Social Justice Goals

Social work is based on respect for the inherent worth and dignity of all people as expressed in the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights(1948) It is therefore of paramount importance that a social work professional should work towards promoting the best interests of individuals and groups in society. I very much recognize the contribution that social work brings to inclusion having worked alongside social workers during the course of my shadowing placement. I possess a real commitment to promote equality which I have had the pleasure of doing in a multitude of different roles. From academic journals as well as my lecture notes I now appreciate the central importance of using the fundamental principles of human rights and equality to underpin my practice, and the inherent need to promote justice in relation with the people I will work.

the sense of responsibility for each other's welfare, social justice can never be attained (Lewis, 2012).” This quotation by her simplifies my own idea of what social justice is about. I feel a sense of responsibility for other’s welfare and I want to work with people using the field of social work to achieve progress toward my own goal of social justice.

The goal of a social worker is to help others in tackling whatever problems they are currently facing and pairing them with the appropriate resources needed so that they can lead a productive and healthy life. A social worker lives by a strong value system that is referred to as social justice. According to the National Association of Social Workers (NASW), “Social justice is the view that everyone deserves equal economic, political, and social rights and opportunities,” (2015, para. 2). Paul Loeb, author of the book Soul of a Citizen, writes moving stories of ordinary people who inspire others to want to be better citizens. This paper will be a reflection on how the book made me feel, the affect it has had on my formation as a social worker, any experiences I have had in social justice advocacy and what vision I have of myself as a social justice social worker.

Before beginning the Master of Social Work program at Laurier I figured I had a strong understanding of what social work was. However, I quickly learned that I had only scratched the surface. I knew oppression existed, but I never understood the depth of it. I now know that I was afraid of it. It was easy for me to stay silent, because it was such a comfortable position to be in. Doing nothing meant I had nothing to lose and everything to gain. This was influenced by the privilege I had.

I am interested in the Socially Justice Coordinator position because I want to make sure that various voices are heard around campus. At a predominately white institution, it is very easy for the dominant perspective to be that of a white male, and I want to be a socially conscious coordinator to ensure that the voices of other people don't get muted out by the majority. I have a very personal connection to this goal because I am member of the minority group on campus ,being that I am a black female, so a lot of these issues will hit home for me and draw out my personal passion and commitment. Not only do I want to be a Socially Conscious coordinator to bring to the table some of my own experiences and ideas ,but I also want bring to light the perspective of others that I don't have a lot of have to first-hand experience with, such as members of the LGBTQ+ community, people who suffer from mental health issues ,other minority groups. I believe that it is important to show and represent the perspective of as many people that we can so that the students at the University of Georgia can gain a well-rounded perspective that allows them to be better stewards in this multi-cultural world that we live in. In order to achieve this goal, I will bring to this position my creativity to develop fun, engaging, and beneficial events, my knack of marketing to help spread the word of the socially conscious

speaking up as a victim of social injustice is the first crucial step toward social change. Visa,

A general definition of social justice is hard to arrive at and even harder to implement. In essence, social justice is concerned with equal justice, not just in the courts, but in all aspects of society. This “concept demands that people have equal rights and opportunities; everyone, from the poorest person on the margins of society to the wealthiest deserves an even playing field” (http://www.wisegeek.org/what-is-social-justice.htm). Sturman (1997) notes that theorising about social justice is reflected in recent debates about equity and equality, adding ‘the concept of “social justice” ... is not clearly defined (in fact, the term is often used as a synonym for “equal” opportunities or “equity”)’ (p.1). Thus, the notion of equity often replaces politically motivated conceptions of equality, and social justice reframed in this way is deemed as necessary for democratic life (Theophanous, 1994). This element of social justice involves recognition that there will always be some people in society who will need a lot of support and assistance, no matter how much education, training, encouragement or coercion is provided. There are people who have severe difficulties in understanding or communicating or organising their daily lives. This includes many people with a mental illness, other disabilities, literacy problems and other learning difficulties

A common theme that has been mentioned in the discussion is the idea of equality. After reading the required materials and watching the videos, I believe that Social Justice means just that. It is the idea that every individual within society will be treated fair. Social Justice is the understanding that no matter the color of skin, race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, a person needs to be treated no different. We live in a society where unfortunately, people who go against what is considered the “social norm,” must parade, fight, and protest in order to be identified as an equal. It is interesting, yet sad, to see how inconsistent social justice is when the idea of travel bans are being put in place so that certain minorities may not

Today I had the opportunity to go to the social justice conference that was being held on campus. I chose to attend the Question and Answer section of the conference because it was the section that best worked for my schedule. I originally thought that this was going to be a boring conference where older people sat down and talked about how times have changed. To my surprise it was actually quite enjoyable and the hour seemed to go by with a blink of an eye. In this reflection I am gonna to share with you how the conference was different from what I expected, what it talked about and some of the people who were on the panel.

I have always taken pride in my social justice pursuits. Nevertheless, I was prone to a common pitfall: attempting to speak for a community of which I wasn't a part. While denouncing the practice, I didn’t realize it in myself until my Urban Research and Design class this spring.

Social justice is equal and full participation of all members of a society that is shaped to meet their needs (Bell, 2013). Social justice also includes “a vision of society in which the distribution of resources is equitable, and all members are physically and psychologically safe and secure” (2013, p. 21). Unfortunately, social justice is simply a vision, because dichotomies are ever present and prominent within society (Kaufman, 2008). However, there is a path to promote social justice within society. Thereby, to promote social justice within society by reconstructing “institutions and policies based on fairness, equity, and justice” (Adams, 2013, p.1), there must be an understanding of the origins of the injustices and an understanding

Social justice is not an “us versus them” mentality; rather it is a “were in it together” mentality where the powerful and powerless work together. Obviously those who are in need are the poor and oppressed: women, African-Americans, Jews, Latin Americans, etc. However, due to the fact that these people are in these oppressive situations, they gain insight into the injustices that surround them specifically, and society in general. Although they are made poor by those in power and the structures, institutions, and organizations run by those in power, they still possess “strength to resist, capacity to understand their rights, [and the ability] to organize themselves and transform a subhuman situation (Boff, 1)”. The poor and oppressed are held above the rich and powerful, in other words are given preferential treatment. Due to their oppression in life,

The rich is getting richer and the poor is getting the poorer. The gap between the rich and poor not only persists, but continues to widen and the ideology justifying it has managed to be pervasive. Social workers are charged with the responsibility of bringing to public notice the values, attitudes, behaviours and social structures and economic imperatives that cause or contribute to the oppression of human welfare and rights. They are further charged with the duty to respond, with passion and hope, to human need wherever and however it is manifested, and to work towards the attainment of social justice for individuals, groups and communities in a local and global context. (Chenoweth & McAuliffe, 2012, p. 16)

One of the roles of a social worker is to generate change that will benefit the client. Human rights law reminds us that each of us deserves a fair standard of living. The semantic of social justice holds each of us obligated to help build the world in which we want to live. As a practicum student seeing rights and obligations as a codependent to one another is beneficial to both the clients and I. The article is relevant to this competency because the article discusses the characteristic of human rights and social justice. Having a right does us little good if no individual, community, or government bears responsibility for ensuring our access to that right. However, there would be little incentive to take on obligations toward another person if we did not fundamentally believe in that person’s right to a certain standard of living.The authors discuss how the concepts of social and economic justice. The authors address some of the dilemmas and challenges facing social workers in both Canada and the United States as they promote the fulfilment of human needs and address human rights in unfair conditions. The concepts of social and economic justice and human rights are interconnected yet distinct. Knowing the difference between the concepts of social and economic justice and human rights is essential to providing effective service to the client.

Chapter 8 reminds us of the four essential components of social justice and advocacy that we must implement within our classroom environment to achieve successful outcomes for all students. First is being able to continue challenging misconceptions, untruths, and stereotypes. Second, is providing all students with the necessary material and emotional resources to learn effectively. The third is having the ability to draw on students’ talents and strengths to enhance their education through real world experiences. Lastly, is being able to create a learning environment that promotes rigor, critical thinking, and supports agency for social change.