Social Justice Commons^™

Border Fascism And The Fascistization Of Society, Nicholas P. De Genova

Emancipations: A Journal of Critical Social Analysis

The massive destruction and social dislocation wrought by capitalist crisis has culminated, historically, in the brutal cataclysms of fascism and other forms of authoritarian rule. Today, across the globe, we are confronted with the aggressive advance and entrenchment of a variety of such authoritarian political projects. Anxious discourses about ascendant fascism have become perfectly mainstream. These developments command our acute attention and critical analysis. This essay addresses these dire questions and the conceptual vexations surrounding the concept of fascism, particularly as it has been elaborated in various Marxist analyses.  Specifically, much of the debate around fascism as an analytical category …

The State Of The Unions 2026: A Profile Of Organized Labor In New York City, New York State, And The United States, Ruth Milkman, Joseph Van Der Naald

Publications and Research

The 2026 State of the Unions report finds that while union density remains strong in New York, membership rates remain largely unchanged, despite renewed organizing, successful strikes and strong public support for labor. Union density stands at 20.5 percent in New York City and 20.9 percent statewide, more than double the national rate of 10 percent, yet well below levels recorded two decades ago. The report also examines the persistent divide between public- and private-sector unionization, the industries and workers sustaining organized labor, and the forces limiting growth. A special section considers Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s labor-friendly record and the opportunities …

When Protection Becomes Predation: Militarized Masculinity And Sexual Violence In Northeastern Nigeria, Tosin Osasona

Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence

The study investigates the structural and situational drivers of conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV) perpetrated by state security actors in the context of Nigeria’s counterinsurgency campaigns in Borno State. Drawing on militarized masculinity and strain and deprivation theories, and using a qualitative, interpretive research design, the study argues that CRSV is not an isolated or episodic form of deviance by individual soldiers and security personnel but is embedded in routine military–civilian interactions. Advancing an interactionist explanation of CRSV in Nigeria’s Islamist counterinsurgency operations, the study demonstrates that the likelihood of sexual violence increases through the interaction of gendered institutional norms, operational …

A Phenomenological Study Of The Experiences Of Black Students In Criminal Justice Programs And Its Implications On Social Justice, Demetrius C. Dacres

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

This study examined the experiences of Black students who graduated with degrees in criminal justice within the last five years, as well as professors serving criminal justice programs. In this study, Black students are defined as those who identify as Black or African American, and the research focused on a criminal justice higher education institution’s educational program in the Northeast. This qualitative phenomenological study drew on Lent’s Social Cognitive Career Theory and Tinto’s Student Integration Model to investigate how Black students experienced criminal justice programs and the resources and strategies they utilized to navigate and adapt. The study addressed a …

Review Essay: Human Security And Civilian Protection During Violent Conflict, Lauren Spink

The Journal of Social Encounters

No abstract provided.

Review Essay: Nonviolent Civilian Protection During Conflict, John Ashworth

The Journal of Social Encounters

No abstract provided.

Uganda’S Two Tyrants, Helen Epstein

The Journal of Social Encounters

No abstract provided.

A Catalyst For Change: The Extraordinary Anaka Women’S Collective During The June 2026 Belfast Pogrom, Dianne Kirby

The Journal of Social Encounters

Prompted by the pogrom that erupted in Belfast in June this year, this article explores how a women’s collective, Anaka, established by female asylum seekers, refugees and migrants (ASRMs) less than a decade previously, took the lead in ensuring the safety and welfare of the city’s migrant communities in a context where they were horrifically failed by police and politicians, by the state and the institutions meant to protect them. Anaka began as a small-scale endeavour to mitigate the difficulties confronting women struggling to navigate a harsh asylum system. It became a widely respected advocacy and campaigning group for ASRMs. …

Operation Metro Surge In Central Minnesota: A Personal Perspective, Pedro A. G. Dos Santos

The Journal of Social Encounters

This essay provides a personal account, grounded in social science intellectual traditions and methods, of Operation Metro Surge and its aftermath in Central Minnesota. Emphasizing the differences between what happened in Central Minnesota (and other rural areas in the state) and what happened in the Twin Cities Metro area, this essay focuses on two events to contextualize the ways in which Operation Metro Surge disrupted the lives of immigrants and of the Minnesotans trying to protect their neighbors.

Debates Over Nonviolence And Violence In History: An Interview With Doug Mcgetchin, Ph.D.

The Journal of Social Encounters

No abstract provided.

The Vatican’S Moral Voice In The Critical Mineral Era: Does The Vatican Need A Policy Platform For Its Meetings With Mining Ceos?, Raymond Offenheiser, Keith Slack

The Journal of Social Encounters

On January 19, three American Catholic bishops issued a striking warning about the future of American foreign policy, lamenting that it was undermining “the moral foundation for America’s actions in the world.” The bishops responded to a retreat toward transactional, power-centric diplomacy – one where human rights, international solidarity, and the common good are increasingly secondary to narrow national interests. This shift is most evident in the global race for “critical minerals,” – and perhaps nowhere is the need and opportunity for Church moral leadership clearer.

Rethinking Women, Peace And Security In Southern Africa: Patriarchy, Policies, And Perspectives, Kgomotso Komane

The Journal of Social Encounters

Southern Africa is a relatively peaceful region, however, it has witnessed a range of diverse, multiple and ongoing conflicts that have prompted various peace interventions from the Southern African Development Community (SADC), neighbouring countries and international actors. An astounding pattern is revealed when observing the involvements of all the actors in the peace interventions. What is revealed is that, till present day, women remain marginalised in peace processes despite existing structures and policies that reaffirm their rightful participation in these processes. Rethinking women’s role in peace and security is necessary because existing approaches to peace are shaped by patriarchal norms. …

Las Voces Olvidadas Del Territorio: Infancias Mayas Ante El Conflicto Socioambiental En Ixil, Cielo María Ávila López, Myriam Montserrat Baca Canché, José Israel Herrera

Journal of Maya Heritage

Resumen: En la península de Yucatán, en el sureste de México, la comunidad maya de Ixil resiste ante los diversos intentos de implementación de megaproyectos en su territorio. En el marco de estas disputas territoriales, las voces de las infancias adquieren un matiz clave en el análisis de las dinámicas de desterritorialización y las respuestas de resistencia que devienen del contexto del conflicto socioambiental. Es así como, a partir de la ecología política y metodologías que favorecen el acercamiento a las voces de las infancias, emergieron los significados construidos en torno a dichos sucesos, lo que reveló que más allá …

Bridging Fiscal Sustainability And Health Equity: A Policy Analysis Of California’S Healthcare Coverage Safeguards, Guadalupe Castaneda Martinez

Master's Projects and Capstones

Without structural policy intervention, approximately 4.6 million Californians remain at risk of being uninsured by 2030, worsening racial and ethnic health disparities and hospital uncompensated care burdens. This policy analysis advocates for a hybrid universal coverage model combining sliding-scale subsidies (California Senate Bill 78) with full-scope Medi-Cal expansion for all income-eligible residents regardless of legal status (California Assembly Bill 133). The framework relies on existing funding mechanisms, including the Managed Care Organization tax and the Health Care Affordability Reserve Fund. Comparative analysis indicates that market-only subsidies leave severe equity gaps, whereas immediate single-payer transitions pose substantial fiscal and administrative risks. …

Lessons From Tanzania’S Ujamaa For Smart Settlements In Nepal: Social Justice And Economic Development, Keshav Bhattarai, Ambika P. Adhikari

Himalayan Research Papers Archive

Nepal’s constitutional commitment to a “socialism-oriented” state places social justice, equitable access to resources and housing, and protection of marginalized populations at the center of national development discourse. However, persistent landlessness, informal settlements, unemployment, youth outmigration, and unequal access to infrastructure reveal a significant gap between constitutional aspirations and socioeconomic realities.

This article examines lessons Nepal can draw from Tanzania’s experience with Ujamaa, the African socialist development model initiated by President Nyerere in 1967. Using comparative policy analysis, published research, official documents, and exploratory field observations from selected Tanzanian locations, including the capital and villages in the Iringa Region, the …

Religious Practice And Attitudes Toward Immigration And Racial Justice In America, Amya Douglas

Graduate Theses and Dissertations (2019 - present)

This study aims to understand how Christians’ knowledge of Scripture and involvement in the church have an impact on their social-political views, specifically, racial justice and immigration. By using the survey responses from the 6th wave of the Baylor Religion Survey, more frequent church attendance and reading Scripture were correlated with a greater recognition of racism in terms of being against white supremacy and white nationalism, supporting racial justice when asked about racial gaps, and possessing greater support for immigrants. This study highlights the distinction between religious affiliation and religious practice, and it suggests that certain policy sentiments can be …

Ssw 701.50: Social Welfare Policy, Ian G. Williams

Open Educational Resources

This syllabus is an Open Educational Resources (OER) remixed version of SSW 701.50: Social Welfare Policy, which is taught at the Silberman School of Social Work at Hunter College. This version updated the content and integrated additional OER materials, as part of the Summer 2026 cohort of The Open Knowledge Fellowship at the Mina Rees Library. It is a Zero-Textbook (ZTC) cost course and integrates materials from a range of academic disciplines. Official course description is as follows:

"This foundation course furnishes you with the orienting knowledge and skills needed to examine social welfare policies and to understand their relevance …

Ethics Under Siege: The Conflict In Tigray Through The Lens Of Just War Theory, Daniela Widya Purba

Journal of Strategic and Global Studies

This research article explains the ethical principles of the conflict in Tigray based on the Just War Theory. By using the descriptive qualitative methodology, this research article draws data from secondary sources which includes; academic journals, news reports, as well as international legal instruments to analyze the moral trajectory of the conflict. This research begins with jus ad bellum, to assess Ethiopia’s government justification in declaring conflict within Tigray. While the government fulfilled the criteria of just cause and legitimate authority, the question stands on the ambiguous political intentions and the failure to enact peaceful alternatives before resulting in waging …

Presidential Visits As Foreign Policy Instruments: U.S. Indo-Pacific Strategy In Trump’S Second Term, Atar Thaung Htet

Journal of Strategic and Global Studies

Through an analysis of President Donald Trump's October 2025 travel to Asia, this study investigates the consequences of U.S. Indo-Pacific strategy under his second-term diplomacy. The paper examines three significant diplomatic encounters—the ASEAN Summit in Malaysia, bilateral meetings in Japan, and the APEC Summit in South Korea—using a qualitative case study methodology based on role theory and foreign policy analysis. The results show that alliance-centered security cooperation, strategic balancing toward China, and selective economic engagement were U.S. Indo-Pacific goals. Through extremely transactional and bilateralized relations, presidential diplomacy allowed the United States to fulfill a number of foreign policy responsibilities, such …

The Institutional Production Of Ethical War Across Modern Conflict, Katerina Udov

Binghamton University Undergraduate Journal

This paper argues that modern warfare operates through an ethical infrastructure that enables, rather than restrains, the use of violence. Contrary to the common assumption that moral frameworks such as Just War Theory function as safeguards against harm, the historical record shows that ethical language, humanitarian rhetoric, and democratic narratives serve as mechanisms to legitimize intervention, manufacture consent, and naturalize civilian suffering. Through case studies including Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan, U.S.-backed coups in Latin America, and French intervention in Mali, the paper traces how political leaders, media institutions, and corporate actors frame war as a moral necessity while pursuing strategic and …

Spotting Power: Reframing Media Literacy In Civic Education, Kason Kendall

Democracy & Education

This article analyzes and critiques the tendency to frame media literacy as a neutral skill set concentrated on verifying sources, or "spotting the error." While this approach emphasizes cognitive habits of checking for bias and accuracy, it does not adequately prepare students to understand intentional misinformation as a political strategy. Building on Matthew's (2020) response to Curry and Cherner (2019), I propose that limiting media literacy to error correction hides the strategic production and intentional spread of disinformation by powerful organizations, corporations, and media outlets. Rooted in curriculum theory and the work of scholars such as Gramsci, Hall, Habermas, and …

Trans And Gender Diverse Experiences With Healthcare Professionals, Victor N. Soto

University Honors Theses

There is a history of state powers working against the interest of Transgender and Gender Diverse (TGD) people, but since the second Trump election attacks on TGD have reached a new precedent; this suggests the state is engaging in necropolitical actions to gain and maintain power. To better understand how the current climate is impacting TGD people, and add to discussions about TGD-centered healthcare research, this thesis interviewed 15 TGD students from the Portland metro area about their experiences with healthcare providers. All fifteen of the interviews were transcribed and coded. Four primary themes were found: 1) bad provider experience; …

Social Innovation In The Peacebuilding Sector, Michelle Helman, Phd, Katherine Ronderos, Mariafernanda Burgos-Ariza

Peace and Conflict Studies

Social innovation is an expanding practice in the peacebuilding sector. In this article, three peace scholar-practitioners reflect on our experiences as peacebuilders and consider the utility, tensions, and possibilities for peace and social innovation in theory and in practice. We draw insights gleaned through a focus group workshop with peacebuilding colleagues and highlight three case study examples from Colombia, the Philippines, and Kenya, each demonstrating the challenges and opportunities of social innovation in the peace sector. In doing so, we offer a reimagining of- and recommended action steps to engage innovation through a collaborative, feminist design approach. This article contributes …

Critical Geopolitics And The Reconstruction Of Meaning: A Discourse Analysis Of The 'Terrorism' Label Applied To Hamas By Western Hegemony, Cahaya Mulyani Sakti, M.Hamdan Basyar

Journal of Terrorism Studies

The emergence of Hamas in 1987 cannot be separated from the configuration of modern colonialism and the continuity of occupation that shaped the political reality. Hamas’s early phase was rooted in socio-religious activities through education and community empowerment programs, before evolving into armed resistance against the occupation. The labeling of Hamas as a “terrorist” organization began in the mid-1990s in U.S. legal documents, which subsequently generated debate and gave rise to counter-narratives. This study employs the frameworks of critical geopolitics (Ó Tuathail & Agnew) and the Discourse-Historical Approach (Wodak) to analyze the labeling of Hamas as “terrorist” by Western hegemony. …

The Effect Of Incompatibility Types On The Escalation Of Global Armed Conflicts, Michael Haratua Rajagukguk, Ruben Cornelius Siagian Rcs

Journal of Terrorism Studies

Global armed conflicts show variations in intensity influenced by the type of issue incompatibility. This study aims to analyze the influence of territorial, ideological, and combined incompatibilities on the probability of high-intensity conflict escalation, as well as its implications for conflict mitigation strategies. Global conflict dyadic data were analyzed using a multilevel logistic regression model with controls for time, region, and conflict type. The results show that ideology-based conflicts have a lower probability of reaching high intensity than territorial conflicts (OR ≈ 0.51, p < 0.05), while conflicts with a combination of ideology and territory tend to be at greater risk of high escalation (AM effect ≈ +26.6 points), although the effect is not yet statistically significant. Temporal analysis shows a downward trend in conflict intensity over time, especially in the post-Cold War period, while regional effects and conflict types show significant variation. These findings fill a gap in the literature on the dual interaction of ideological and territorial claims, showing that the highest escalation of violence occurs when symbolic and material dimensions are intertwined. In conclusion, conflict escalation is more influenced by a combination of issues and structural characteristics of conflict than by ideology alone. The novelty of this research lies in the identification of the strengthening effect of dual incompatibility and the downward trend in conflict intensity after the Cold War, which emphasizes the importance of a relational and temporal context-based mitigation approach in global conflict management.

Let Freedom Read: Exploring Mississippi’S Defiance Of National Book Banning Trends, Olivia S. Hoover

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Why have book bans have surged so dramatically across the United States in recent years, especially as they have become a defining political project for conservative lawmakers? At the center of this uptick in book bans lies a confusing puzzle: while book bans overwhelmingly occur in Republican-dominated states, Mississippi, despite its conservative political landscape, has seen almost none, even as states like Florida have enacted more than a thousand in a single year. Much of the existing scholarship on book bans focuses on national patterns of them or on the lawmakers and advocacy groups driving these bans, leaving a gap …

Elevating Voices: Exploring The Impacts And Experiences Of Required Workplace Dei Training, Marika Barto

Dissertations

Mandatory diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) training is a common element institutional DEI initiatives in their response to dismantling racial inequity in government organizations; yet, the lived experiences of racially marginalized participants remain critically underexamined—particularly in government settings, where the bureaucratic structures implementing these trainings are themselves racialized. This research was conducted during one of the most politically hostile environments for DEI work in recent memory. Federal executive actions in 2025, specifically the “Bondi memo,” directed entities subject to federal antidiscrimination laws to cease DEI practices, creating immediate chilling effects that directly impacted this study and reminded us that the …

The Autonomy Plan In Morocco: Legal Foundations, Political Dimensions And Prospects For Resolving The Sahara Conflict, Limam Boussif, Jalila Ait Soudane

Journal of Maya Heritage

Summary: The territorial conflict over the Sahara is one of the most enduring territorial disputes in international relations, involving issues of sovereignty, self-determination, and regional stability. In this context, Morocco’s 2007 Autonomy Plan is presented as a negotiated framework of self-government under Moroccan sovereignty.

This article analyzes the evolution and consolidation of the Autonomy Plan using a conceptual approach based on self-determination, territorial governance, and conflict resolution theories. It shows that the initiative has progressively evolved from a national proposal into an internationally recognized framework, particularly through growing diplomatic support and developments within the United Nations Security Council, including Resolution …

Les Grands Chantiers De La Transition Énergétique Au Maroc: Le Cas De Dakhla-Oued Eddahab Entre Réalisations, Facteurs De Réussite Et Perspectives, Limam Boussif, Jalila Ait Soudane

Journal of Maya Heritage

Résumé: Cet article examine la dynamique de la transition énergétique au Maroc à travers une analyse descriptive et analytique du cas de Dakhla-Oued Eddahab. Dans un contexte marqué par l’accélération des politiques de décarbonation à l’échelle mondiale, le Maroc s’impose comme un acteur stratégique en matière de développement des énergies renouvelables et de l’hydrogène vert. L’étude met en lumière les principaux chantiers structurants engagés dans la région de Dakhla, notamment le développement des énergies éolienne et solaire, les projets de production d’hydrogène vert, le dessalement de l’eau de mer, ainsi que la réalisation du port Dakhla Atlantique. L’analyse montre que …

Balancing Civil Liberties And Civil Rights, Adam Opp

Journal of Statesmanship & Public Policy: Briefs and Commentaries

The Framers stressed the importance of civil liberties when drafting the United States Constitution to guarantee the freedoms of individuals. However, for decades, there has been an increased focus on civil rights to protect individuals from discrimination and ensure their equality under the law. The question becomes how civil liberties and civil rights intersect, and whether this intersection is always positive, or if advocating for civil rights can come at the expense of civil liberties. This paper will discuss civil liberties and civil rights, examine how policy processes impact civil rights, and address concerns about the grave consequences for the …