SSSP Letters
Each year, the SSSP membership proposes resolutions to publicly declare their sentiments on social justice issues, thereby creating a channel for greater visibility and more direct influence upon a variety of "publics," i.e., fellow activists, scholars, students, decision-makers, social action groups, voters, and others. If the resolution requires letters to be sent, the Administrative Office distributes these to appropriate individuals or agencies.
Below are short descriptions of the actions SSSP took and letters sent following the passage of resolutions:
2023
Resolution: SSSP to Oppose State Interference with Academic Freedom
The SSSP approved a resolution opposing state interfence with academic freedom. A cover letter was sent to the leadership of the American Sociological Association (ASA) requesting that they join us in publishing a statement affirming the need to protect academic freedom from government interference. As you know, many states have introduced and/or passed legislation restricting faculty from teaching theories and research that present inequalities as operating through social structures and institutions. This legislation is an attack on our discipline, and it has created vulnerability among sociologists and sociology departments.
We believe an official statement from the ASA verifying the scientific validity of structural and institutional inequality is important for protecting individual faculty and our discipline as a whole. Many sociologists work in states where legislation restricting academic freedom is already in effect. These individuals and their entire programs are vulnerable, and therefore need institutional backing and support from their national organizations.
A copy of the statement was also distributed to multiple news outlets, including The New York Times, Washington Post, and Huffington Post.
Click here to read the full letter and SSSP's Statement Opposing State Interference with Academic Freedom.
Click here to read the cover letter distributed to multiple news outlets.
Resolution: SSSP to Support Gender-Affirming Healthcare
The SSSP approved a resolution in support of Gender-Affirming Healthcare. A cover letter and a copy of SSSP's Statement Supporting Gender-Affirming Healthcare was sent to leaders of both parties in the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate, the President of the United States, and the governors and departments of health in states where gender-affirming healthcare is under attack.
We at the Society for the Study of Social Problems join numerous health organizations, including the American Medical Association, American Academy of Pediatrics, and others in asserting our support for gender-affirming healthcare and opposing legislation that restrict people’s access to gender-affirming care.
Click here to read SSSP's Statement Supporting Gender-Affirming Healthcare.
Resolution: Guaranteeing and Furthering Socio-Economic Rights
The SSSP approved a resolution in support of Guaranteeing and Furthering Socio-Economic Rights. A cover letter and a copy of the approved resolution was sent to the President of the United States of America, Speaker of the U.S. House, U.S. House Majority Leader, U.S. House Minority Leader, U.S. Senate President Pro Tempore, U.S. Senate Democratic Leader, and U.S. Senate Republican Leader
We hope that those who received the resolution will advocate for meeting everyone’s basic social and economic needs, make clear that socio-economic rights are human rights, support ratification of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, and support amending the U.S. constitution to guarantee basic economic rights.
Click here to read the cover letter and here to read the approved resolution.
2020
Resolution: Improved Conditions for Contingent Adjunct or Non-Tenure Track Faculty
Executive Officer Héctor L. Delgado, Keith R. Johnson, and Gillian Niebrugge-Brantley wrote on behalf of the Society for the Study of Social Problems (SSSP) to address the issue of improved conditions for contingent adjunct or non-tenure track faculty. The impact of adjunct or contingent faculty in higher education has increased dramatically in the past few decades, and is likely to increase in the future, in part as a consequence of the pandemic. Non-tenure track faculty constitute over 70% of the instructional workforce. They are, indeed, the new teaching majority. We believe that institutions’ increased reliance on non-tenure track faculty, and prospective students’ and their parents’ desire to have as much information as possible in their selection of a school, calls for the inclusion of adjunct faculty’s salaries and benefits as well.
Click here to read the full letter and resolution.
2019
Resolution: Green New Deal
Executive Officer Héctor L. Delgado wrote on behalf of the Society for the Study of Social Problems (SSSP) to address the issue of climate change.
At its most recent Annual Meeting in New York City this past August, the membership voted unanimously in favor of the resolution on the Green New Deal. The resolution reads in part,
“… that the Society for the Study of Social Problems reaffirms its commitment to a 100% clean and renewable energy economy, including: A massive investment in energy efficient infrastructure to ensure clean drinking water, affordable and efficient public transportation, energy efficient buildings and schools; Good jobs and union-friendly policies in the green energy economy; and Investment in good jobs in communities historically dependent on the fossil fuel industry so that no workers and no communities are left behind.”
Click here to view the full letter.
Resolution: Human Rights
Executive Officer Héctor L. Delgado wrote on behalf of the Society for the Study of Social Problems (SSSP) to urge Congressional leaders of the Democratic and Republican parties and the President of the United States to affirm our support for Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948 in both word and action.
At its most recent Annual Meeting in New York City this past August, the SSSP approved this resolution. The resolution reads in part,
“Whereas the Purpose of the Society for the Study of Social Problems (SSSP) includes fostering higher quality of life, social welfare, and positive social relations in society and the global community and to undertake any activity related thereto or necessary or desirable for the accomplishment of the foregoing purposes; ...”
and
“THEREFORE, Be It Resolved that the Society for the Study of Social Problems (SSSP) affirms the principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948; …”
Click here to view the full letter.
Click here to view the 2019 approved resolutions.
Please contact the Administrative Officer & Meeting Manager at mkoontz3@utk.edu to obtain copies of the other letters.
2018
Resolution: Disarming Campus Police
Executive Officer Héctor L. Delgado wrote on behalf of the Society for the Study of Social Problems (SSSP) to address the dangers posed by armed police on our university and college campuses - especially with the killings of community members at UC Riverside and at Portland State University over the past few months, and to ask for support in the call to disarm campus police nationwide.
The danger posed by armed police on our campuses is best understood as a structural problem. It is, at its heart, a pattern of dangerous behavior facilitated by institutions and representative of the militarization and securitization of our communities and our workplaces. These social conditions, stoked by the current administration and other politicians, facilitated by the 1033 Program, and fed by reactionary responses by administrators within higher education pose an increasing risk to students, faculty, and workers. It is at this confluence of social forces that we need sociological analyses to help clarify exactly what the problem is, where it stems from, and how to address it.
Click here to view the full letter.
Resolution: Just Transition to Renewable Energy with Justice for Workers and Frontline Communities
Executive Officer Héctor L. Delgado wrote on behalf of the Society for the Study of Social Problems (SSSP) to urge the President of the United States, leaders of the US Senate and House of Representatives, Relevant Committee Chairs, and the Director of the EPA to join us in supporting the Paris Agreement and other measures, such as the Clean Energy Just Transition Act and the “100 by 50” Act, designed to promote and provide a rapid and managed just transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy.
At its most recent Annual Meeting in Philadelphia this past August, the SSSP approved a resolution stating, in part, “global climate change is due to human activities, primarily the burning of fossil fuels and deforestation that have caused a dramatic increase in the levels of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere ...” While there is ample and incontrovertible evidence for the problem, the good news is that if human beings created the problem, human beings can fix it. However, as indicated in a new report issued by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, or IPCC, the leading United Nations consortium of researchers studying the speed and scope of human-caused temperature rise, the need to move more quickly has never been greater. The report, authored by researchers and editors from forty countries, citing more than 6,000 scientific references, calls for aggressive steps to reduce dramatically our reliance on fossil fuels. In their place, the SSSP urges “moving rapidly toward a renewable energy economy [that] can—with the right policies in place—be the source of large numbers of new, well-paying jobs that will reinvigorate local economies.”
Click here to view the letter sent to the President of the United States, leaders of the US Senate and House of Representatives, Relevant Committee Chairs, and the Director of the EPA.
Click here to view the letter sent to the sponsor of the two bills.
Click here to view the response letter from the United States Environmental Protection Agency.
Click here to view the 2018 approved resolutions.
Please contact the Administrative Officer & Meeting Manager at mkoontz3@utk.edu to obtain copies of the other letters.
2017
Resolution: On Refugee and Immigrant Rights and Executive Order
The SSSP denounces the President’s Executive Order, suspending the issuance of visas to nationals from Iraq, Iran, Sudan, Syria, Libya, Somalia, and Yemen; shutting down the country’s refugee program for 120 days; reducing the number of refugees admitted to the United States in 2017 from 110,000 to 50,000; and halting the resettlement of Syrian refugees indefinitely. SSSP believes that the Executive Order as presently drafted makes the United States, less, not more, secure, by providing fuel for extremist groups to recruit new members and launch new attacks and alienating Muslims in the United States and other parts of the world at a time that the country should be welcoming them and enlisting their support for and participation in the struggle against terrorist organizations. SSSP urges the President to review the Executive Order he issued most recently to ensure that it is not motivated by a desire to deny entry to, or even advertently targets, a group on the basis of religion, ethnicity, or country of origin and applauds the efforts by attorneys and immigration- and refugee-rights organizations and activists to ensure that the United States retain its moral standing in the world as a nation that is welcoming and fair to people fleeing persecution or searching for a better life for their family.
The Administrative Office sent letters to the President of the United States and the leaders of both parties in the House of Representatives and the Senate.
Click here to view the letter sent to the President of the United States. Click here to view the letter sent to leaders of both parties in the House of Representatives and the Senate. Please contact the Administrative Officer & Meeting Manager at mkoontz3@utk.edu to obtain copies of the other letters.
Resolution: In Support of the United States’ Commitment to and Participation in the Paris Climate Accord
The SSSP expressed grave disappointment with the President’s decision to withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement. The Society believes that the United States’ commitment to and participation in the Paris Climate Accord is critical to reaching targets for global emissions reductions and to remaining a leader in the fight against the environmental degradation of the planet. The SSSP stands in solidarity with the nations and other public and private entities that remain steadfast in upholding emissions reduction targets as outlined in the Paris Climate Accord.
The Administrative Office sent letters to the leaders of both parties in the House of Representatives and the Senate, all members of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, the House Committee of Natural Resources, the director of the Environmental Protection Agency, and the President of the United States.
Click here to view the letter sent to the President of the United States. Click here to view the letter sent to the leaders of both parties in the House of Representatives and the Senate, all members of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, the House Committee of Natural Resources, and the director of the Environmental Protection Agency. Please contact the Administrative Officer & Meeting Manager at mkoontz3@utk.edu to obtain copies of the other letters.
Resolution: On Free Speech and Academic Freedom
The SSSP approved a resolution stating that a democratic society is dependent upon the free exchange of ideas in classrooms, on campuses, and in the public, and that there can be no knowledge or progress without a genuine search for truth which requires free speech. SSSP denounces the threats of violence that have been directed at instructors and staff members in an increasing number of academic institutions and in a variety of academic disciplines (including sociology, philosophy, classics, politics and global studies, and communications) because of their ideas. SSSP stands in solidarity with the American Association of University Professors (AAUP), the American Sociological Association (ASA), and other professional associations in its commitment to academic freedom and due process and in denouncing violence and harassment of all types targeted toward those engaging in free speech.
The Administrative Office sent letters and statements of academic freedom to AAUP and to the presidents and boards of the institutions at which these types of cases have occurred, on an ongoing basis.
Click here to view the letter sent to AAUP. Click here to view the letter sent to the presidents and boards of the institutions at which these types of cases have occurred, on an ongoing basis. Please contact the Administrative Officer & Meeting Manager at mkoontz3@utk.edu to obtain copies of the other letters.
2016
Resolution: SSSP stands in solidarity with Muslims
The SSSP denounces calls by leading politicians and their supporters numbering in the millions to ban Muslims from entering the United States. SSSP believes that people – regardless of religious or ethnic affiliation are deserving of social and political inclusion and the full range of human rights. SSSP stands with U.S. Muslims and Muslim people around the world who vociferously condemn the perversion of their faith and the promotion of violence, injustice, and inequality.
The Administrative Office sent letters to the mayor of Seattle, the governor of Washington, the Muslim Community Resource Center of Seattle, the top three Washington state daily newspapers: The Seattle Times, The News Tribune, and the Spokesman Review; and the two major political parties in the United States, the Democratic National Committee and the Republican National Committee.
Click here to view the letter sent to Mr. Edward B. Murray, Mayor of Seattle. Please contact the Administrative Officer & Meeting Manager at mkoontz3@utk.edu to obtain copies of the other letters.
Resolution: SSSP stands in solidarity with Trans and Gender Nonconforming Children and Adults
The SSSP denounces ongoing transphobic backlash against civil rights protections, taking the form of state and local legal initiatives and a federal lawsuit filed by eleven states and state officials opposing the guidance on the protection of trans and gender-nonconforming students. SSSP reaffirms its longstanding support of the protection of people against discrimination based on gender identity or expression and expresses gratitude for federal guidance which has been issued from various agencies, making it clear that discrimination against trans and/or gender-nonconforming people in schooling, federal employment, and health care is against federal law. The SSSP opposes the lawsuit by any state or states and state officials who claim a right to discriminate against transgender students and all so-called “bathroom bills,” which institutionalize transphobia, delegitimate gender transition; and encourage public harassment of trans people.
The Administrative Office sent letters to Senator Patty Murray to place this resolution in the Congressional Record, delivered to the Governors and Attorneys General of the states referenced in the resolution, to the heads of organizations and legislators on the front lines of these issues in these states, the National Transgender Advocacy Coalition, the Transgender Law and Policy Institute, GLAAD, and the Human Rights Campaign.
Click here to view the letter sent to the Attorney Generals. Please contact the Administrative Officer & Meeting Manager at mkoontz3@utk.edu to obtain copies of the other letters.
2015
Resolution: SSSP Denounces Attacks Against Critical Scholars
The SSSP denounces attacks against scholars committed to academic freedom, freedom of speech, and research for the betterment of society and the world. SSSP advocates an academic enterprise rooted in the freedom of scholars to ask questions, including controversial and unsettling questions, that are essential to our understanding of the world and society in which we live. The Administrative Office sent a letter to Dr. Nazli Kibria, Chair, Department of Sociology, Boston University.
Click here to view the letter sent to Dr. Nazli Kibria, Chair, Department of Sociology, Boston University, in support of Dr. Saida Grundy.
2014
Resolution: Motion Regarding the Death of Connor Sparrowhawk While in Institutional Care
The SSSP approved a resolution calling for policy changes in the disability system. The Administrative Office sent a letter to Connor's mother, Sara Ryan, expressing our sorrow and rage at the preventable death of Connor Sparrowhawk.
Click here to view the letter sent to Connor's mother, Sara Ryan.
2013
Resolution: Call for SSSP to Oppose the National Movement to Impose Austerity on Public Higher Education and Support the Resistance of CUNY’s Faculty to Pathways, A Diminished, Austerity Curriculum
The SSSP approved a resolution communicating its opposition to the imposition of Pathways on CUNY institutions, which serves as an example of austerity education. The Administrative Office sent a cover letter and the resolution to CUNY Chancellor William Kelly, which was also forwarded to the entire CUNY Board of Trustees. The Administrative Office also sent a press release to NYC media and national media addressing higher education.
Click here to view the letter sent to Chancellor William Kelly and the CUNY Board of Trustees.
Click here to read the press release.
On October 21, 2013, Executive Vice Chancellor and University Provost Alexandra W. Logue, responded to SSSP's letter on behalf of Chancellor Kelly. Click here to view the response to SSSP.
On October 28, 2013, SSSP Executive Officer Héctor Delgado responded to Dr. Logue's letter. Click here to view the response.
Resolution: Racial Disparities in Drug Law Enforcement
The SSSP approved a resolution calling for policymakers to address racial disparties in drug law enforcement. The Administrative Office sent a cover letter and the resolution to the governor, legislative leaders in Albany, the Mayor of NYC, District Attorneys of NYC, and members of the NYC Council.
Click here to view the cover letter.
On October 18, 2013, Robert T. Johnson, the District Attorney of Bronx County, responded to SSSP's letter. Click here to view the response.
On November 4, 2013, SSSP Executive Officer Héctor Delgado responded to District Attorney Johnson. Click here to view the response.
Resolution: School to Prison Pipeline, Affecting Low Income Students of Color, Especially Black Males
The SSSP approved a resolution detailing support for reducing suspensions and school-based arrests and implementing positive alternatives to protect students’ human rights to education and dignity, particularly for young Black males. The Administrative Office sent the resolution along with a cover letter to the Mayor, the New York City Department of Education, the New York State Education Department, and City and State legislators.
Click here to view the cover letter.
2012
Resolution: Unsolved Homicide Cases
The SSSP approved a resolution endorsing the full funding of a Cold Case Team of Investigators for the Colorado Bureau of Investigation. Although the Colorado legislature passed a bill in 2007 supporting the creation of such a team, it never materialized due to lack of funding. In this resolution, the SSSP acknowledges the need for such a specialized team to continue work on unsolved homicide cases. The Administrative Office of the SSSP sent a letter of support to the Families of Homicide Victims and Missing Persons, Inc. (FOHVAMP), recognizing FOHVAMP's important work to find, support, and empower family members and friends suffering from a loved one’s unsolved homicide or from their long-term, suspicious disappearance.
Click here to read the letter.
In addition, FOHVAMP representative and SSSP member, Dr. Michael Radelet has agreed to contact both houses of the Colorado legislature and the State's Governor communicating the SSSP's support of the funding of a Cold Case Team of Investigators.
2010
Resolution: Discontinue the Atlanta “Braves” Logo and Paraphernalia
The SSSP approved a resolution calling for the discontinuation of the demeaning and racist use of Native American nicknames, logos, and mascots in sport. The Administrative Office of the SSSP sent a copy of the 2007 Resolution and a letter to the Administrative Office of the Atlanta Braves, the Governor of Georgia, and the Mayor of Atlanta, with a copy to local newspapers, calling on the Atlanta Braves organization to discontinue and cease in promoting any and all demeaning and otherwise negative representations of Native Americans, and in particular tomahawk chants, paraphernalia, and logos.
Click here to read the letter.
Resolution: To Officially Endorse the Clean Water Protection Act [HR 1310]
In response to devastating consequences related to mountaintop removal coal mining in Appalachia, the SSSP approved a resolution to officially endorse the Clean Water Protection Act [HR 1310]. The SSSP also encouraged the Senate to pass complementary legislation to address the problems of environmental justice discussed above. The SSSP further encouraged Congress to pass legislation to ensure that coalfield communities, who have provided cheap energy to the nation at the cost of their environment and health receive assistance in dealing with economic hardship from ongoing decline in extractive employment. The Administrative Office of the SSSP sent letters of concern to several state and federal legislators supporting the Clean Water Protection Act citing the ecological devastation and economic hardship of Appalachian communities.
Click here to read the letter.
2009
Resolution: Gender-Neutral Pronouns
The SSSP approved a resolution calling on all publishers, editors, educators and institutional agents who issue style guidelines, edit documents, or correct papers to (1) let stand gender-neutral pronouns when they encounter them in other’s written work; and (2) update their style manuals to state that gender-neutral pronouns may be employed to refer to real or hypothetical persons of unknown gender, and to those known individuals who choose to refer to themselves with gender-neutral pronouns. The SSSP will permit the use of gender neutral pronouns in its publications. The SSSP administration is directed to send copies of this resolution to the administrations of the universities to which the SSSP regularly sends literature, to the editorial boards of the sociology journals listed by Sociological Abstracts, to the editorial boards of the top 100 US newspapers by circulation, and to the authors of widely used style guides (such as The Chicago Manual of Style, the APA, MLA, ASA, CBE and other disciplinary guides, the Harvard Bluebook, and Strunk and White). Cover letters should direct the recipients to forward the resolution to the appropriate editorial agent.
Click here to read the letter.
Resolution: UN Commission of Inquiry into Human Rights Violations in Burma
The SSSP approved a resolution urging the United States to propose the establishment of an official investigation by the UN Security Council into crimes against humanity committed by Burma’s military regime.The SSSP sent a letter to the United States Ambassador to the United Nations, Susan Rice, urging the United States to propose a global ban on weapons sales to Burma’s military regime.
Click here to read the letter.
