Social Justice Advocacy
As a public land-grant institution, premier research university, and global leader in education, Penn State will support our community of students, faculty, and staff who advocate for social change and human rights consistent with Penn State’s Statement on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.
Social justice advocacy has been defined as organized efforts aimed at influencing public attitudes, policies, and laws to create a more socially just society guided by the vision of human rights that may include awareness of socio-economic inequities, protection of social rights as well as racial identity, experiences of oppression, and spirituality. Social justice advocacy has been relatively uncommon in the United States in the last three decades. In comparison, in the 1960s and 1970s, students were often at the front line of social movements (e.g., the civil rights, women rights, and anti-war movements) and such activism is believed to have been one of the most powerful mechanisms for creating social change.