Carrying Forward Nonviolence and Social Justice

A reflection on the Institute for Nonviolence and Social Justice's recent accomplishments

The Institute for Nonviolence and Social Justice (INSJ) at the University of San Francisco continues to make significant strides in advancing peace, equity, and justice both locally and globally.

From honoring the legacy of Dr. Clarence B. Jones to fostering global partnerships in nonviolence training, the INSJ remains at the forefront of promoting transformative social change. This article highlights key accomplishments that reflect the Institute’s dedication to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s vision of a world grounded in nonviolence, justice, and human dignity.

Barwendé Médard Sané gesturing to a plant while speaking to children

Nonviolence Training in Africa

Our close partner Barwendé Médard Sané, S.J., EdD, is the leading nonviolence educator in his native country Burkina Faso, and throughout West Africa. In his role as INSJ Jesuit Graduate Fellow, Fr. Sané brought the USF Institute for Nonviolence and Social Justice to Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, for three summers, training hundreds of community leaders from across the country in conflict resolution and peacemaking under conditions of political violence, communal conflict, terrorism, and war.

Nonviolence is the path toward integral peace, justice, and reconciliation throughout Africa and the world.”

Barwendé Médard Sané, S.J., EdD

Young students holding class project and smiling

The USF Math Equity Initiative

Civil rights leader Robert Parris Moses founded the Algebra Project to secure quality math education for all as a gateway to educational and economic justice. To further this vision of math literacy and citizen empowerment, we convened a two-year USF Math Equity Initiative.

Co-led with USF math professor Dr. Emille Lawrence, director of the USF Black Achievement, Success, and Engagement (BASE) program, we partnered with BASE, the USF's Office of Antiracism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, and with our amazing friends in Cambridge, Mass.—the Algebra Project and the Young People’s Project (YPP), led by Moses's daughter Maisha Moses.

In spring 2024 we hosted a public forum, Math Literacy as a 21st Century Civil Right, and shared the Algebra Project’s innovative teaching strategies with parents and educators.

In spring 2025, we joined our partners to convene a workshop at the Critical Issues in Mathematics Education conference at the Simons Laufer Mathematical Sciences Institute at UC Berkeley, and with YPP we hosted the National Flagway Tournament at USF. This extraordinary three-day event engaged over 120 middle school students and their families from across the country, alongside 60 high school volunteers and educators.

Jonathan Greenberg posing with other Interfaith Nonviolence Initiative folks

USF Interfaith Nonviolence Initiative

In partnership with the Joan and Ralph Lane Center for Catholic Social Thought and the Ignatian Tradition, INSJ convened the USF Interfaith Nonviolence Initiative to facilitate dialogue, organize workshops, and support scholarly research opportunities for faculty and students, interfaith clergy, and grassroots community organizations to understand the causes and consequences of systemic violence in marginalized communities and the power of nonviolence to heal related trauma.

The initiative included a daylong symposium with clergy from diverse faith traditions to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.’s 1963 book Strength to Love and to reflect in interfaith dialogue on the meaning of Dr. King's sermons for our world today.

In April 2024, our faculty scholars and community partners presented the results of their collaborative research to USF students, faculty, staff, and guests from throughout the San Francisco Bay Area.

  • Professor Amy Argenal and the Interfaith Movement for Human Integrity, “The Sanctuary Movement in the SF Bay Area”
  • Dr. Dellanira Garcia, Dr. Belinda Hernandez-Arriaga, and Dr. David A. Martínez, and Ayudando Latinos a Soñar (ALAS), “Un Milagro de Dios (A Miracle of God): Experiences of Community Service Providers Working With Marginalized Latinx Communities Under Systems of Oppression, Hostility, and Violence”
  • Bill Ong Hing and community partners in El Salvador, “Addressing Gang and Domestic Violence in Central America”
  • Dr. Susan Roberta Katz, Dr. Patricia Rojas-Zambrano, “Decolonizing Education in Comparative Indigenous Communities (Misak People of Colombia)”
  • Dr. Saera Khan, “Understanding the Mental and Social Support Needs of Marginalized Members of a Religious Community”
  • Dr. Jane Pak, “Nonviolent Resistance to the Military Junta in Burma”
  • Dr. Oren Kroll-Zeldin, “Co-Resistance in Israel/Palestine”