Running head: SOCIAL WORK
1
Social Work
Name -
SOCIAL WORK
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Who am I?
I am a registered nurse from India with seven years of experience under my belt. My interest in
social work inspired me to work in Canada as a community support work. The reason why I
chose to study social work is not merely to help people in my community but to allow me to
work with a group of professionals with similar interests as mine. Being part of a group of
professionals that are committed to enhancing the quality of life and wellbeing of others
especially those affected by social disadvantages is what inspired me to enroll in a social work
course.
One of the biggest questions that I have to deal with is “how do I know?” and how do I know
that I actually know. The sure way of answering the question is through my personal experience.
In my personal experience, the personal human need that is quite evident is the need to be right. I
have always wanted to be right in my views of the world around me especially things I hold to be
true, and I know they are the truth. I have validated this need by looking around my world and
finding things that are consistent with what I already know. I always wanted to believe that the
world was orderly. But this was not the need that I actually wanted in life but the need to be
consistent in what I already know. What I have discovered in my experience is that in order to
know the truth it is best to study a situation so that I can arrive at a meaningful conclusion and
this is how I know that social work is the sure way of understanding the world around me.
I believe the training that I will receive in the institution will provide me with enough knowledge
that will make me a professional throughout my career. The knowledge that I will get I believe
will provide me with a firm foundation in social work and help me navigate the field of social
work. Social work is not an easy career, and I know that in order to succeed I will have to be
different and equipped with the right skills. According to Witkin (2017), social work is about
SOCIAL WORK
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solving strong social problems, and this requires problem-solving abilities. To acquire problemsolving skills means I have to go through an education system that will allow me to have
different perspectives on a social problem (Ives, Sussman & Denov, 2015). As a nurse with
seven years of experience, I have had to handle a lot of medical situations, and this has allowed
me to develop exceptional analytical skills. With my excellent analytical skills, I believe the best
place of applying that knowledge is in social work.
In me believe about the ideas of same and different I strongly believe that men and women and
different but equal. After many years of male dominance, I now stand at the revolution of the
feminine era where women are empowered to rise to their rightful prominence in the world that
recognizes harmony between the women and men. To the contemporary world, I believe it is just
at the start of what can be termed as the true distinction between women and men. Despite the
physiological difference between men and women, there is also the difference in the way both
genders behave. I believe that in order to do away with the differences I have to do away with
my human subjectivity and look through a neutral spot and this way I would treat all genders the
same in my social work. I believe that both the man and woman originated from the same place
and there is no need to create boundaries between the two genders. For me, I am a staunch
feminist because I believe that the true liberation of both sexes comes through the feminist call
for an end to male dominance and all form of abuse. The male dominance is what brings about
social problems that need to be dealt with by a professional social worker. As a social worker, I
know the best way to address a social problem is getting to the root that distorts reality. The true
liberation for both men and women comes from seeking liberation that benefits humankind. I
believe that it is time to stand for the feminine era and when the feminine power is energized I
know women can face the masculine energy with equal force.
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In my understanding intersectionality is all about understanding one's privileges and oppressions
at the same time. For women, they face a lot of prejudice in the society mainly because of the
male dominance, and this places them at a disadvantaged position. In my case, I have to face
intersectionality on the basis of gender and race. For race and gender they do not exist as
independent, but instead, they inform each other and end up creating a complex web of
oppression. In my case, I am a qualified nurse from India, and I am black this has made it
difficult for me to secure the same job position as my white counterparts even though I am a
registered citizen. Adding more insult to my situation is the fact that I am female and this has
exposed me to multiple oppressions where I am paid less than my male counterparts. For me, I
find it difficult identifying with the issues of the mainstream feminist movements that is the
whites because the issues I face are different from theirs. I believe the sure way of understanding
intersectionality is through combatting the interlinked prejudices that people like me face every
day in life.
I believe that the core social work values are inherent to the success of any social work programs
and activities. My relationship to the social work values is that they give the moral foundation as
well as summarize the ethical principles that set the professional standards that guide my social
work practices. The social work values help me in my social work by identifying me to a
profession that is surrounded with legal and social conflicts of interest. As a social worker, my
goal is to help the public by assisting them in managing and resolving their social issues. As a
social worker, my values in helping the public is to elevate the public’s interests above my
personal gains and self-interests. From a legal perspective as a social worker, I know that I have
to stand strong to fight against social injustices. My role in helping the society fight social
injustices is sensitizing the public on social injustices and encouraging the public to embrace
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cultural and gender respect because I value the worth and dignity of each person. I believe it is
my duty to treat everyone in the society equally with compassion and respect and at the same
time respecting ethnic diversity and different cultural norms. My responsibility is to promote
social responsiveness for my clients and encourage them to change in order to face their own
needs and become more self-reliant. In social work I know I am aware of my responsibility to
my client, the organization I am working with and the law. The sure way of creating value to the
society I serve is through helping my clients and being more socially responsible.
Every day as a social worker I stand up for what is just and right especially for the marginalized
groups in the society. My best ethical self comes from six core social values that is: dignity,
worth of person, integrity, justice, competence and the value of human relationship. In life, I am
naturally inclined to help others, and this is what inspired me to be a nurse in the first place.
Service is the value proposition that I offer to the society. I sacrifice my personal interests and
use my education and experience to serve other people without even thinking twice. The reason
why I decided to become a nurse is that I would be able to serve the disadvantaged communities
that cannot afford quality health mostly the homeless, harassed and those who face all forms of
injustice. In my trained capacity I feel am ethically obligated to help the people who have been
disadvantaged in the society. My self-ethics is molded by dignity and worth of person. I believe
that everyone is different maybe in terms of culture or race but treating each other with dignity
promotes unity. By proving the worth of each person, I believe it is much easier for them to
address their needs and improve their current personal situations. My self-ethics holds me
accountable to the individual clients and the society as a whole as I seek solutions for my clients
and supporting the society’s interests.
SOCIAL WORK
References
Ives, N., Sussman, T., & Denov, M. (2015). Introduction to Social Work in Canada. Oxford
University Press.
Witkin, S. (2017). Transforming social work. Cengage.
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Running head: RACISM
1
Racism
Student’s Name
Institution Affiliation
RACISM
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Racism
My current social location is in Canada, a place where majority of the people I encounter
are racially distinct from me and this implies that I am bound to encounter different levels of
social oppression. I hold multiple identities which are fluid and keep changing all the time
depending upon the situation I deal with. I am woman of color, heterosexual, able bodied. Asian
woman As I said that I hold multiple Identities. At school I am a social work student and learn
about liberation and oppression, on the other hand , when I go home I am an Asian woman who
has to do all household work without complaining, no matter if you are tired. SO, my identities
are complex I believe. I chose to undertake my social work in this place because of its ethnic
and racial diversity that could guarantee the privilege to exercise all the skills I have acquired
and the codes of ethics in learnt as a social work student in trying to address racism as a form of
social oppression (Hulko 2009). As a woman of color, the white dominated society of Canada
will also expose me to the different forms of oppressions that are attributed to my inherent race
difference from the rest of the people that I will come across during this period.one thing that
makes this location be racially oppressive is the dominant belief that the whites are
predominantly more superior than the other races. I experience multiple oppressions as an
immigrant and cultural minority. The outfit I am wearing today is my cultural symbol which
ultimately separates me from other cultures. I do not feel comfortable wearing this outfit in
community on daily bases. I feel internalized oppression on this part because of my experiences
of past. For example- Whenever I wore this outfit out in community, I had to face weird
comments like hey you look colorful, where are you from etc, etc.
I experienced many stereotypes or may be I would say microaggressions about my race .
I feel so upset when someone call me east Indian. I usually correct people that I am from north
RACISM
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part of India and people of my culture are known for bravery, who played a big role in battle of
independence. When someone call me east Indian I feel that my Identity Is diminished. My
presence in this location will therefore heighten the notion because as a woman of color, I shall
have presented an aspect of comparison for the people I shall be interacting with during the
social work.
My future considerations with racism in the society is to ensure that I will apply to the
best of my ability all the skills and experiences that I have acquired so far to address the issue of
racism and ensure that all the people that I come across are able to see things differently. As a
social worker, it is my duty to promote social change in the various societies where I work, and
one means through which I can carry on with this mission is through strict adherence to the
stipulated codes of conduct and the standards of practice (Yee, J. Y., & Wagner 2013). I will
apply the codes of ethics in addressing the issue of racism in the society by challenging the
notion, by focusing on the oppressive trends which are attributed to racism such as
unemployment, poverty and discrimination. I will also promote the society’s wellbeing by acting
in ways that could not look down upon the people that will be coming for my assistance. I will
also advocate for people who are experiencing oppression by providing them with available
resources and work in collaboration with them to left them up to the level where they feel safe
and empowered by using power within and help them to find their hidden strengths.
Being a part of particular race, my identities also intersect with each other. Being a
female, I am oppressed from male persons of my family and community, where women are
meant to do all household work and take care of kids etc. This race I belong to is known as male
dominant society, where women are not allowed to take important decisions, even their own life,
I have my own story of getting married to a person of my dad’s choice.
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My identity as an immigrant also intersect with higher class of my own community.
People of my own community who are here far long time make their boundaries from
newcomers to maintain their higher status in society. My age also affects me somehow, younger
women of my culture get more opportunities than me, especially who are born here.
And yes, I definitely hold some privileges, One of them is my education (Which I believe
is my unearned privilege) some of my classmates in back home did not get that opportunity. my
education helps me to In my culture I am prevailed being tall women. I got more opportunities
than some other females in my back home. My friends who still live in India They feel that I am
more privileged than them that I got chance to live, work and study in a developed country.
My learning goals into the practice of the social work is to promote the common good for
people from all the races and promote unity and peaceful co-existence in the society. I also
intend to encourage intercultural cooperation and understanding by working with people whose
cultures and practices are completely distinct from each other (Ives, N., Sussman, T., & Denov
2015).
I will bring all my classmates who are racially different and make them understand why
they need to help in eradicating racism. Today I got a chance to speak that” What is different
about me”. I believe that there is no superior race and therefore all the races should be treated
equally. I consider racism and colorism to a challenge that I have to deal with whenever I am
presented in a setup where majority of the people, I associate with are of different race from
mine. Some of the gaps in ethics that I will address in working with racism will include integrity
and cultural awareness.
Through this course, I have been able to change my thinking regarding racism,
oppression, privileges and many other social aspects. For example, I have been made to realize
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that the inherent notion of racism is as a result of lack of understanding for the different aspects
of other races for lack of exposure. I have also leant that there are numerous privileges that an
individual can be presented with undergoing certain oppressive conditions. And as a social work
student I have learnt to liberate myself and Now I believe that “ Its ok to be different”
References
Hulko, Wendy. "The time-and context-contingent nature of intersectionality and interlocking
oppressions." Affilia 24.1 (2009): 44-55.
Ives, N., Sussman, T., & Denov, M. (2015). Introduction to Social Work in Canada. Oxford
University Press.
Yee, J. Y., & Wagner, A. E. (2013). Is anti-oppression teaching in Canadian social work
classrooms a form of neo-liberalism?. Social Work Education, 32(3), 331-348.
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