Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI)
JEDI in Linguistics
The greater linguistics community is in conversation about ways in which linguistics as a field can become more equitable and just. See the Linguistic Society of America’s Statement on Race and Western's Department of Linguistics Racial Justice Statement.
Our department is also engaged in ongoing discussion about equitable and accessible pedagogy and acknowledges the ways in which scholarly teaching can and should be used to promote social justice. The Linguistics Society of America’s Scholarly Teaching in Linguistics continues to inform our practices, as does their webinar series on Racial Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion in the Linguistics Curriculum, as well as readings stemming from that.
We are also engaged with the University of Michigan’s “Actions People Can Take,” a living document with ideas on how linguists can mitigate harassment and make positive changes within their spheres of influence.
Our work on Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in linguistics is ongoing and dynamic. We are aware that there is still work to be done and that we all have much to learn. Please contact us at linguistics@wwu.edu with any comments or feedback.
Statement on Language and Social Justice
Western's Linguistics Department continues to engage in discussions about how to raise awareness about linguistic discrimination and provide content to understand its role in relation to justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion. Following those discussions, we created a statement on language and social justice, which includes ways for everyone to take action.
JEDI in Linguistics at WWU
In our courses here at Western, we are interested in the ways in which the study of language can provide the tools, the analytical skills, and the historical and cultural context to better understand the ways in which language is used to separate, segregate, and discriminate.
One way of bringing that work to the attention of the larger community is through multi-faceted projects and outreach.
We in Linguistics are excited to see linguistics justice extend beyond our department. See, for example, Linguistic Justice at the Studio at Hacherl Research and Writing Studio.
2022
Created a new course, LING 370: Linguistics, Education, and Social Justice.
2019-2020
Kristin Denham and Anne Lobeck received a Social Justice and Equity Committee Grant in 2019-20. As part of this, students in several linguistics classes examined myths and stereotypes about language, going on to develop public service announcements communicating their findings to a wider audience. Many of the Linguistics PSA Posters displayed around campus spurred backlash, which we responded to by creating even more interactive posters.
2018-2019
Kristin Denham and Anne Lobeck were awarded the Thaddeus Spratlen and Lois Price-Spratlen Diversity and Inclusion Grant in 2018-19. With this grant, undergraduate students Aron Finholt, Grace deMeurisse, and Laura Munger were able to interview WWU students about their language backgrounds and experiences. Finholt and deMeurisse presented their findings at Scholars Week, 2019.