Welcome to Social Justice News!
Welcome to Social Justice News. Read on to find out more about social justice-related events at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and beyond, a variety of resources and selected articles. Consider joining the Social Justice Hub, individually or with friends, by filling out our interest form.
Support Social Justice
The Social Justice Hub is the recipient of the Senior Class Gift of 2021.
Support social justice by donating at go.wisc.edu/SeniorClassGift
Support the Senior Class Gift for social justice. Your donation supports social justice action teams, expanding student internships, and hosting guest speakers.
Find out more here.
Events
Find out additional UW-Madison social justice events here.
Social Justice Hub 2020-2021 Graduate Student Internship
Share your social justice passions, support student action teams developing and creating educational events and hands-on experiences. Application open until position is filled. See the full information here.
Housing Equity Food/Hygiene Bag Packing
Tuesdays in September, 9:30-11:30 AM CST
Volunteer with the Social Justice Hub to create food & hygiene bags made from non-perishable items which will later be delivered to people experiencing homelessness in Madison.
Find out more here.
Housing Equity Community Breakfast
Wednesdays in September, 7:30-11 AM CST
Volunteers with the Social Justice Hub will help to serve breakfast & coffee to community members experiencing homelessness & creating a warm environment where everyone feels welcome.
Find out more here.
UW-Madison’s Latinx Heritage Month
September 15 – October 15
Join UW-Madison’s Latinx Heritage Month utilizing various physical, virtual, and social media platforms. Find all event information here.
- Latine Ball
Thursday, September 16, 7:00 – 11 PM CST
The Latine Ball is an event at the end of Latine Heritage Month where we can celebrate Latine Culture acknowledging all the accomplishments we have made this year through awards, music, and food. Find out more here. - Multicultural Student Center MeetUp
Friday, September 17, 6 – 9 PM CST
Red Gym
MSC: The MeetUp (multicultural org fair)
Public Service Fair
Monday, September 20, 3 – 4 PM CST
This in-person fair provides students of all majors the opportunity to connect with local, state and national nonprofit agencies. You can chat with people from these organizations to find volunteer opportunities, jobs and internships that match your interests, major, and career goals.
Open to ALL enrolled UW-Madison students, plus recent alumni who graduated within the past two years. Find out more here.
QTPOC Crossroads Welcome
Monday, September 20, 5 – 7 PM CST
Gender and Sexuality Campus Center
Come drop by the GSCC, join LGBTQ+ people of color, and take home a new plant friend and build community. For accommodations or questions, email lgbt@studentlife.wisc.edu or call 608-265-3344.
Criminal Justice Reform Team Kickoff
Monday, September 20, 6 – 7 PM CST
Then Mondays in September
Join the Criminal Justice Reform Team Kickoff, with subsequent meetings every Tuesday. At these meetings, members will discuss criminal justice topics, brainstorm ideas for future events, work on existing event planning, and research for their newsletter and podcast.
Find out more here.
Tu Voz: Rooted in Nature
Wednesday, September 22, 5:30 – 6:45 AM CST
Salud Rooted in Nature is a Tu Voz event where Latine-identifying students can discuss their relationship with nature and the lack of diversity in the outdoors. This event will include discussion-based questions as well as a poetry workshop, both of which will create space for students to reflect on inclusivity in the outdoors. Students will be able to enjoy food and the sunset at the terrace to finish the evening. Find out more here.
UW Law School Application Bootcamp
Wednesday, September 22, 12 NOON – 1 PM CST ONLINE
The Law School Application Boot Camp is a MUST if you plan on applying this year to start law school next fall. This workshop helps you: learn about the steps you to take to build an effective and competitive law school application, create a game-plan for tackling the application process, review the major application components, and navigate waitlists and scholarship negotiations after you apply.
Register HERE
Social Justice Hub Open House
Thursday, September 23, 6:30 – 8 PM CST
Enjoy refreshments while learning about the Hub Interns, Action teams, and future collaborations. Come see how you can get involved in Social Justice on UW Madison’s campus. We’ll be having conversations with community leaders and orgs, and cannot wait to hear from you.
Find out more here.
School of Nursing Lunch and (Un)Learn Series
The UW-Madison School of Nursing Interprofessional Diversity and Equity Lunch and (Un)Learn series continues – the events are free and open to the public. Back by popular demand, this year-long series is devoted to decolonizing health care. Decolonizing is about freeing systems from their historical colonial status and increasing the recognition, value of, and respect for the cultures of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color.
- DECOLONIZING WELLNESS
Thursday, September 23 from 12-1 PM. Register here. - DECOLONIZING ACCESS
Thursday, October 20 from 12-1 PM. Register here. - DECOLONIZING CURRICULUM
Thursday, November 18 from 12-1 PM. Register here. - DECONOLOZING PROFESSIONALISM
Wednesday, December 15 from 12-1 PM. Register here.
Infrastructure, Transportation and Justice
Tuesday, September 28, 4:30 – 6 PM CST
The way we get from place to place touches every aspect of our lives, from the burdens of commuting to the access we have to basic services like health care and food. And it’s inextricably linked to the climate crisis, as transportation makes up more than a quarter of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S. Join us virtually on Tuesday, September 28th to learn about initiatives in Wisconsin and around the world that are focused on making transportation equitable, clean, and safe.
Find out more here.
Panel to Discuss Criminal Justice Reporting and journalism Ethics
Wednesday, September 29, 6:30 PM CST
Memorial Union and online
The Center for Journalism Ethics will host a discussion about the challenges of covering the justice system in the U.S. The panelists are Keri Blakinger, an investigative reporter and the center’s 2021 journalist-in-residence; James Causey of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel; and law Professor Keith Findley. Find out more here.
Everyone’s Earth: Conversations on Race and Environment
Thursday, September 30, 11:30 AM – 1 PM CST
Online
Leaders in the effort to address racism and the outdoors will explore ways to increase diversity and equity in outdoor accessibility in an online conversation hosted by the Nelson Institute Sept. 30. It will be moderated by James Edward Mills, Nelson’s community partnership liaison and founder of The Joy Trip Project. Find out more here.
Midwest Bisexual Lesbian Gay Transgender Asexual College Conference (MBLGTACC)
October 8 – 10, 2021
UW-Madison is hosting this year’s Midwest Bisexual Lesbian Gay Transgender Asexual College Conference For enrolled UW-Madison students, a limited number of FREE conference tickets are available that can be reserved here.
Identities and Needs of LGBTQ+ Populations
The UW-Madison Gender and Sexuality Campus Center (GSCC) marked the anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising, from June 28-July 3, with a virtual discussion in recognition of LGBTQ+ pride and LGBTQ+ communities. Panelists spoke about various topics including what’s on the horizon for the GSCC and the identities and needs of LGBTQ+ populations.
Watch it here.
Social Justice News Articles
- UW-Madison rethinks its sexual assault services by bringing forensic nurses on campus as a second option to a standard forensic exam.
- Six voters filed a lawsuit against the Wisconsin Elections Commission to ask for the invalidation of Wisconsin’s current political maps and to draw new ones.
- St. John’s Lutheran Church in downtown Madison wants to demolish its building to create a new sanctuary, community space, and housing.
- Memories of UW-Madison alumni and Wisconsinites are shared of 911, 20 years after the attacks. Learn more in the documentary Turning Point: 9/11 and the War on Terror
- UN scientists deem worsening global warming a ‘code red’ situation and preview what the future will look like with five scenarios based on how much carbon emissions are cut.
- Big brands, like Tommy Hilfiger and Target, are getting into adaptive clothing– clothes with design features that help people with disabilities.
- LGBTQ groups across the US are considering a new flag meant to be more inclusive of the transgender community and people of color.
- Texas’s New Abortion Law
- Recent bills introduced to block the teaching of critical race theory in Wisconsin schools has prompted a conversation about systemic racism in the classroom
- The Daily Cardinal Presents: The Greener Future Action Project. Check it out here!
Adding Pronouns to UW-Madison Zoom Accounts
UW-Madison Zoom now allows individuals to indicate the pronouns they would like to be referred to by — in class, online discussions and meetings. Related: Visit the Gender and Sexuality Campus Center’s Pronouns Matter page.
Wisconsin Partnership Program Accepting Applications To Advance Wisconsin Health Equity
The Wisconsin Partnership Program has released its 2021 Community Impact Grants Program Request for Partnerships. The goal is to advance health equity in Wisconsin by addressing the social determinants of health and root causes of health inequities. Each award is for a maximum of $1 million over five years.
Removal of Chamberlin Rock
On August 6, the former Chamberlin Rock was removed from campus. Student leaders, Student Affairs, and the DDEEA worked together to remove this rock that symbolized generations of racism that students on our campus experienced. Read the full article here.
Program Seeks to Optimize Health of LGBTQ+ Patients
The American Medical Association Foundation has picked UW-Madison as the inaugural institution for the National LGBTQ+ Fellowship Program, aimed at transforming the health equity landscape for the LGBTQ+ community. A total of $750,000 over four years will establish an advanced fellowship clinical training program. Find out more here.
Be A Part of Your Community, Be A Badger Volunteer
Looking to volunteer this upcoming fall? Well, you can join UW–Madison’s largest volunteer program, Badger Volunteers (BV). Registration opens next Friday, Sept. 10 at 7am. Click here to learn about BV and the available opportunities. Badger Volunteers is a semester-long program that pairs teams of students with community organizations to volunteer 1-4 hours each week at the same organization. There will be in-person and virtual volunteer opportunities for the fall semester.
Podcasts, Talks, and Exhibits
- Listen to this episode of GridgeFridge about F.H. King, a UW-Madison student organization growing and harvesting on a two-acre farm. Listen now.
- Associate Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Identity and Inclusion Gabe Javier and Makenzie Becker, who is an intern with the Center for the First Year Experience, discuss ways students can build community. We highlight places on campus and ways to get involved through different departments and Wisconsin Welcome and Wisconsin Welcome Back events. This episode can be found on the Student Affairs Instagram and YouTube channel.
Volunteer Opportunities
Be Part of Badger Volunteers
Looking to volunteer this upcoming fall? Well, you can join UW–Madison’s largest volunteer program, Badger Volunteers (BV). Registration is Sept 10 – 17. Click here to learn about BV and the available opportunities. Badger Volunteers is a semester-long program that pairs teams of students with community organizations to volunteer 1-4 hours each week at the same organization. There will be in-person and virtual volunteer opportunities for the fall semester.
BadgersVote, with the League of Women Voters of Dane County, is seeking volunteers to help UW-Madison students get registered to vote. Volunteers are needed from Through September 10, and on September 22. Find out more and sign-up here.
Social Justice Hub Action Teams
Let us know of your interest in Action Teams here, including a team you’d like to form for the upcoming academic year!
The Food Justice Collective works to improve food access, provide information about available resources and unite existing initiatives with the common goal of food justice.Contact the Food Justice Collective Co-Directors, Raven Hall and Connor Raboine, to support the team’s work.
Criminal Justice Reform works to promote awareness and change related to social justice issues in the criminal justice system. Contact Co-Directors, Alli Burgdorf and Clarence Harley, to further support criminal justice reform.
The Housing Equity team increases awareness through education, community building, partnerships, and initiatives related to housing insecurities with the related greater Dane County organizations. Contact Housing Equity Team Director Parnika Shukla
to further support housing equity.
One of the ways that we accomplish reaching out to both campus and the greater Madison area to further social justice is through our action teams, which are subsets of the Hub that are formed and led by students. Let us know of your interest in a team here, including if you would like to form a new one!
Social Justice-Related Positions
Badgers Vote Social Media Internship
The BadgersVote social media intern will develop and implement creative social media posts to amplify the efforts of the BadgersVote Coalition and civic learning. This intern will serve as part of the Morgridge Center vote team. Students committed to promoting nonpartisan student voting to eligible UW–Madison students are encouraged to apply.
League of Women Voters of Dane County Voter Services Internship
The internship program with the League of Women Voters of Dane County (LWVDC) works under the Voter Service Program. These interns are key players working together to register voters, bring down voting barriers, and tackle important social justice issues on their college campuses, consistent with LWVDC positions on those issues.
- The Associated Students of Madison paid and volunteer leaders to help advocate for students across campus positions are listed here.
- The Wisconsin Sea Grant and Wisconsin Water Resources Institutes is hiring a social justice podcast intern to act as a co-producer for a new podcast series about diversity, equity and inclusion and the Great Lakes. Find out more here.
ASM Student Advocacy internship Class
The Associated Students of Madison (ASM) Internship is a small cohort-program that combines the passion and drive of college students with political expertise and community organizing methods to address and react to student concerns and issues. The internship class will meet weekly on Fridays from 2:00-3:15 pm the fall semester, and participants will work on their own project with support from student mentors and staff advisors. Interested students can apply here.
DEI Undergraduate Internship
The UW-Madison DEI undergraduate internship is a newly created internship program within the College of Letters & Science, Administration Office. As a member of the Associate Dean for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion’s team, the intern provides program support to advance diversity, equity and inclusion priorities
Announcements
gALPHA Social Impact
For the past year, the American Family Insurance Institute for Corporate and Social Impact has been supporting gener8tor in efforts to support university social entrepreneurs. gALPHA Social Impact is a free four-week venture creation workshop that helps college social entrepreneurs create high-impact startups. During the program, we help student founders develop their business model canvas, their pitch deck and the minimum viable product. We are excited to announce expansion of our programming across the Big Ten universities with the creation of the Big Ten Conference Challenge! The Big Ten Conference Challenge engages students in two virtual meetings per week for one month to quick-start ideation and strategizing around a social issue. Participants will attend two lunch and learn webinars and two pitch practice sessions. At the program’s end, student founders will pitch their ideas to compete with other Big Ten social entrepreneurs and win funding to continue their projects! Find out more, and apply, here.
UW-Madison Inclusion Education Student Affairs
The Office of Inclusion Education elevates and prioritizes diversity, equity, and inclusion for all students at UW-Madison. We offer a broad array of learning opportunities for students that contribute to their Wisconsin Experience. The Office of Inclusion Education seeks to foster social justice to create a place where all Badgers feel like they belong. The Office of Inclusion Education includes Our Wisconsin, Social Justice Education Programs, and the Social Justice Hub.
Education Programs
UW community members are able to request a Social Justice Education Program trainings and workshops to support exploration and engagement in topics related to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Collaboration with student organizations and campus partners is encouraged and occurs regularly. Please request workshops at least 3 weeks in advance.
UW-Madison Social Justice Resources
- UW-Madison Resources – DACA, Hate and Bias, Reflection & Prayer Spaces
- UW–Madison Social Justice Organizations, Courses, and Conferences.
- Social Justice Books and Documentaries
- 5-Minute Training Topics
Get Vaccinated at University Health Services
Vaccinations are available at UHS.
“The more clearly we can focus our attention on the wonders and realities of the universe, the less taste we shall have for destruction.”
– Rachel Carson