Being an Ally for Social Justice with Bill Ivey & Christina Torres

In Episode 27: how to be an ally for social justice. What if we want to speak up but aren’t sure if our words are right? What if we slip up and make a mistake? We’ve got some useful tips and insights to share.

CLICK PLAY TO LISTEN TO MY CONVERSATION WITH – CHRISTINA TORRES & BILL IVEY

Show Guests – Bill Ivey & Christina Torres

  • Bill Ivey is a Middle School Dean at Stoneleigh Burnham Girls’ School in Western Massachussetts, USA.
  • Christina Torres is a Year 7 and 9 English Teacher in Honolulu, Hawaii, USA.

Episode Summary

This is a special episode of Pushing The Edge. Our guests Christina Torres and Bill Ivey return to chat about being an ally for Social Justice.

It can be quite a learning curve, filled with many questions and uncertainties.

What if we want to speak up – but don’t fully understand the issues, or the correct language to use? What if we slip up and say the wrong thing? 

Our guests have been there – believe me and they’ve got some especially useful tips and insights to share.

But that’s not all. There’s a topic I’ve been wanting to discuss for quite a while but I’ve been too scared to raise it publicly.

Well finally I let it out into the world and it leads to an especially interesting discussion. 

Episode Run-Down

  • Do you know what you just said? How Bill’s navigates being challenged (1:41)
  • The importance of decentering ourselves (2:23)
  • How might we get more people on board with social justice issues (2:43)
  • Bill’s tips about participating in diverse spaces (5:18)
  • Owning up when we’re wrong – Christina Torres(8:02)
  • An Aha Moment: Christina slips up and a students calls it out (8:43)
  • Speaking up about something I’ve been too scared to mention – Greg (10:25)
  • Christina’s tips for participating in diverse spaces (14:04)
  • Helpful Strategies to navigate unfamiliar, diverse paces (17:45)
  • A key lesson: The work is so much more important than whether the person likes me (19:51)

Episode Links

Ally Related Podcasts:

  • Teaching Students about Identity and Privilege with Bill Ivey

  • Empowering our Students to be Change-Makers with Christina Torres

  • Ending White Silence on Race in Education with Greg Michie

Ally Related Posts:

Additional Resources: