Social Justice Heroes

My social justice hero is Elijah Cummings, former U.S. Representative. He constantly exhorted us to be better as a society, and we’ve lost an important voice since his passing. 

"In 1950 Linda Brown (pictured) was a 10 year-old who would become the named plaintiff in Brown v. the Board of Education of Topeka, the 1954 U.S. Supreme Court case  banning segregation in public schools. Linda Brown sand the other courageous plaintiffs in the 6 cases that were decided under the banner of Brown v. Board and their parents, would change the country’s vision of equality for generations to come."

"In 1946, 19 year old Ada Lois Sipuel, a newly minted graduate of Langston University attempted to enroll in the University of Oklahoma College of Law. OU denied Sipuel's application, solely on the basis of her race. Yet, Sipuel would became the first female plaintiff to win a higher education segregation challenge and the only such plaintiff to graduate from the school that her lawsuit integrated. Sipuel’s determination became the inspiration for families of black students, including Linda Brown's."

"In 1942, Howard Law School student Pauli Murray, conceived the legal strategy that  led to the Supreme Court victories for Ada Lois Sipuel and Linda Brown and so many more. Later in life Murray would apply the same principles to gender discrimination, paving the way to greater gender equality in the United States.  Murray's Equal Protection arguments ushered in a new era upending Jim Crow and later opening doors for protections for many other groups."

"One of my many social justice heroes are the "Hermanas Mirabal." The Mirabal sisters were four sisters in the Dominican Republic - Patria (pictured), Minerva, Maria Teresa, and Dedé - who opposed the dictatorship of Rafael Trujillo (El Jefe) and were involved in clandestine activities against his regime. Three of the four sisters (Patria, Minerva, Maria Teresa) were assassinated on 25 November 1960. The last sister, Dedé, died of natural causes on 1 February 2014. The assassinations turned the Mirabal sisters into "symbols of both popular and feminist resistance." They were women who decided to love without letting fear guide what they needed to do and what they noticed their community needed. Aligns with my personal mission #lovewithoutfear!"

"My grandfather has always and will always be my hero in every sense of the word. My grandfather was the first person to ignite my passion for politics and social justice. Growing up, every year, my grandfather would take me and my sister to the polls with him on Election Day. He engrained in us both the importance and the routine of voting. He never shied away from making us aware of the sad reality that voting was a power and a privilege that not every American had the right or the ability to do. He explained that this why he had never missed an election. He happily informed us on who each person he was voting for was and why he chose them. Because of him, I have also never missed voting in an election and I still get excited to call him afterwards and recount my experience.

He was and still is an advocate, an educator, and a deeply empathetic individual. A few years back we found a box filled with letters in one of his drawers that he’d written to numerous politicians and representatives over the years. One stood out that he’d sent to President John F. Kennedy in 1962 asking him to end segregation and prove once and for all that all Americans were truly equal and he’d even gotten a response!

My grandfather grew up in the Bronx, New York in a working class Jewish-immigrant family where he was the first in his family to be college educated and worked tirelessly to support his family. He would go on become the youngest Controller of the Plaza Hotel and then the CFO of Thornton Tomasetti. My grandfather has been officially retired for 16 years but still consults on numerous projects for multiple companies because he must always be doing something! He is the definition of hard-working, selflessness, and determination. My grandfather is also my best friend, my inspiration, and my social justice hero. If it wasn’t for him and his unwavering support I would not be at Heller or pursuing the path that I am. I aspire to make him proud each and every day and to continue to vote in every election for all those whose voices are still silenced in America today."

"Sam Eisenstein Watson ’01, MBA’06, from the SamFund has completely inspired me and changed my life in my attempts to change the world. When I first graduated from college, I actually was diagnosed with cancer myself. The first person I came into contact with in the young adult cancer community was Sam. She founded the SamFund, an organization that provides financial assistance and support to young people with cancer, and she immediately reached out to me and became a mentor and has been involved in my life ever since. I’ve also been involved with the SamFund, and I’m proud to say that the Samfund recently helped passed legislation that will change the life of not just people who get their scholarships, but anybody who is diagnosed with cancer. Now, anyone who is diagnosed with cancer who has student loans can put them into forbearance. it’s phenomenal and so life-changing and something people don’t think about. Sam’s work takes a very niche area, that is really underreported and under-discussed for young adult cancer survivors, and has made a huge difference for people might not have gotten any attention otherwise."

"My personal support for social justice originated with my father, Morris G. Ward (1915-1969). Raised on a dairy farm in Maine and coming of age during the Great Depression, his only opportunity for gainful employment was the Civilian Conservation Corps, a work relief program part of the New Deal. There, he learned forestry management, later applying his skills as tree worker for a large, national firm. He soon recognized the dangers involved in the work, employees lacking any rights to safe working conditions or compensation for injuries. He then courageously undertook efforts to organize a tree workers’ union. When word of his initiative reached company owners, he was promptly fired. He then formed a company of his own, vowing to treat workers fairly, with the goal of growing the firm to prominent stature. Although he never realized his goal, he remained committed to unionization and fairness in the workplace."

"1400 years ago, a man named Hussain ibn Ali, the grandson of Muhammad, the prophet of Islam, led a social justice revolution. Hussain lived in a time where moral values and freedom were destroyed by tyrants. He, along with his family and companions refused to pledge allegiance to an oppressive ruler and were tragically martyred. Hussain's heroic legacy of sacrifice and standing by his principles until the very end has not been forgotten. He inspired leaders like Gandhi to achieve victory while being oppressed and Nelson Mandela to stand for the right of liberation. Hussain's martyrdom is a reminder that each person has a responsibility to rise against injustice. Violence, military occupation, brutality, and oppression are concepts present today. Today, Hussain inspires millions to have the courage to fight for social justice, stand with the oppressed, speak truth in the face of an oppressor, and live a life of dignity."

"My social justice hero is Nelson Mandela. His life story is deeply inspiring. From the courage and activism he displayed in his fight against apartheid, to his perseverance through 27 years of imprisonment, to his forgiving spirit and reconciliation efforts with his former oppressors,  to stepping down voluntarily from political power: Madiba is the model for the type of leadership that Africa so desperately needs. There would always be only one Nelson Mandela, but hopefully many leaders that carry on his ideals will arise in Africa."

"My social justice sheroes are Ida B. Wells (pictured) and Harriet Beecher Stowe, whose writing called attention to the greatest injustices of their time. Stowe’s 1852 novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin used the popular genre of sentimental fiction to insist on the basic humanity of enslaved people and protest against the 1850 Fugitive Slave Law. Journalist Ida B. Wells wrote tirelessly about the wave of lynchings that terrorized Black people during and after Reconstruction. As a writer, I deeply admire these women who used the power of their pens to challenge racist institutions and demand social justice."

"My social justice hero is Frances Fox Piven. In the area of scholarship on the intersection of public welfare policy and social movements there is no more significant figure in my view. In addition to being an exemplary scholar, however, Piven has also been on the forefront of social policy change for over 50 years, exemplifying the dual role of activist/academic better than just about anyone. From her work in helping initiate the welfare rights movement in the 1960s, to the establishment of the HumanSERVE program in the 1980s to promote voter registration among human service workers and those they serve, Piven's work has helped to empower those who are most oppressed and exploited in our society. I hope in some small way to continue and extend the work of Dr. Piven and others who have lived out the egalitarian and democratic values that underlie the concept of social justice."

“My personal social justice champion is Judith Heumann because she has been instrumental in helping me define my own understandings of social justice and disability rights: there is not one without the other. Her leadership continues to raise the bar of expectations for both the disability community and also society as a whole. Social justice requires that we expand community, grow visibility, and increase representation for disabled people at all levels of our society. Judy is a reminder that the work we do is part of a movement that will only be as powerful as the community we foster.”

"My social justice hero is Fannie Lou Hamer, a noted civil rights organizer. She was known for the phrase, “Each one, teach one.” That phrase always stuck with me because it honors the power we have as individuals, who are constantly in communion with one another, despite our various education levels or access to privilege. We all have something to offer. We all have something to gain. It’s incumbent on us to listen to each other and work with each other to build better futures."

"My social justice hero was a man who’s venerated here in Savannah, where I served as mayor: W.W. Law. He was the president of the NAACP here for 26 years and for most of my youth and early adulthood. He was very inspirational and took an interest in me. He helped me to understand what a commitment to social justice meant and what it might entail. He started as a letter carrier for the U.S. Postal Service, and back in the 1960s, the congresswoman from this district made a vow to get him fired from his job because of his civil rights work. He was fired, but the national NAACP interceded with the Kennedy administration and he was reinstated. He taught me about the sacrifices in working for social justice."

“My social justice hero is my mom, Gale Ivie. She raised us as a single mom. She finished her MPH when we were little kids. She’d take us to her night school classes and my brother and I would play outside her classroom. She said our lives would be so much better if she got her advanced degree, and I firmly believe that. She spent her career working at Kaiser Permanente in Southern California. She taught smoking cessation and weight loss courses. And then later, she handled the entire Reach Out and Read pediatric literacy program for the Southern California region. The whole premise is to create a little library for kids, ages 0 to 5, and encourage parents to read to their children. Sometimes when I’d come home from college I’d spend time packing up books to send to the different medical facilities. She also ran the flu vaccination program, primarily for kids in Medi-Cal, the Medicaid program for California. She made it fun—she’d bring in a stereo with a KidzBop CD and have little stickers for them. That’s just who she was. She just loved public health and kids and childhood development. She worked so hard—it was what she loved to do.”

"My social justice hero is Jacqueline Novogratz, the founder of Acumen Funds. She left a corporate job on Wall Street inspired by her early career work in East. She started Acumen to explore how to bridge the gap between the rich and poor in an ever-interconnected world. From the success story of Acumen, she showed that helping the poor succeed is a matter of leadership and that finding ways to strengthen the ingenuity of the poor--in this case their savings initiative--is key to ending the poverty trap. I recommend any social justice advocate working in economic justice or social entrepreneurship to read her signature book, 'The Blue Sweater.'"

“My social justice heroes are my parents, Kathy and Jerry Kreider. They may not be famous, but I would not be at Heller without their influence. As a white, suburban woman, my mom forged an unusual friendship with an African-American woman running a homeless shelter in North Philadelphia, the most impoverished part of the city. She took me there to volunteer as a kid, and taught me that I was fortunate to have good schools and a safe community, but I needed to give back and serve those who were less fortunate. My dad has served as a tireless volunteer for Habitat for Humanity, using his skills as an architect to build affordable housing for numerous families, and serving on the group’s local board for many years. My parents have also campaigned against gun violence, supported refugees and worked at the polls, among other things. They have taught me that we all have a common humanity, and that those who have privilege have the responsibility to fight for justice.”

"My grandmother is my social justice hero. For a lot of reasons. She was in college during the student sit-in movement and worked with Diane Nash and John Lewis and was arrested for desegregating lunch counters. For me, it’s funny because that’s the kind of thing you learn about your grandparent or your parent after you learn who they are. I don’t remember how old I was when I learned that about my grandmother, but it was no surprise. Watching her continue to organize, watching her continue to knock on doors, watching her political apathy change… I think also, growing up as a black woman in the South, in the 1950s, 1960s, there’s so many challenges to navigate these spaces, period. To take those challenges on and still decide you want to put your personal safety and personal wellbeing on the line for something larger than you was something that’s always stood by me. I remember calling her after the 2008 election, she was the first person I called after the results came in and she was crying, in tears. I remember her saying ‘I never thought in my lifetime, we’d see a black person elected.’ I remember thinking that in my lifetime, I didn’t think there’d be a black president of the United States. People like my grandmother have worked too hard for us to be tired, for us to not continue to fight. She’s definitely my social justice role model."

"My social justice hero is Noam Chomsky. He speaks truth to power about how the United States has a lot of underlying tendrils within many of the conflicts we work on, in a way I feel most people are too afraid to. His work was very integral to my work in Indonesia working for the Commission for the Disappeared and Victims of Violence. When Suharto took power it was because the U.S. helped him, they funded his military, while at the same time withdrawing aid to Indonesia’s president at the time, Sukarno. They created his imbalance of power that led to the massacre of 500,000 to 1 million Communist Party members. People know Chomsky as the guy who’s radically free speech but he’s so much more than that."

"This woman is one of my social justice heroes and every day I’m in awe of her. Her name is Saru Jayaraman. She’s the director of the Food Labor Research Center at UC Berkeley. She co-founded the Restaurant Opportunities Center after 9/11. The World Trade Center had a restaurant at the top called Windows on the World, so when the towers fell all the workers were displaced. She helped start the Restaurant Opportunities Center which at first was almost like a union, to help workers understand how to get new jobs. But it ended up becoming a center to help immigrant restaurant workers and helped them learn about their rights and obtain lawyers and quickly spread from just New York to all over the country. She has a degree from Harvard and Yale and she’s a lawyer—she has all this stuff in her background, but she uses all of her power to help marginalized workers in the restaurant industry, which is notorious for not caring about its people. She’s an incredible advocate for wages and workers' rights and overall justice. She’s definitely my social justice hero. I think about her constantly, like ‘What would Saru do?’”

"The person who has most influenced my career is the higher education reformer Zelda “Zee” Gamson.  Zee is an esteemed thought leader, activist and change agent in higher education. She is the coauthor of Seven Principles for Good Practice in Undergraduate Education; Faculty & Faculty Issues in Colleges and Universities; Colleges and Universities as Workplaces; and author of Liberating Education. Locally she cofounded the former New England Resource Center for Higher Education (NERCHE) and the University of Massachusetts Boston’s higher education doctoral program. Her extensive work with colleges, universities, national foundations, and higher education associations was values driven, always focused on ensuring that voices at the margins had a seat at the table."

"Rosa Parks represents an example of an introverted leader. She didn’t seek the spotlight for the things she did. People are unaware of the work she and her husband did with the NAACP and with Dr. King for years after her refusal to give up her seat on the bus. That day, she embraced her fear—after living through an era of lynchings and killings—and stood up to it. But as the battle for civil rights went on, newspapers didn’t include her in their stories. If history was corrected and we could go back and get the true narrative of Rosa Parks, we would see she was one of the most dynamic leaders of that time.

 Leadership doesn’t mean an absence of fear; it means embracing fear and embracing challenges. Whenever I get in a moment I’m uncomfortable or fearful, I know I have to face it head on. I want to follow her example and follow my passion. It’s not about the clout—it’s about the solutions I’m seeking. Even if I die and nobody remembers my name, if I help solve our pressing problems in some way, I’ll be happy."

"When I was young, people used to be sad knowing that I do not have a brother. My parents always used to tell people that I, their younger daughter, was better than a son to them. Despite being in a male-dominated Muslim community that looks down on women doing physical labor such as working in the fields they allowed me to flourish independently. My parents have always encouraged me to choose my own path both academically and professionally. They showed me that, no matter what, I needed to compete with the patriarchal society to establish my rights and responsibilities and to continue my work for social development. They have always supported my decisions, even if they pushed beyond our usual social system. So, my parents, Md. Abdul Bari and Mrs. Nilara Begum, are my social justice heroes."

"In development, rather than a hero, I think of a leader and public servant. The leader and public servant I look up to is Ravi Lakshmikanthan, MA SID'99, assistant dean of student services at the Heller School. He propels a movement of development practice and naturally encourages a leadership style true to your culture, homeland(s), and community. I found throughout development, as you navigate new roles in management, it can get blurry, yet Ravi’s leadership models a strong compass. This I believe reflects social justice." 

"As far as a social justice hero, I shall always admire Dean Stuart Altman (pictured) for his ongoing commitment to and impact on health policy. I also hold in high esteem Dr. Fernando Torres-Gil, MSW’72,PhD’76, director of the UCLA Center for Policy Research on Aging. He has been appointed to numerous public policy committees and commissions, written several books and spoken at numerous forums on the inequality of aging and retirement benefits experienced by minorities, especially Latinos, in the United States. His latest book, “The Politics of a Majority-Minority Nation: Aging, Diversity and Immigration,” is in its second printing since publication this past August. Moreover, in spite of suffering from polio as a child and the aftereffects as an adult, he continues to write and speak throughout the world. He really is my hero."

“I admire LeBron James because he uses his platform as the best player in the NBA to make a difference in the lives of so many people. His "I Promise School" in for underprivileged youth in his hometown of Akron, Ohio and helping with the new California bill to allow NCAA players to be paid for their likeness are only just some examples. Lebron remembers the humble beginnings he came from, being born to an extremely poor single teenage mother, and uses his money and influence to make an impact on the lives of those that grew up in a similar situation.”

"My parents. My parents both had humble upbringings in China. They studied tirelessly to enter universities in Beijing, where they met each other by chance on a train during a school break.  When they first started dating, my dad used to bike for 2 hours just to meet up with my mom.  Years later, my dad was able to secure a scholarship to attend graduate school in the United States, but my mom wasn’t able to join him until years later. They made countless sacrifices, leaving their families, friends, and lives behind in China to ensure that my sisters and I could be raised in a country with options and opportunities they never had themselves."

"Billy Porter is my social justice hero at the moment. Billy is the first openly gay Black actor to win for a lead role at the Emmy’s, and he is most famous for pushing back against the gender binary through fashion. Most recently, he wore a uterus shaped suit-dress covered in crystals as an act of solidarity with a woman’s right to choose abortion."

"My social justice hero is my stepfather, Abner Stern, who entered my life when I was 5 years old and remained important to me until he died in 1976. He was a physician who was active in Physicians for Socialized Medicine. He didn't believe in profiting from others' misfortune. In fact, one year he netted only $14 on his private medical practice. After my cousin Robert graduated from law school, a family member suggested he could work for Abner. Abner was confused: 'Doing what?' The family member explained, 'I'm sure you have patients who haven't paid and Robert could help you collect what they owe you.' Abner responded, 'I bill people. I don't know if they've paid or not paid. It makes no difference to me. I treat them regardless.' To this day I carry with me the archaic notion that health care should not be for-profit."

"My social justice heroes at Martin Luther King Jr. and my mom, Donna Hyun. Dr. King was imperfect, but I’m realizing that sometimes as a leader, people are inevitably going to be angry.  He spoke up when he had to, and he took charge when he needed to. He took the heat for the people he was leading. He really exemplified that."

"My mom is my other hero. Growing up, it wasn’t easy for us, because my mom was a single mom. But she always made sure we took time to serve the public, going to the Boston Rescue Mission every month, to really see what the reality of the world looks like. There have been many times when I’ve been walking around Boston, and people will stop and ask me, 'Are you Donna’s kid?' And I’ll say, 'How do you know my mom?' And people will just tell me these amazing stories of how my mom showed them empathy, care and love. This one man told me he went to her laundromat one day. He was doing his laundry and she came over to him and asked, 'Are you okay?' He was at his wit’s end and didn’t know how much strength he had left. She offered him a hug, and he said it was the first time in so long someone had cared and seen him as a human being. That’s why she’s my hero."