So Why Are We Talking About “Good, Necessary Trouble”?

Throughout the next three chapters, we will explore several learning outcomes in general education. At the end of each of them, we will look at how that type of learning informs, works with, and/or is integral to examples of “good, necessary trouble” that have emerged or gained prominence in the last decade, with specific focus on the COVID years. As Lewis comments, people come up with “different methods of struggle” against what they believe needs to change. There are two main lenses we will use: participation in “good, necessary trouble” and full comprehension of why individuals and groups engage in those actions.

What does participation take? Of the Civil Rights Movement, Lewis says in Across that Bridge:

“Many people believe that because we focused on breaking unjust laws and evil traditions, that our movement was free-form, spontaneous, and unrehearsed. Nothing could be further from the truth. We did not just wake up one day and decide to march on Washington or from Selma to Montgomery. We studied, we strategized, we organized, trained, and prepared to take action. Most of what we accomplished grew out of years, decades, and even centuries of groundwork that was laid before most of us were even born, and those at the center of the struggle studied that history and used its wisdom to develop the strategic actions of the movement.”

To be a part of affecting positive change requires understanding issues facing humanity, their histories, and what is necessary to make something better. It requires skills of various kinds, including an ability to meet and argue against opposition. Indeed, as Lewis continues, it is “through study and preparation that you can increase the power of your work.” General education provides a foundation for that study.

Why participate? There are many reasons why individuals and groups decide to participate in “good, necessary trouble.” It may be that something affects them or those they care about personally. It may be that there are issues that someone feels strongly about. As Lewis says, “Sometimes you have to be willing to turn things upside down to make them right side up.” Maybe they want to be “on the right side of history.” Or maybe they simply want to exercise their civic rights and responsibilities. It takes empathy and knowledge to relate to why others believe what they do and behave the way they do. General education can help develop that empathy and knowledge.

Read through the following chapters for specific examples of general education and “good, necessary trouble.”