AN ARGUMENT IN SUPPORT OF THE CORE REVISION

I fear that since our society established legal and judicial systems, it also believes we’ve established justice. Based simply on this past year alone, I can confidently say that’s not the case. In implementing the “Questions of Justice” course, proposed by the Core Revision, Colgate University gives students the tools to comprehend problems plaguing our society, and then facilitate the discussions to fix them. 

America’s Race Problem

Following the tragic murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor this past March, the American consciousness finally began realizing the immense injustice that runs through the veins of this country. When protests supporting the Black Lives Matter movement erupted, it forced individuals to seriously evaluate themselves; it’s no longer enough to not be racist, you must be anti-racist. America needs to be better, for all marginalized and discriminated communities. In order to rework the system, we need to dissect the core of the problem: justice. 

Colgate University isn’t an exception. With the infamous “glue gun” incident in 2017, the university needs to analyze the way systemic racism and injustice unfold under its jurisdiction. Based upon the third-century plan, which promotes a vision of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), the institution demonstrated their commitment towards a better society and campus culture. In forgoing Core 151 and 152, in favor of a justice-centered course, it would only aid in achieving that goal. 

Refocus and Reuse Core Texts 

Texts have been theorizing and analyzing justice since ancient times. For example, The Odyssey, one of two Homeric epics required by Core 151 professors, could easily rollover into the new justice framework. Along with this epic, professors could apply this framework to various biblical texts, like the story of Eve and the forbidden fruit, from the Book of Genesis.

Analyzing Justice: Homer & The Odyssey

Homer explores this concept throughout the epic, posing questions about the justice in Odysseus’ actions, as well as Greek society. An important part of analyzing justice in any text is understanding the social codes that exist within the setting. In the poem, Odysseus arrives in Ithaca after twenty years and commits a mass murder of the suitors, as well as executes twelve slave girls. While it seems clearly unjust, ancient Greek society placed a major emphasis on the importance of xenia, which adds an extra layer of complexity to the question of justice. 

The suitors took control of his house, abusing his resources and wealth, while courting his wife. Their actions broke almost all codes of xenia in Greek culture. When it comes to the slave girls, they slept with the suitors, which Odysseus took as a sign of disrespect and disloyalty. Do cultural standards and social codes justify Odysseus’ actions?

Bringing Homer’s Questions into Race Discussions

Homer’s questions about justice apply to more than just ancient Greece. His epic forces individuals to ask if certain acts are justifiable, based upon the perpetrator’s background and upbringing. For example, I sometimes hear my grandparents make racist micro-aggressions. When questioning why, my parents defend them, blaming it on a generational divide. They justify their actions, saying my grandparents just grew up in a different time. To them, it’s not their fault.

Is that acceptable? Homer forces us to look at the situation and ask if the individual was justified, based upon their exposure and influences. Is Karen’s racist profiling justifiable, knowing that she grew up in the Deep South, in a community built on the backs of slaves and Jim Crow laws?

Students in a “Questions of Justice” course would tackle these questions using texts, like The Odyssey, to analyze situations and support their argument.  

Organize Texts Around a Justice Theme

While many of the current Core texts would support “Questions of Justice,” if Colgate wants the course to be successful, it needs to branch out from the eurocentric texts used in typical Western Civilization courses. Rather than frame the Core around these “Great Books”, the course should organize around a unifying theme (i.e. justice). 

Matthew Sgueglia emphasizes that the revised Core curriculum must build a comprehensible theme across material. He argues Colgate should adapt the texts, not abandon them. In framing the texts around a coherent theme, students would find connections and similarities that spread across time periods and cultural lines. We should be reading The New Jim Crow, but also reading The Odyssey. The “Great Books” still exist because they continue teaching and offering insight into life’s complexity. However, there’s more to life than Western Civilization, and Colgate’s Core needs to adapt to that. 

Why Teaching Justice Matters

Americans are finally realizing that their beloved home, built on the backs of slaves, is inherently unjust. Our systems are broken, and we need to rebuild them to serve all people. In order to heal, we need to learn and understand the root of the problem. By implementing “Questions of Justice”, Colgate will give its students the space to start that discussion. 

Maddie Blackwood is a freshman at Colgate University. Raised in a suburb 25 minutes outside Boston, Massachusetts, she plans to pursue a double-major in Economics and Peace & Conflict Studies.