A Graduation Dedicated to Social Justice

Due to the exigencies of the COVID crisis, this year’s commencement took place online, a first. Two stirring speeches addressed the topic of systemic racism in our country. Keynote speaker Ruha Benjamin, a Princeton sociologist and leading thinker on race and technology, reflecting on the higher rates of Black, Latinx, and Indigenous deaths from COVID, urged graduates to find ways to “work against injustice and work for solidarity.” At the second People of Color affinity graduation event, held on Zoom the day before, CSSW lecturer Zuleka Henderson opened with a poem to her ancestors and told graduates, “Never forget that our accomplishments happen on the roads they paved for our survival.” Please follow the links for commencement highlights and the texts of these two speeches.

University, School & Affinity Groups Celebrate Class of 2020 Virtually

Amid the coronavirus, graduating MSW and PhD students had a nontraditional graduation, and many of them found ways to make the best of the experience..

Prof. Ruha Benjamin Calls on Class of 2020 to Become “Champions of the Social Contract”

The following is the text of the graduation keynote delivered by Professor Ruha Benjamin at a virtual commencement held by Columbia University’s School of Social Work for its 2020 graduates, on Wednesday, May 20..

Prof. Zuleka Henderson to POC Graduates: “How Proud Our Ancestors Are Today”

The following is the text of the keynote speech delivered by CSSW lecturer Zuleka Henderson at the 2nd Annual People of Color (POC) Graduation Ceremony, which took place virtually on Tuesday, May 19, 2020..