A Different Way: Reorienting Adult Education Toward Democracy and Social Justice is a white paper that examines how adult basic skills programs have attempted to help adult learners actively participate in democratic processes and exercise their civil rights. This paper traces the evolution of arguments for a social justice approach to adult education, and includes models of sample programs in the United States. It identifies strategies used by educators to help learners mitigate the impacts of social injustices, navigate around those impacts, eliminate unjust policies and social practices, and create alternative ways that support human rights. The paper concludes with recommendations for educators interested in incorporating a social justice perspective into adult basic skills programming.