy, practice and laws with humility, respect and solidarity
with those impacted, leads to dramatically improved results and a stronger community. |
Dr. Christi Boggs, Advisory Board
Affiliation: Ellbogen Center for Teaching and Learning | To me Social Justice is honoring
all ways of knowing and being. It is work to create an environment which is safe and
supportive and within which the magnificent variety of human experience and difference
is celebrated. It also includes ways of being and knowing that are connected to spirituality,
the earth, the environment, nature… everything in an interconnected web of beauty.
Social Justice includes challenging and breaking down systemic and personal barriers
to individuals and groups so that everyone has the ability to realize their own dreams.
As an activist and an accomplice it is my responsibility to use my privilege and power
where and whenever I can support others in their pursuit of justice |
Dr. Chelsea Escalante, Advisory Board
Affiliation: Department of Modern & Classical Languages | I am an Assistant Professor
of Spanish Linguistics and a co-advisor for UW's chapter of Engineers Without Borders
where I help with their service trips to Latin America. To me, social justice is a
framework for conceptualizing our collective responsibility in creating opportunities
for all members of our human family to thrive. I believe in examining and questioning
the structures and systems in place in our world in order to identify groups of people
that are systematically dismissed or silenced, and then actively engaging in projects
that dismantle oppressive systems and that open the doors for alternative narratives
and perspectives. In my research, I study language variation and linguistic diversity
and explore how language can be used as a tool of oppression in macro-structures such
as labor systems and educational institutions when we value certain ways of speaking
over others. In my teaching, I invite my students to think critically about the attitudes
we all hold regarding who speaks 'correctly' (and who doesn't), where those attitudes
may come from, what real-life consequences await speakers of non-standard varieties
(such as denial of educational, labor, housing, or civic opportunities), and what
steps we can take in the future to promote multilingualism and multiculturalism in
our pursuit of a more just society. |
Dr. Erin Irick, Advisory Board
Affiliation: College of Agriculture & Natural Resources | Social Justice is a primary
focus in my personal life as well as professionally. This is why I wanted to join
the SJRC advisory board. In my career, I educate and encourage consumers and companies
in the apparel and textile industries to make more socially responsible decisions.
This includes advocating for fair-trade policies, ethically-produced products and
environmentally-sustainable methods, which I believe all fall under the larger umbrella
of social justice. |
Dr. Christine Porter, Advisoty Board
Affiliation: College of Health Sciences | Democracy theorist Iris Marion Young notes
that “the concepts of domination and oppression, rather than the concept of distribution,
should be the starting point for a conception of social justice” (in Justice & the
Politics of Difference, p16). Social justice work, then, means working to end the
ways our society systematically works against some groups of people according to classifications
our society creates and marks as different. As “other.” As “them” and not “us.” The
philosopher-activist Cornel West tells us how to do that work when he says that “justice
is what love looks like in public” (fabulously on the Colbert Report, 1/18/11). Oppression
stems from fear and the hate that grows from fear. Justice (and personal joy) grows
when we muster the courage to face our fears (which often manifest as feeling anger,
guilt or defensiveness) and to act, instead, out of love. Social justice work gives
meaning and purpose to my life. It is my life’s work. Thus, I am grateful that UW
has the SJRC to provide a “home” for collaborating on that work within our University. |
Dr. Reed Scull, Advisory Board
Affiliation: College of Education | Social justice is a larger, community-scale state
of being, it is a cause, and it is a value. Fair treatment, care for the welfare of
others, respect for differences, harmonious relations with neighbors, and the sharing
of resources all are ideas consistent with social justices concepts. The opportunity
to contribute to these ideas at the university level is why I have joined the Social
Justice Research Center advisory board. |
Samantha Peter, Advisory Board
Affiliation: Libraries Education and Resource Services | Information privilege is
something many people in the world struggle with. Whether they do not have internet
at home or access to a computer, many do not have equitable and easy access to information.
As a librarian, we work to promote social justice through the equal access of information.
In my research, I work to promote accessibility within libraries, museums, and archives
for people with all types of disabilities, through accessible instruction and resources.
I joined the SRJC Advisory board in order to continue to support social justice research
on campus through the many different resources we provide at UW Libraries. |
Valerie Thompson-Ebanks, Advisory Board
Affiliation: Libraries Education and Resource Services | Information privilege is
something many people in the world struggle with. Whether they do not have internet
at home or access to a computer, many do not have equitable and easy access to information.
As a librarian, we work to promote social justice through the equal access of information.
In my research, I work to promote accessibility within libraries, museums, and archives
for people with all types of disabilities, through accessible instruction and resources.
I joined the SRJC Advisory board in order to continue to support social justice research
on campus through the many different resources we provide at UW Libraries. |