From Google's English Dictionary:
con·cern
noun; plural: concerns
- a matter of interest or importance to someone; e.g., “oil reserves are the concern of the Energy Department”
de·mand
noun; plural: demands
- an insistent and peremptory request, made as if by right; e.g. “a series of demands for far-reaching reforms”
Contextualizing the concerns and demands of LMU SOE’s diverse community
What does it mean for different groups within LMU’s SOE to express concerns and make demands of the school and university? As noted on LMU's Addressing Demands web page, the word “demands” may seem harsh. “Yet, the time we are living in, with a growing collective awakening based on seeing the violence and death perpetrated on so many innocent Black people, has led Black people—along with their allies of all ages, races, gender identities, and religions—to demand change. This right to demand is based on the continued dehumanization and disrespect of Black people, based in the brutal history of racism in the United States. In this context, the language of demands is required and exactly right. A right to demand that is based on waiting too long, witnessing repeated long cycles of laws and reforms, legislation and intentions, that never go far enough, never quite do enough to actually change these bitter patterns.”
What does it mean for LMU SOE to address concerns, demands, and proposals?
What does it mean to address concerns, demands, and proposals raised by LMU SOE’s Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership for Social Justice, and LMU Black Graduate Students? At its most basic level, it means listening and responding. Recognizing and respecting that the concerns, demands, and proposals come from a place of anger and frustration, as well as from a sometimes painful love, care, and commitment to the SOE and to LMU as a whole.
From this perspective, the concerns, demands, and proposals represent a path forward to make LMU School of Education a place of true inclusion, where Black people are valued, respected, able to be fully themselves, and to thrive—thus fully empowered to contribute to the intellectual, spiritual, and cultural vibrancy of the LMU SOE’s community, programs, and impact. This relationship between communal flourishing and organizational vitality reverberates outward for other communities, too (e.g. Latinx, LGBTQ, API, Native American, Middle Eastern, Muslim, White, and others). This flourishing creates greater possibilities for everyone, no matter who they are or where they come from, to experience the richness of a university community and an LMU education that fully embodies its mission.
What does LMU SOE’s response to concerns and demands have to do with its mission?
Addressing the concerns, demands, and proposals of SOE’s diverse community helps us embody our mission. The SOE is grounded in the Jesuit and Marymount tradition of social justice and in care of the whole person. Social justice is our collective responsibility for each other in our global society, recognizing the people and communities that have historically been oppressed and marginalized, along with recognizing those who have historically been privileged and provided power. The SOE’s commitment to the education and care of the whole person recognizes and values all people, in their fully embodied selves, and encourages learning that values the intellectual contributions of many traditions, communities, and cultures.
In LMU SOE, we recognize our individual and collective responsibility to change. As individuals, it means learning, struggling, and growing together in authentic ways that have meaning and integrity in order to educate students for their futures. As part of LMU’s Anti-Racism Project, it means examining our structures, processes, programs, and operations and expanding our awareness through reflection and professional learning.
The SOE is committed to living its mission, to respecting and responding to the concerns of its community, to creating equitable systems of access and support, and to moving forward as an inclusive community. Visit the links on this page to learn more about LMU SOE’s responses to concerns and demands.