What Does Your Liberation Look Like?

It is one of the last classes in my AUx2 sections in the semester. I pull up the presentation file on the screen that I received from the student who presents today. The presenter comes up to the front of the class and starts:

“My liberated state is to be free from social norms and expectations.”

Despite the early hours of the morning class, all 36 eyes in the classroom are drawn to the presenter. Depending on the content of the presentation, we engage in dialogue after the presentation to expand some of the issues that were discussed. This is our collective problem, not just the presenter’s. We live in this era together. One person’s liberation plan might not be exactly the same as another’s, but we all feel it somewhere in our heart.

Developing a Liberation Presentation Project

In AUx2, we explore social justice with students by examining racism and oppression as well as resistance and liberation movements. In spring 2024, I had the opportunity to bring the concept of liberation closer to the students. In earlier iterations, students had a research assignment at the end of the semester, where they chose one liberation movement from the past that brought out social change and wrote a research paper on it. This year, the research assignment was removed with the curriculum change. Instead, a couple of more resources on resistance and liberation were added for in-class dialogue and reflection.

Not bad, I thought, but I need something culminating that encompasses everything we learned in the semester. We learned about the cycle of socialization. We learned about the four lenses of oppression—individual, interpersonal, institutional, and structural. We learned about intersectionality and the interlocking systems of oppression. We learned about racism and other forms of oppression in the U.S. and other places. We learned about resistance and liberation movements. To bring all these home, I thought, we need to apply these concepts to our own lives. That’s why I created the liberation presentation project.

I asked students what liberation means to them. I told them it was very important to think about liberation in their own lives, not just as an abstract social concept. I asked them to imagine their liberated state. If there were no limitations, what would your liberation look like?

First, students described their liberated states on a piece of paper. Then, after a few weeks, each student would come up with their own liberation plan to get to the liberated state they had just described. Achieving liberation wouldn’t be easy, so I urged them to analyze the challenges/oppressions they would face in their journey to liberation, using the four lenses of oppression we learned as an analytical tool. Then, they would come up with a plan on how they would overcome those challenges/oppressions. If they did not know how to get there, they could find a role model who achieved what they wanted and describe how they did that. Finally, students would pick one of the last three class dates and give a five-to-ten-minute presentation on their liberation plan using a PowerPoint presentation as a visual aid.

For example, let’s say my passion is fashion. I love fashion and the freedom with which I can express myself through design and clothes. However, the oppression/challenge I feel is the fast fashion industry that devours our limited resources and destroys our environment. In this case, my liberation presentation could be on the liberation of the fashion industry. In my journey toward that goal, what kind of challenges/oppressions would I face at the individual, interpersonal, institutional, and structural levels? And how would I overcome these challenges to get to the liberated state I defined?

Student Reflections & Reactions

This is a new activity that I introduced to my class this semester, so I did not know what my students would bring up through this project. The result was quite amazing.

Not surprisingly, many students wanted financial liberation. They wanted to be free from the worries of financial stress by getting a good job, saving and investing, and by securing their own space to enjoy independence and work–life balance. Some students went deeper and wanted liberation from the culture that encourages more and more consumption. One student declared that we should free ourselves from the capitalists’ call for grinding constantly for ever more.

Many students wanted to be free from the societal norms and expectations, including model minority stereotypes, distorted perceptions on certain minorities, having to conform to gender and sexual binaries, and biases against mental health and neurodiversity. Female students presented liberation from fear, reproductive oppression, challenges of surviving and thriving as a woman in business, and pressure on their body image. Interestingly, in each section I teach, there was one presentation on liberation from screen time/phone addiction, which resonated with so many students and with me as well.

Some presentations were very personal—liberation from dysfunctional family relations and repairing them, liberation from past drug addiction and overcoming it, or a holistic liberation toward realizing one’s true self.

When I read their final engagement reflections, it was very clear that the liberation presentation had had a very positive impact on their learning and engagement with their classmates. Below are excerpts from a few students’ reflections:

“One concept I have found myself thinking critically of this semester is individual liberation. Liberation is not a new concept to me, but in past classes, I have always been presented with the idea of liberation in relation to a marginalized group of individuals. However, through class discussions and the liberation presentation, I have found that it can be applied to individuals of all backgrounds and identities.”

“Each student had to present their liberation presentation. I thought this assignment was very interesting and brought me closer to my classmates. It was super interesting and comforting to relate to my classmates through their presentations, and also learn new things.”

“I am especially proud of my liberation presentation, as I presented on something I am passionate about and something I want to spread knowledge on. I think a great way to learn is always through your classmates, so I really enjoyed listening to their liberation presentations too, and got some great takeaways from them.”

Instructor Reflections

As a teacher, I couldn’t wish for more than this. My students now own the concept of liberation as their own, have the tools of analysis when they face challenges/oppressions, see the hope of change in the cycle of liberation, and hopefully will try to achieve that evasive state of liberation despite all the hardships and challenges.

I also realize that doing this work with students is my own liberation path toward social justice that contributes to everyone’s liberation. I admit that I was quite nervous when I introduced this new project. I knew it would be exciting, but I didn’t know where it would lead us. This cringe-inducing uncertainty is uncomfortable. However, I learned that only by embracing the uncomfortable uncertainty can you discover a splendid new horizon.

I especially feel proud of my students who were brave enough to open up their authentic self and talked about the most important issue in their life.

As the semester draws to a close, I feel a sense of relief and gratitude. I especially feel proud of my students who were brave enough to open up their authentic self and talked about the most important issue in their life through their liberation presentation. In the end, what is a life for if not striving to live free and truthful to one’s true self?

Author Profile

SangHee Jeong is an AUx instructor and academic advisor in the First Year Advising department. She received an M.A. in International Development Policy at Duke University and has been working in higher education since 2012.

Suggestions for Further Reading

Related to the topic of liberation, I would like to suggest reading Yuval Harari’s 21 Lessons for the 21st Century. Chapter 21 of the book incapsulates all the lessons the author learned through academic endeavors, including their limitations. He also suggests how we can explore truth in different ways. I think it is important that we liberate ourselves from all kinds of stories we have been fed and open our eyes to the true reality.