Conservatism and Social Justice

Social justice is a buzzword. Now, I don't mean that in a bad way. But because of the divide in our country, it creates a lot of tension. Social justice is the practice of creating as much equality and equity as possible in society. However, that practice has become equated with people who want socialism and government interference. But, if I teach in a conservative state (Alaska), and I say "I'm teaching social justice in the classroom", I would be in for a world of trouble. So instead,  I think that allowing for students to explore tough issues, and have the building blocks of solving issues they see themselves. For example, when there's an issue in the classroom, I won't interfere. I will allow students to discuss the issue and come to a solution without me taking over the situation unless it is dangerous. See, conservatives and liberals want the same things ultimately. But conservatives want to solve these equality issues for themselves and not have the government mandate solutions. So by building student's skills for working with others, and seeing problems and solving them, they will build social justice skills, for both conservative and liberal points of view. I also will model not only tolerance but full-bodied empathy for other views, and help my students learn how to hold two viewpoints in their minds at once, without just accepting or denying everything that they hear. And regardless of my conservative views, I will teach every kid to the best of my ability, even if I don't agree with the district's ways of teaching students.
http://dailysignal.com/2017/03/17/conservatives-do-believe-in-social-justice-heres-what-our-vision-looks-like/

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