Gender justice and the English citizenship curriculum: a consideration of post-September 11 national imperatives and issues of 'Britishness'

Although much contention has surrounded the introduction of the English citizenship curriculum, its political agenda clearly reflects a transformative approach to issues of justice and equity. In light of this agenda, this article supports feminist work in further problematizing the curriculum's silence around relations of gender and citizenship. It extends this work by exploring the implications of such silence within the context of the contemporary post-September 11 climate, where discourses around security and militarism have amplified social/gender inequities worldwide while further reducing the spaces available for active social and political engagement toward the "common good." In the U.K. context, these trends are considered in light of the recent high-profile political debate around the issue of Britishness. Here, concern is expressed about how superficial engagement with this debate may be mobilized in exclusionary ways that do little to militate against the masculinist framings of the citizenship curriculum. Conversely, critical engagement in debates around British national identity are also presented as being potentially generative in terms of their capacity to strengthen the discourse of ideal citizenship in the United Kingdom in ways that foster a more critical and gender-just approach to citizenship education.

Book review. Historical justice in international perspective

The notion that something can — and must — be done to address injustices of the past has gained signifieant political currency around the world in recent decades. As demands for apologies, reparation, restitution, and restorative justice have grown louder, the attempt to make amends has emerged as an important national marker in what Elazar Barkan has called a new era of intemational morality. For historians, this seemingly new way of engaging with the past is particularly intriguing, perhaps signalling a significant change in historical consciousness in the contemporary world. Historical Justice in International Perspective offers a window onto these events, surveying the political, judicial, and historical landscapes of what has become known as historical justice. In doing so, this collection demonstrates the widespread and increasing significance of historieal redress in contemporary political life.

Indigenous girls, social justice, and schooling : addressing issues of disadvantage

Indigenous women and girls in Australia remain highly disadvantaged economically, culturally, and politically. The ways in which schools can better address this disadvantage are the focus of this chapter. The chapter builds on existing research in the area of Indigenous schooling and social justice to add important theoretical and practical insight into supporting Indigenous girls – an equity group whose marginalization (while highly salient) tends to be lost amid broader concerns about Indigeneity. With reference to “Emma’s” story as exemplifying some of the key constraints to the educational attainment of Indigenous girls , the chapter explores how schools might begin to remedy this disadvantage through their engagement with a politics of (1) economic redistribution, (2) cultural recognition, and (3) political representation.