In the writing center class, we’ve been talking a lot lately about social justice issues and when and how they come into play in the writing center. This is a subject that I think is critically important but also very complex. Social justice is an ongoing, dynamic process where more work can always be done, which makes it hard to draw lines about what any organization or person “should” do in the service of justice. Here, though, are my initial thoughts about things that writing centers absolutely must do to call themselves “socially just.”
1). At the most basic level, I think it is the responsibility of every writing center to talk about students’ rights to their own language and train their consultants about working with a variety of Englishes, a variety of standards, and a variety of people. I think that much of the social justice work writing centers can and should do begins with teaching consultants about the ways in which language can be an oppressive force. Consultants should be able to think critically about where their ideas of “right” and “wrong” come from, and they should constantly be reflecting on how their consulting and their views of language and communication might be culturally and politically shaped. Of course, this is more complicated to do in practice than it is to just say here, but I think that at a bare minimum, every writing center has an obligation to work against the ways language is used to oppress.
2). On an overlapping note, the writing center should be an inclusive, accessible space where consultants and administrators work continually to ensure that they take into account the experiences and needs of a broad range of writers. This might take place on a macro level–e.g., changing a policy or standard, center-wide practice when we realize it is exclusionary–or on a micro, day-to-day level–e.g., pushing in chairs or providing a variety of options for each writer so that the space is physically accessible. The main idea here is that the center is always actively working to be better, and that change can come from any level. Social justice is a dynamic process, and so I think being a socially just center is not something that we just “achieve”–it’s a constant process of engaging and changing.
3). As much as possible (given the institutional hierarchy and structure), I think writing centers should be advocates for students’ rights to their own language in the rest of the institution, too. When possible, writing centers should work toward raising awareness about language, oppression, and the ways in which that oppression might play out in our writers’ classrooms and assignments. It is not always feasible for the writing center to cause trouble, but when we are in a position that allows us to do so, we should. In the most ideal situation, the writing center would play an active, visible role in promoting these ideas on campus. In perhaps more realistic situations, the writing center might do this in a more subtle way by helping consultants and writers alike understand how to navigate these situations and make small efforts to push back in classes and in other areas of student life that they’re involved with.
Writing Center/Writing Charlotte 