Challenge #3:
Be Nuanced
1. Define the issue with nuance.
Challenge yourself to define the issue with greater complexity than good/bad, yes/no, etc.
Who are all involved and how are they being affected differently?
In what ways is this an issue? To what degree?
When is this an issue? Under what conditions?
2. Seek first to understand.
Have you heard of Stephen Covey's 7 Habits of Highly Effective People?
"Seek first to understand, then to be understood" is the fifth habit. Covey explains:
"If you're like most people, you probably seek first to be understood; you want to get your point across. And in doing so, you may ignore the other person completely, pretend that you're listening, selectively hear only certain parts of the conversation or attentively focus on only the words being said, but miss the meaning entirely. So why does this happen? Because most people listen with the intent to reply, not to understand. You listen to yourself as you prepare in your mind what you are going to say, the questions you are going to ask, etc. You filter everything you hear through your life experiences, your frame of reference."
Seeking first to understand is good advice for communicating with other people in our daily lives. But, also, since research like participating in a large-scale intellectual conversation, the advice also applies when "listening to" the information presented by others.
Whenever you read a source of information - whether you agree or disagree with their positions and conclusions - seek first to understand.
Why do they believe what they believe?
How does their experience inform their position?
What are areas of common ground that we share?
3. Consider how you can add to the conversation.
Social justice issues are "issues" because there are no easy solutions. You don't need to have answers, but you can still add to the conversation. Here are some questions you can consider.
What questions should we be asking? What do we need to give greater attention to and why?
What evidence is lacking? What experiences are NOT being acknowledged or addressed?
How can I/we be involved? What can I/we do to improve the experiences of others?