UPDATED: Feb. 19, 2018 at 11:17 p.m.

Andrew Fowler, president of Syracuse University’s National Pan-Hellenic Council, was one of several organizers of SU’s first-ever Cuse for Good: Social Justice event. He said that those involved asked themselves, “How could we make people leave with a valuable lesson?”

For student organizers, which came from two different on-campus groups, the answer to that question would mean holding a multi-part event.

Sponsored by SU’s Student Association and co-hosted by University Union and the National Pan-Hellenic Council, Saturday’s events began with a discussion panel in Goldstein Auditorium at Schine Student Center. Panel participants discussed their experiences with social justice and gave examples of the roles they see it playing in their own lives, including within such spheres of influence as education, technology and art.

The panel was moderated by Don C. Sawyer, an assistant professor of sociology and the chief diversity officer at Quinnipiac University, and included the Bandier Program director Bill Werde, Student Association vice president Angie Pati, actress and activist Yara Shahidi and rapper and model Joey Bada$$.

The group started by defining social justice. Pati shared the most memorable way the term had been phrased to her: “What faces you when you wake up in the morning?”

She went on to explain that thinking about social justice requires one to consider if they have things like a bed, a roof and a job, and then considering what systems were put into place to create that environment.

Werde noted that people often think of social justice as correcting the great evils in the world — but fail to recognize more subtle issues surrounding identity and privilege.

“I think a lot of isolation and ignorance comes from social anxiety,” he said. He added that the culture of calling people out for saying the wrong thing on social media serves to exacerbate that fear.

Shahidi addressed the positive influence she’s seen technology have on social justice and on her own personal identity.

“I feel like its primary power is its access,” she said. “There’s a part of your history that you do not know because it’s not institutionally taught.”

For the 18-year-old, social media and the internet gave her exposure to the history that traditional AP courses and textbooks didn’t — especially history involving people of color and women.

Shahidi said Generation Z “really helps each other out” by sharing the stories of underrepresented groups — and not just narratives portraying people of color as victims of oppression.

“It’s important to see those stories of us just existing,” she said.

Joey Bada$$ shared that, while writing his most recent album, he was inspired by news stories about the shootings of unarmed black men and felt he had to create something that would educate his peers.

“I just started feeling really responsible,” the rapper explained. “And not responsible for what was happening, but for responsible for affecting change.”

He also likened the media’s portrayal of black men to propaganda. Werde pushed him on this point.

“There are news sources out there that are relatively credible,” Werde said, mentioning The New York Times and The Washington Post.

“Yeah but, The New York Times just called me A$AP Rocky at a fashion show I went to,” Bada$$ responded, eliciting laughter from the crowd.

Werde’s response was that “Institutions are only as good as the sum of the people who work there.”

The event wrapped up with an audience Q&A. One student, who acknowledged that he was a white male with inherent privilege, asked what he should do with the platform he has.

Bada$$ encouraged him to spread what he knows to his own community and to continue educating himself.

The organizers of the event said proceeds from ticket sales for the panel and the concert, as well as from Orange After Dark’s screening of “Black Panther” will go toward three Syracuse city schools: Fowler High School, Van Duyn Elementary School and Grant Middle School.

“The goal of this event was to challenge people to come out, to think differently, so I definitely think that happened today,” said Fowler, president of SU’s National Pan-Hellenic Council. “That vision of what I wanted the event to be was shown.”

CORRECTIONS: In a previous version of this post, Joey Bada$$ was misnamed. Don C. Sawyer’s title was also misstated. Sawyer is an assistant professor of sociology and the chief diversity officer at Quinnipiac University. Yara Shahidi’s age was also misstated. Shahidi is 18 years old. Van Duyn Elementary School was also misnamed. Andrew Fowler’s position was also misstated. Fowler is president of SU’s National Pan-Hellenic Council. The Daily Orange regrets these errors. 

CLARIFICATION: In a previous version of this post, the role of Syracuse University’s Student Association in Cuse for Good: Social Justice was unclear. SA sponsored the event.

Published on February 17, 2018 at 10:08 pm

Contact Erin:
ekgavle@syr.edu