Fix Injustice, Not Kids and Other Principles for Transformative Equity Leadership

by Paul Gorski, Katy Swalwell

Six principles for leading unequivocally in ways that disrupt inequity at its roots. Fix Injustice, Not Kids and Other Principles for Transformative Equity Leadership offers a deep dive into the leadership values, commitments, and practices that help educational leaders create and sustain equitable schools and districts. Drawing from their extensive equity and inclusion work with schools, Paul Gorski and Katy Swalwell introduce key components of the equity literacy framework. They then challenge principals, equity professionals, and other K–12 leaders to embrace six guiding principles for meaningful equity
• Direct Honestly naming and directly addressing the conditions that perpetuate inequity.
• Fix injustice, not Avoiding deficit views, focused on "fixing" people who are marginalized, and embracing structural views, focused on eliminating inequitable conditions.
• Reimagining policies and practices and rebuilding institutional cultures in ways that account for historical and present inequities and their ramifications.
• Just Reconsidering what we provide equitable access to and whether it is itself equitable.
• Evidence-based Applying an equity lens to the ways we collect and interpret data and exercising caution about popular data collection tools and methods.
• Care, joy, and Withstanding inevitable resistance while embracing visions for love, joy, and community that cultivate and sustain transformative equity. Powerful stories from students and staff members reveal the troubling gaps between their everyday school experiences and the often high-optics, low-impact equity and diversity programs, events, and strategies embraced by school leaders. They also reveal key moments of growth as leaders learned how to deepen their equity understandings and enact more meaningful equity approaches. This thought-provoking book offers guidance to those who want to do better and are on the path to achieving some of today's most crucial disrupting inequity and becoming transformative equity leaders.

Genres: Education, Nonfiction

250 pages, Paperback

Published June 26, 2023

Reviews

[Matt Sautman · Rating 5 out of 5]

While the contents of this book may be incredibly familiar for anyone who has spent a multitude of hours with resources from the Equity Literacy Institute, Fix Injustice, Not Kid draws together Gorski and Swalwell’s core ideas into a package that offers a comprehensive overview equity literacy and its relationship with the transformative praxes necessary for cultivating equity.

[Claudia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've learned a lot about students in poverty from Gorski, and I was eager to learn more, even tho I've retired. I still work with National Board candidates, and the concept of equity is part of our analysis and reflection.

Gorski and Swalwell say if up front...we must not be in the business of 'mitigating', having multicultural days, a GSA...we need to get serious and honest about how to change the environment of schools to focus on those students and families who have been marginalized by our policies and rules. They begin with stories and then dig into their lists: The Building Blocks of Equity LIteracy, the Abilities We Must Nurture, and the six Principles of Equity Literacy...Confront our blind spots, Fix Injustice, not Kids, Prioritize the Work of Transforming (here they talk about the recent anti-CRT bills, and how to address them. I fear their words will not be enough for teachers in Oklahoma...where schools and school districts can have accreditation downgraded for any perceived transgression. It's happened to two districts in bogus set-ups. It's more dangerous than for 'just' one educator), Provide Just Access, Be Evidence-Based, Commit to believing, listening, validating, acting, and Joy-Sustainable Principle.

Looking at the reality of teachers' setting, administrators' settings, I wished for more practical advice on fighting back, and less 'aspirational, inspirational' statements. Sorry...i'm seeing the slash-and-burn happening in my state. That does not mean we are not committed to equity.

[Meridith Heckler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Co-written by equity specialists at the Equity Literacy Institute, this book challenges the idea that students need “fixing.” Instead, it calls for transforming systems of racism, poverty, school discipline and inequity to truly support youth. The authors outline six key principles for leaders to disrupt inequity at its roots including direct confrontation, prioritization, evidence-based equity, and fostering care, joy and sustainability. It goes beyond simply treating surface issues, to addressing the root causes of inequity and building schools where every student can be themselves.

[Jillian · Rating 5 out of 5]

This should be in the BEd. curriculum, every administrator should read this book.

[Alex Reynolds · Rating 5 out of 5]

I highly suggest this book for all school leaders

[Rachel · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was not an easy read for me. In fact, if it hadn't been given to me as part of an educator's conference I attended, I probably wouldn't have read it. While it did give me much to consider concerning policies and how to incorporate equity into the classroom setting, there were parts I could not support.

"Inequity isn't always loud and obvious to the people who aren't targeted by it....Our inability to recognize inequity is evidence that we need to practice learning how to recognize it rather than evidence it doesn't exist" (p. 49). As a white female, I have some "privilege" that others don't, though my conservative, Biblical viewpoints could cause those who oppose my beliefs to treat me with injustice.

Everyone should be given fair and just opportunities to succeed. We need to be aware of the differences of others and value all human life and make positive changes to support even those with whom we disagree.

As a coach and a mother of a female D-1 athlete, I know how hard females work to excel in their sport and earn scholarships. I don't want to exclude players, but we must also protect girls from losing opportunities due to advantages trans girls have because they are born biologically male (and this has happened in swimming, running, and other sports).

I wish I had a simple solution, and this is NOT an easy issue to resolve. I don't hate anyone. In fact, someone very close to me struggles with this, and some of my family disagree with me (which is another reason I decided to read the book completely and be open to other viewpoints).