Letters to Institutions

This semester, 47 of us (45 undergraduate students and 2 instructors) engaged in discussion about justice. We asked what it means in the field of education, and whether or not the term “social justice” has lost meaning as it is used in more mainstream spaces. We’ve discussed institutions and how their associated ideologies are designed to create hierarchies that privilege some at the expense of others. We’ve done this all in the midst of a gut-wrenching election cycle and the global COVID-19 pandemic. As we have reflected together and individually about what justice means and what it doesn’t, we’ve started to grapple with our own histories, identities, experiences, and emotions. For the final project, we used reflective, creative writing to write a letter addressed to an institution, a concept, or an object. We sought to explore our thoughts on the possibilities and limits of social justice.

We invite you to read and respond to these letters, as we seek to practice public pedagogy.

Love,

Alison, Lucía, and the members of our section of EDUC 533