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Teaching Social Justice and Encountering Society

The Pink Triangle Experiment

University of California-Los Angeles

JILL M. STEIN

University of California-Los Angeles

TERRI D. CONLEY

University of California-Los Angeles

Professors can involve students in social problems through the use of dynamic classroom pedagogy. This approach is demonstrated by presenting data based on student responses to an exercise in which they were given the opportunity to take on a stigmatized role. Students were asked to wear a pink triangle pin symbolizing support for gay rights and reflected upon their thoughts, feelings, biases, and the reactions of others. Papers were analyzed according to Helm's (1990) theory of identity and Goffman's (1964) work on stigma. Many students were able to advance through stages of identity development and move toward more open and positive ways of thinking about others. This study joins with the strong legacy of sociologists who have advocated using the classroom as the basis for doing experiments in the field, which would provide students with a deeper intellectual and moral understanding of social problems.

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