Consider social values and ethics that have been applied historically and contemporarily. History offers examples of the rigid structures that maintain discrimination and continuing efforts to raise moral obligations. How do we adjudicate between the two? Or should we? What did you learn about social work’s response to the human condition as a profession? Quote specific page numbers so that we may follow along.
Take notes. For example, immigration policy has racially regulated and controlled mobility and constructed racial spaces. Immigrant groups from Latin America, Africa, Asia, some Caribbean countries have not been truly welcomed and experienced America, as groups from European countries. Couple that with migratory patterns of African Americans to the north, mid-west and far west, we learn that constructed racial spaces were created, following ideological and institutional patterns of racism. Social Work was complicit in honoring those policies, ignoring certain groups, withholding advancement from others. African American social reformers stepped in to create institutions of healing and cultural enhancement, economic cooperatives, advocacy, neighborhood unions, community development organizations, etc., race work that really needs to be continued.
As other disciplines responded racially to the plight of racial groups, so did Social Work. But it doesn’t mean that we continue those patterns into the 21st century.
We have a moral and ethical responsibility to be engaged in movements, show respect to cultural differences and distinctions, and ensure that community development processes, advocacy, service delivery are distinct are not racist, xenophobic, sexist. Check out the paragraph on page 128 – ‘the challenges to promoting the values and ethics of social work are huge. We should not only focus on concepts – bias, prejudice and stereotypes as isolated concepts, but focus on systemic racism, embedded in American society. Our analysis should penetrate the ways in which people are placed in social constructions that remain stoic and immovable. These social constructions justify mean-spirited racist treatment of racial groups, and social work is guilty in joining in this treatment, sponsoring treatment, refusing to uphold Codes of Ethics (NASW and NABSW) to create transformative change’. We have to dispense with notions of only providing resources, connecting people to systems, advocating for people, we must join movements for transformative change. Check out the videos in Module 2.
Social work should attend to how exclusionary help-seeking is for certain groups. Write your reactions to what we have learned in the readings about this (not just your opinions here).
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