Philosophy of Social Justice
I used to think social justice just meant fairness; however, after coming to Social Justice High School and learning the school’s history I began to understand that social justice is something bigger than fairness. Social justice is the process, sacrifice, effort, and personal will to fight against something you believe is unfair, even if there are many people opposing you. As students, we learned about this struggle as soon as we walked in the door. We learned about how much people in the community wanted an education for their children and peers. As incoming freshmen we learned about the history of how little village high school came to be. We were told the story about how a small group of about fourteen people in the community came together to hunger strike for nineteen days to raise awareness for the school they were promised and never given. It was an empowering story, and it was a privilege to be able to come to this school because of that struggle. It was interesting to know how what these people did then, is giving me an education and helping me learn more about the world now because their legacy continues in each student that comes here. These people sacrificed themselves to be able to give us this school. This knowledge of the sacrifice is something that we kept with us for our four years even though, sadly, many of our underclassmen at times don’t share the same understanding. They don’t seem to appreciate the school they are able to come to everyday to learn not just basic school material, but things tied to life worldwide. It seems that as each class comes and goes, a piece of our culture continues to fade.
As a high school senior, I continue to broaden my definition and understanding of social justice. We connect what we learn in school to current and world events. We learn about how people fight for what they believe in, and also how we can do the same. To me, that is something very important, because I never used to speak up for what I believed in. Due to the influence of this school’s curriculum, I am able to see my classmates stand up for things such as A.P. classes. It felt good to be a part of the struggle for a stronger educational experience. Each class’ curriculum not only contains basic notes and facts on the subject, but also examples pertaining to our everyday lives, or lives of the people in our community, city, state, country, etc., that make us understand why each subject is important. Social Justice is a big word to define because everyone has their own personal definition. Yet, our understanding of social justice is something that should be shaped from experiences and personal goals.
As a high school senior, I continue to broaden my definition and understanding of social justice. We connect what we learn in school to current and world events. We learn about how people fight for what they believe in, and also how we can do the same. To me, that is something very important, because I never used to speak up for what I believed in. Due to the influence of this school’s curriculum, I am able to see my classmates stand up for things such as A.P. classes. It felt good to be a part of the struggle for a stronger educational experience. Each class’ curriculum not only contains basic notes and facts on the subject, but also examples pertaining to our everyday lives, or lives of the people in our community, city, state, country, etc., that make us understand why each subject is important. Social Justice is a big word to define because everyone has their own personal definition. Yet, our understanding of social justice is something that should be shaped from experiences and personal goals.