Mary Marrone
Professor Chavez
SOWK 536
10 September 2015
The Clash of Cultures
The importance for social workers to understand communities from a professional perspective is to help eliminate any potential bias and emotional and/or physical attachment to the studied community. At the same time, the social worker views the studied community through the lens of residents living within that community without clouded judgment and fulfillment of personal agenda. This understanding helps the community generally and/or the specific families living within it link to the macro level of social work; where the social worker acts as a liaison (or linkage) between the studied community and policy makers. The benefit of this linkage between the mezzo and macro level can generate the flow of revenue within the studied community. But one must ask, what gets lost through this linkage? Some may argue that the dominating policies, laws, and or regulations (Budget) of white heteronormative society can lose historical and cultural context.
MacArthur Park, which is located in the Westlake Neighborhood of Los Angeles California, was named after General Douglas MacArthur. Westlake is a neighborhood located in the Central L.A. region of Los Angeles County. Communities that neighbor Westlake include Downtown, East Hollywood, Echo Park, Koreatown, Pico-Union and Silver Lake.
Wilshire Boulevard divides the park in two. The lake is located on the southern side, while the venues for
The city of Los Angeles is not a unified city. Los Angeles consists of too many large sub cities or communities to speak with one voice. There are many sub cities in LA such as the Westside, Hollywood, the Valley, Downtown, and of course, South Central. To make things more difficult, many of these sub cities themselves are not unified. Due to their size, all
The structures of society become the structure of our own consciousness. Society does not stop at the surface our skins. Society penetrates us” (Berger, 1966). Social workers must be aware about how “discriminatory culture can subtly but powerfully influence” (Thompson, 2001) them. They therefore should ensure that they are culturally aware and also prevent their own social values and culture norms from attempting to influence, discriminate or oppress any service user. In addition to this, social workers must appreciate and avoid whenever possible ‘light-hearted’ discriminatory humour as it may influence their practice and illustrate to their service user that they are supporting and reinforcing societies oppressive ideologies; which for many service users may be seen as offensive and may cause communication and trust between the social worker and service user to deteriorate. The third level of Thompson’s PCS model ‘S’ is the ‘structural level’ which “relates to the ways in which oppression and discrimination are institutionalised and thus ‘sewn in’ to the fabric of society.” (Thompson, 2001)
The Indian tribes of America created cultures that still exist in America today. The Mayas and Aztecs of Central America established empires that supported agriculture and long-distance trade. The Mayas created a calendar in silver, copper, gold and pearls. Then Mayas then founded the city of Tenochtitlan and built roads that encompassed about 5 million people. The natives of North America were nomadic, the Adena-Hopwell, Mississippian and Anasazi cultures emerged. There were approximately 240 different tribes speaking in different languages and they were primarily fishers and hunters. The Anasazi established trading centers that were sustained by comprehensive agriculture. The Chibchas and Incas created an empire similar to the Aztecs but on a smaller scale in the south. The Incas created a huge empire with as many as 12 million people and had a vast realm that stretched over 2,500 miles along the Andes Mountains. They had fertile farms, interconnected network of roads, and enduring buildings.
This piece of writing is going to demonstrate an understanding of diversity, difference and also discuss the implications for social work practice. It will include an understanding of theories and concepts in relation to diversity where it will address the needs of diverse communities, individuals and groups, exploring differences in relation to culture, ethnicity, gender, age, sexuality, social class and economic wellbeing. It will also demonstrate an understanding of principle of working in an anti-oppressive and anti-discriminatory way.
History serves to educate us about our past and guide the future. As social workers it is important to understand the history of our profession in order to appreciate how the current practices came into being and in turn how our history affects our current practice. To adequately serve the various populations, we must understand the historical oppression and discrimination they faced so we can provide culturally competent service delivery. This essay will compare and contrast the origins of micro and macro social work practice and how they are reflected in modern practice.
White Rock Lake is an enchanting area of dallas surrounding the ever-popular white rock lake in central dallas. neighborhoods in the area consist a variety of home styles from eras gone by from cozy 1940s bungalows and 1950s ramblers to 1960s modern homes and luxurious plantation-style mansions and estates. white rock lake neighborhoods includes casa linda, casa view, chapel hill, shore acres, the cloisters, west lawther drive and lakewood. This beautiful area is rich and history and a central recreation location for all of dallas.
Balancing two different cultures is a thing that most people from immigrant and/or strong culturally, traditionally rooted families have come accustom to. Over the years they have learned about things that they should or should not do when dealing with a certain culture. For instance, someone who comes from a very conservative family doesn’t wear revealing clothes, unless they are out with their friends and know that their family won’t see them. On contrast people, who don’t have more than one culture might not understand why you cover up so much in front of your parents.
The story of the destruction of Chavez Ravine began and ended with the city council of Los Angeles, not the Los
The “Collision of Cultures” is a clash of cultures or values. The “Collision of Cultures” and the exchange of commodities between American Indians and Europeans influenced the origins and patterns of development of North American societies in the colonial period by having the cultures religions, ideas, values, and people spread back and forth throughout the world. In 1491, Europeans were looking for routes to India and other Asian nations. Instead found “The New World” but the Europeans wanted it for themselves. So, they tried pushing out the natives forcefully and killed many in the process. Some colonies were living side by side with the American Indians if they followed laws and religion. Europeans just started creating colonies and cities
To develop, encourage, and embrace cultural consciousness, students in third grade will work together to create a multicultural environment, where the teacher will help students develop a positive attitude towards different race, ethic and cultural groups, in addition each student will receive equal educational opportunities (1997). Countries and Cultures Around the World is an integrated social studies unit that will promote an atmosphere of inquiry in the classroom and help students gain a broader appreciation for other cultures. The unit is comprised of interdisciplinary lessons, with activities that teach social studies, literacy (reading and writing), art and music.
Rebellion and turmoil were increasing among these cultures because of farming, for corn, water, tobacco and crops in the lands. At times Jamestown needed Native Americans to survive their arrival at the fort, during their dark suffering times regardless of conflicting events. The slaughter of the 357 colonists crippled Jamestown and ran the Virginia Company of London to the ground. The new leadership implemented in Jamestown was known as the “House of Burgesses.” This newfound order was headed by king, but allowed the colonists to have its own government and voice (Schultz, 2012, Ch. 2, p. 33). As the Native Americans seen the newcomers (Colonist) grew slowly in new numbers, and the motives to obtain the land were growing. And war after war was started for land possessions. The Native Americans Killed and massacred a total of 357 colonist. In return, Colonist needed to
The identities that each person possesses is influenced according to their attitudes, values and beliefs embedded in their culture. When people hear the word cult, the images of satan worshipping, animal sacrifices and evil, pagan rituals automatically come to mind. However, in reality, the majority of cults do not involve these things and are in fact simply a religious system with alternate beliefs. The word though refers to an unorthodox sect whose members distort the original doctrines of the religion. Heaven’s Gate is a cult that is centred in California, founded by Marshall Herff Applewhite and Bonnie Nettles in 1993. They are a UFO based ‘destructive doomsday’ cult who believed that evil space aliens called ‘Luciferians’ had kept
The movie Fools Rush In is a great example of how gender as well as cultural differences can hinder communication in a multicultural society. Fools Rush In is about two people, Alex and Isabel, who come from two different cultural backgrounds who after a one night stand become pregnant and decide to get married. However, along with the marriage come compromises that include cultural traditions and personal sacrifices. The movie is a comedy but can also be viewed as romantic and shows how two people who love each other can resolve the issues of cultural and gender differences.
These Ecological concepts demographics, competition, segregation and integration can help social workers analyze a community in terms of its fairness and support to all of its members. One of the strengths gathered from this perspective is that it allows for the issues to be identified and it implements change as needed. The Human Ecology perspective can help frame subsequent questions like how to change the situation. It has concern for the individuals within the community but its main focus is on the environment. With the focus on the environment it will be better to determine why people behave the way they do. One of the concepts of this perspective is also one of tis strengths and that is when integration occurs. Members will come together and function as a whole. However, this theory does have its weaknesses. For one when the demographics mentioned are becoming unlivable members will compete and segregate themselves. This causes the community to always be in chaos. Viewing communities from a Human Ecology perspective it provides a useful assessment mechanism for understanding why people act as they do within the context of the larger community macro system.
When dealing with an intercultural conflict, it is important to keep in mind the cultural differences that keep either side from approaching the situation in the same manner. This paper will illustrate a conflict between a Vietnamese teacher and an American teacher. It will then explain the way that the Vietnamese culture views conflict. Followed by the way an American would view conflict. Finally, it will explain how both sides could proceed when dealing with another intercultural conflict. This example of conflict appears to be very simple but given that the Vietnamese culture is a collectivist culture; it can be very complicated.