University arms RAs with ‘Social Justice Resource Guide'

The Office of Residence Life at Marquette University recently provided all Resident Assistants with a “Social Justice Resource Guide” to help them facilitate “education and discussion around issues of diversity.”

The eight-page packet includes an extensive catalog of “Culturally-Diverse Student Resources,” but does not mention any conservative-leaning organizations or advocacy centers.

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The document, distributed by the Marquette University Office of Residence Life in recent weeks, begins by listing “Key Definitions” of several terms that are commonly used by social justice advocates.

According to the document, “Social Inequalities” are defined as “the existence of unequal opportunities and rewards for different social positions or statuses within a group or society,” while “Diversity” refers to “the conditions of having or being composed of different types [or] elements, especially the inclusion of different types of peoples in a group or organization.”

The central feature of the document is its lengthy list of left-leaning groups and organizations that can assist students with a variety of campus services, such as the “LGBTQ+ Resource Center,” the “Center of Intercultural Engagement (CIE),” a variety of “Social Identity Resources,” and a calendar of specific on-campus events.

The guide also directs RAs to a list of “Diversity Advocates,” whose role is to “provide opportunities for education and discussion around issues of diversity that not only help us to serve students, but also help us as employees to continue to grow and learn (thus serving the greater values of the university – Service, Leadership, Excellence, Faith).”

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Not all of the groups and organizations listed in the packet have a clearly-identifiable political agenda, however. For example, the document offered information related to career services, disability services, student employment, and more. 

Joel Burfeind, an RA at Marquette, told Campus Reform that the Office of Residence Life “doesn’t allow for conservative thoughts or even ‘diversity of thought’ to be present in any way,” saying the Social Justice Resource Guide a good example of the prevailing mindset among administrators.

“Leaders of the Office of Residence Life have enabled progressive behavior and dialogue yet have actively suppressed conservative philosophies of any kind,” Burfeind asserted. “This packet is what we have to impart onto our residents; not other events, but only that of the liberal agenda that the office pushes.”

Campus Reform reached out to the university and the Executive Director of Residence Life, but has not received any responses.

Follow this author on Facebook: Zachary Thomas Petrizzo and Twitter: @Zach_Petrizzo