Tag Archives: social justice

A blow to freedom

The class assignment is to take an important and controversial issue–current or past–and dig deeply to find the hidden parts of the story. Stories like the Boston Tea Party of 1771. Most of us learned the event signaled the critical … Continue reading

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Missing truths

As a kid growing up in Southern California (we moved overseas when I was 10) we visited missions that dot the west, built by Spanish priests centuries ago. I remember the missions reverently: made of adobe and tile that cooled … Continue reading

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But is it science?

The movement among scholars of science communication—non-Indian and Indians alike—has been to elevate Native science to the same level as Western science. Like Laurie Anderson’s song, typically science is considered Big Science. Science with a capital S. Native science, on … Continue reading

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Yes, but is it significant?

Whenever you write a grant or ask for a promotion in an academic setting, you’re required to justify the significance of your research. Problem is, most of us are so embroiled in our work that we don’t question it: we … Continue reading

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Learning from Ferguson, Part II

Structural issues—poverty, education, advancement opportunities and health disparities—affect communities in significant ways. Some of the larger issues are being tackled right now, in part because of the turmoil in Ferguson, Missouri. Fortunately some reporters, critics, pundits and politicians are paying … Continue reading

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What Does Social Justice Mean?

Social justice is like the word beauty: We think we know what it means, but how do you define it? Feel it? Measure it? Today we use the term social justice differently from its earliest permutation. Typically we think of … Continue reading

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Justice? It depends

Scholars have long debated the tenets that underpin justice. Interesting that a word we take for granted—justice—would roll over like a tumbleweed, subject to interpretations. Definitions have emerged from many quarters—from St. Augustine, John Locke, Thomas Hobbes, Emmanuel Kant, Jeremy … Continue reading

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