I participated in the “Organizing for Social Justice” session at the CTA Issues Conference this January. It was 1 ½ hours long and covered a lot of ground, so this article will focus on one small piece of that session having to do with access. Most of this information was taken directly from the “BCTF Social Justice Lens Booklet” found at: https://bctf.ca/uploadedFiles/Public/SocialJustice/Publications/SJLens.pdf
What challenges keep some students from accessing the same opportunities as their peers?
Do our programs, resources, events, and so forth meet the following criteria for access? If not, we should identify alternatives that do satisfy these criteria.
ACCESS
- values a welcoming and inclusive approach to all people equally
- values openness to the ideas and opinions of others as equal participants
- teaches the value of multiple perspectives
- demonstrates respect for democratic processes and civil society
- values community and cooperation
- responsive to all others equally
Tammy Capilla, MVTA Equity Team Chair and LGBTQ+ Contact