About the Gender and Social Justice Program
McMaster University recognizes and acknowledges that it is located on the traditional territories of the Mississauga and Haudenosaunee nations, and within the lands protected by the “Dish With One Spoon” wampum agreement.
Welcome to the Gender and Social Justice Program! We are a vibrant learning community committed to the intersectional study of gender, sexuality, race, ethnicity, class, ability, age, and other categories of social difference, through feminist, anti-racist, anti-colonial, and queer social justice lenses. Our students and faculty are committed to collaborative, community-engaged research and praxis. The GSJ program has its early roots in Women’s Studies and retains a deep commitment to feminist work, nurtured through the decade in which the program was named Gender Studies and Feminist Research. Faculty affiliated with GSJ bring a gender and social justice lens to their work on topics as diverse as Indigeneity, theater, media, archives, disability, religion, history, philosophy, linguistics, labour, health, and many others.
If you’re an undergraduate interested in linking your coursework to real justice issues in the community and the wider world, you’ll be interested in taking our Level 1 courses, which can lead to a Minor in Gender Studies. Our one-year Master of Arts combines coursework with experiential learning and independent research. Students pursuing a PhD program at McMaster may add a Graduate Diploma in GSJ to their PhD degree.
GSJ also hosts the Research Symposium, a robust series of visiting speakers, community events, panels, and workshops. We sponsor guests from other universities, activist organizations, and community groups to present their work. Many Symposium events are open to the wider McMaster community.