Rooting the Study of Communication Activism in an Attempted Book Ban

Abstract

Cultivating deeply rooted community partnerships is vital to the mission of teaching and scholarship that answers the call for robust civic learning and democratic engagement. This paper recognizes that such teaching and research, particularly when it delves into political and contested questions, may provoke criticism and skepticism. So, for those scholars and their students who enter the fray of political action, we argue that the move may be eased and nurtured with strong, sustained university-community partnerships built upon support, action, and, importantly, a commitment to common cause. We argue that unexpected moments in public life can create opportunities to stretch and strengthen those relationships to invigorate our democracy if we have done the work previously to think about, express, and challenge our thinking about what we owe to our communities.