Social Justice Overview
Meghan Fry PUBHLTH 690SJ
Social Justice: Ambiguous term for a necessary virtue “Social Justice” is often considered a vague or indefinite term. The ambiguous nature of the term lends itself to be interpreted in many ways. Philosophers and theologians, both past and present, have given their interpretations of what social justice means and though they may argue over the “true” meaning of social justice, there is always the undertone of a certain fairness across humanity with regard to human rights. The arguments over what is fair and who determines fairness is often the dividing line amongst intellectuals attempting to define social justice. In the end, all interpretations agree that social injustice is often more likely than social justice and active participation by everyone is necessary to effectively establish a society where social justice is the norm. The broadest definition of social justice, as provided by Google, is “justice in terms of the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society.” The most important part in that definition is the delineation that social justice is determined by a society. Societal demands, needs, wants, and rights vary considerably around the globe and therefore so does their understanding of social justice. Some have argued that because social justice is dependent on each society that it cannot be measured or valued, even so that has not stopped several researchers from utilizing statistical data to support their views of what social justice is and how nations, for example, measure up to their standard. Once again, the problem of measuring social justice lies in the debate as to what is fair or equitable in a given society. Is there a universal level of justice humanity should be striving for? This question has been answered by many individuals over the course of human history, and by combining the shared fundamentals of various discourses it is possible to create a grander definition
Social Justice: Ambiguous term for a necessary virtue “Social Justice” is often considered a vague or indefinite term. The ambiguous nature of the term lends itself to be interpreted in many ways. Philosophers and theologians, both past and present, have given their interpretations of what social justice means and though they may argue over the “true” meaning of social justice, there is always the undertone of a certain fairness across humanity with regard to human rights. The arguments over what is fair and who determines fairness is often the dividing line amongst intellectuals attempting to define social justice. In the end, all interpretations agree that social injustice is often more likely than social justice and active participation by everyone is necessary to effectively establish a society where social justice is the norm. The broadest definition of social justice, as provided by Google, is “justice in terms of the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society.” The most important part in that definition is the delineation that social justice is determined by a society. Societal demands, needs, wants, and rights vary considerably around the globe and therefore so does their understanding of social justice. Some have argued that because social justice is dependent on each society that it cannot be measured or valued, even so that has not stopped several researchers from utilizing statistical data to support their views of what social justice is and how nations, for example, measure up to their standard. Once again, the problem of measuring social justice lies in the debate as to what is fair or equitable in a given society. Is there a universal level of justice humanity should be striving for? This question has been answered by many individuals over the course of human history, and by combining the shared fundamentals of various discourses it is possible to create a grander definition