This year marks the 10th annual Social Justice Summit, an event held by Iowa State’s Student Activities Center (SAC) to educate students on global injustice and oppression in today’s society.

According to the Social Justice Summit’s website, social justice “is the continuous process of eliminating ignorance and prejudice through education […] to ensure every dimension of identity is not oppressed by society as a whole.”

Isis Walker, a master’s student in higher education and student affairs, said that it is important for all Iowa State students to be educated on social justice so they can work towards creating social change.

“The Social Justice Summit will follow Deepa Iyer’s ‘Mapping Your Role in Social Change Ecosystem Framework’ to base discussions about people’s own personal social justice values, their call to action and how they can fulfill a role in working towards creating social change,” Walker said.

Kailee Quang, a sophomore majoring in pre-architecture, who is an active supporter of social justice on campus, said that the Social Justice Summit is an all-day workshop that strives to educate and inform leaders of the community on global issues regarding injustice.

“In the pursuit of social justice, we must use education as a tool to empower the people so that we can eliminate the oppression of all. Acting as one we must create an open, equitable and just society,” Walker said.

Walker also said that her favorite part about the Social Justice Summit in the past has been seeing people engage in productive conversations and learning from one another.

“People are able to share their experiences and learn from the experiences of others, and it is a really beautiful thing,” Walker said.

Quang said that it is extremely critical for Iowa State students to be educated on the matter of social justice because they are topics that are prevalent issues in the world today.

“In order to possess and maintain an equitable and just society, everyone must be knowledgeable and open on topics regarding social justice, which is why it is critical that students actively engage in educating themselves on these topics,” Quang said.

In the past, the Social Justice Summit has been held in person but, due to COVID-19 restrictions, the Student Activities Center will be holding a virtual conference over Zoom on Feb. 27 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Quang said, “I’m most excited for workshopping and getting feedback from others on ways that we can actively implement social change at Iowa State.”

Registration for the event is free and open to Iowa State students only. Students are able to register for the virtual conference through the Social Justice Summit website linked here.