Social Justice: Steps for Shifting Attitudes - Blog Post #5

 I remember having a conversation with a member of my family about LGBTQ representation in middle schools. Imagine my surprise when they told me those themes were inappropriate for younger students and “perhaps they can learn more about that in high school or college.” What? This person always seemed willing to include others and advocate for disadvantaged people, and now I wondered about why they did not have that same attitude here. After I inquired further about what was inappropriate, they said they just did not want the subject to be “in their face.”

Fast forward a few months, and I’m at a breakout session about approaching racism in literature. I hear one of the people behind me ask a question: “Do you have any book recommendations not written by people of color? That aren’t so...you know, in your face?”

That phrase again: “in your face.” What do they mean by that? Is it their passive-aggressive way of dismissing these issues, or are they actually that deeply bigoted? I know students hear these same sentiments spread by others, and how damaging that is for them. I was a student like that, hearing my teachers or other authority figures make comments about my identity. I need my students to be supported in ways that I was not. I cannot always protect them from these harmful words; what I can do is teach them to fight them. 

Step one of engaging challenging issues: know what the problem is. According to GLSEN, LGBTQ+ students in schools that highly victimized them are three times more likely to miss school, almost twice as likely to be disciplined, had lower GPAs on average, and an overall higher levels of depression (Kosciw, 6). Furthermore, when faculty are able to hear homophobic language, “Less than one-fifth of LGBTQ students (13.7%) reported that school staff intervened most of the time or always” (4). This is unacceptable. We need to advocate for change. For their sake, if nothing else, I want to cultivate a safe space for them and demonstrate my support by not only celebrating their identities, but including them in the curriculum as well through texts.

Step two of tackling social justice issues: equip students with the knowledge and skills to address them. This can be anything from analyzing sources to writing persuasively to share their perspective. Specifically, the ability to create clear, supported ideas in a respectful manner is critical to their voices being heard. Just as in an email to a politician or letter to an organization, a firm, yet reasonable, tone helps draw in those who might not be entirely on their side of the issue. Therefore, style is significant. In addition to this, I would create an assignment - one of many - in which they can practice this kind of informed writing, as through a letter to an authority figure or a similar form of publishing their voice outside of school. Giving them a space where they can practice this before participating in advocacy is essential to ease them into the often intimidating public stage. 

Step three: let it all out. Help publish their work. Give them authentic audiences. Support their voices and their confidence to enact change. An accessible way to do this would be to have them use social media posts to address organizations along with some of my previous suggestions, but the essential thing is to get them consciously sharing their perspective with the world around them. Let’s celebrate diversity and advocate for change!

Kosciw, Joseph  G, et al. “The 2019 National School Climate Survey - Glsen.” GLSEN, 

Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN), 2020, https://www.glsen.org/sites/default/files/2020-10/NSCS-2019-Full-Report_0.pdf.