Literacy is intricately linked to social justice, and it can shape the learning that occurs in our English language arts (ELA) classrooms. Challenging the notion of the traditional secondary ELA classroom--as centered on literature and old literacies--I advocate utilizing a critical pedagogy with a new literacy approach that employs texts to teach for social justice. First, I use Gee's notion of cultural models as a theoretical lens with which to view the ELA classroom. Second, I briefly describe the research study and participants' understanding of social justice. Third, I discuss negotiating old and new literacies in the ELA classroom and the obstacles to teaching for social justice. Next, I link critical pedagogy to teaching for social justice. I conclude the article with implications for teacher education.