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. This issue allows a bit more reflection during winter break. Consider joining the Social Justice Hub, individually or with friends, by filling out our interest form.
Events
Find out additional UW-Madison social justice events here.
Housing Equity Food/Hygiene Bag Packing
Tuesdays, starting January 25, 2-3:30 PM 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. Read about us in the Badger Herald and Madison Commons.
MLK Symposium – An Evening with Nikole Hannah-Jones
Tuesday, January 25, 6:30 PM CSTWisconsin Union Theater, Shannon Hall at the Memorial Union
Join us for an evening of reflection on the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., with Nikole Hannah-Jones, Pulitzer Prize-winning creator of The 1619 Project.
An American investigative journalist covering racial injustice in the United States, Hannah-Jones has spent the last five years investigating how racial segregation in housing and schools is maintained through official action and policy. She is currently a reporter for The New York Times Magazine.
Hannah-Jones reporting has won several national awards, including the Peabody Award, George Polk Award, National Magazine Award, Sigma Delta Chi Award for Public Service, and the Hechinger Grand Prize for Distinguished Education Reporting. In 2017, Nikole was named a prestigious MacArthur fellow. Find out more here.
Smart Climate Communication In Complicated Times
Wednesday, January 19, 12-1:15 PM CSTThe Wisconsin Academy of Arts & Sciences presents the talk with Jane Elder, former executive director of the academy. She will discuss insights from Yale’s “Six Americas of Climate Change Analysis.” Register here.
Government & The Environment
Thursday, January 20, 6:30 PM CST
Join a conversation with state treasurer Sarah Godlewski and former executive secretary of the Board of Commissioners of Public Lands Tia Nelson sharing what roles various levels of government can play in protecting and even restoring our environment. The conversation will include Sierra Club priority issues, such as clean energy and water. If time permits, written questions provided in advance will be asked. RSVP here.
6th Annual We’re Off To A Good Start! Black Men’s Health Empowerment Movement
Saturday, January 22, 11 AM-1 PM CSTThis year’s theme for the community-led conversation is colon cancer screening and early detection for the event. Speakers include Chris Spencer, executive producer of Real Husbands of Hollywood; Dannon Green, director of The Executioners We All Had a Chance, and physician Travelle F.F. Ellis. Register here.
Culture and Conservation: Black Communities Advancing Environmental Justice and Stewardship
Thursday, February 3, 10 – 11:30 AM CSTDr. Na’Taki Osborne Jelks, assistant professor, Environmental and Health Sciences, Spelman College, and cofounder, West Atlanta Watershed Alliance. Fighting for environmental justice and mobilizing the community, WAWA has preserved over 400 acres of greenspace from development. Osborne Jelks will highlight their role in public land stewardship, work to advance water and park equity, and efforts to educate residents. Register by January 30. Find out more here. Click here to register.
Social Justice News Articles
Briefs of UW-Madison, Wisconsin
- Fourteen current and former students, faculty and staff members of UW–Madison honored by Madison365 on annual list of Wisconsin’s most influential Black leaders.
- Forever chemicals contaminate Lake Superior and threaten Indigenous tribes
- Poll takes Wisconsin’s temperature on policy in leadup to 2022 elections
- Wisconsin is one of the top 10 states for youth impact in the 2022 midterm elections
- Judge bars use of absentee ballot drop boxes in Wisconsin
U.S., World in Brief
- Ohio Supreme Court invalidates GOP-approved congressional map ‘infused with undue partisan bias’
- The possibility of election subversion is “the most insidious and serious threat to democracy,” per New York Times news analysis
- The Future of Dynastic Rule in the Philippines, Alfred McCoy, UW-Madison Historian
- The Yankees made Rachel Balkovec the first woman to manage a minor league team affiliated with Major League Baseball
- Maya Angelou has become the first Black woman on a quarter
Martin Luther King, Jrs.,’s History Lessons
Martin Luther King, Jr., understood the nation’s challenges as part of a continuous narrative. Today, a narrow view of America’s past could imperil its future.Find The New Yorker’s comments here.
Internships, Jobs
Outreach LGBTQ+ Transfender Health Advocate
Provide care with compassion to Transgender, Non-Binary, Genderqueer, and Gender Expansive persons who are seeking assistance in access to community services while advocating on clients’ behalf. * Collaborate and work with other agencies in order to create a better environment for people seeking assistance. 30+ hours per week. Read more here.
Podcasts, Exhibits, Announcements
Swipe Out Hunger UW
Anyone using a Wiscard to make a purchase through The Wisconsin Union, University Recreation & Wellbeing, or University Housing, is now able to donate $1 (or more) to directly support students facing food insecurity on campus to Swipe Out Hunger UW.
The Richard Ralph Winter Phoenix Rising Humanitarian Scholarship Application Is Open
The RRW Phoenix Rising Humanitarian Scholarship is open for application to College of Letters & Scienceundergraduates beyond their first year who will be enrolled in fall 2022 committed to impacting the lives of others. Successful applicants are passionate about taking action towards improving the human condition and embody qualities of dignity, courage and discipline. Application finalists are invited to interviews with the scholarship committee members in late February 2021 with award ($5,000) announced in March 2022. Applications are due January 19, 2022. Apply here with questions to scholarships@saa.ls.wisc.edu.
Volunteer Opportunities
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!
Food Justice Collective
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. The Food Justice Collective is coordinated by Co-Director Raven Hall.
Criminal Justice Reform
Criminal Justice Reform works to promote awareness and change related to social justice issues in the criminal justice system. Participate in weekly Monday 6 PM meetings at the Social Justice Hub or online. The Criminal Justice Reform team is led by Co-Directors, Alli Burgdorf and Clarence Harley.
Housing Equity
The Housing Equity team increases awareness through education, community building, partnerships, and initiatives related to housing insecurities with the related greater Dane County organizations. Housing Equity is led by Director Parnika Shukla.
Form a Team
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. Let us know of your interest in a team here, including what new team you’d like to help form, including potentially a Health Equity team!
Support Social Justice
Thank you to the Senior Class of 2021 with the Senior Class Gift to the Social Justice Hub.
Support the Senior Class Gift for social justice. Donations support social justice action teams, expanding student internships, and hosting guest speakers. Listen to UW-Madison students at go.wisc.edu/SeniorClassGift.
Inclusion Education
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.
Social Justice Microcourse: Foundational Concepts
This microcourse focuses on some of the foundational concepts of social justice and is intended to serve as a starting point for reflection and building individual capacity for engaging with further social justice concepts. Like everything in social justice, this work is recursive and can benefit from being revisited and reflected upon at various stages in our lives. Find further info here.
UW-Madison Social Justice Resources
- Social Justice Foundational Concepts Microcourse: Social Identity, Socialization, Implicit Bias, Micro-messaging, Resources
- UW-Madison Social Justice Organizations, Courses, and Conferences.
- Social Justice Books and Documentaries
- 5-Minute Training Topics
Are you a staff member or student and would like to help curate this information? Let us know.
“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”Martin Luther King, Jr.