Trabajo social en el contexto neoliberal global: solidaridad y resistencia desde una perspectiva radical

Neoliberal capitalism has had a brutal impact in terms of increasing inequality throughout the world. This is closely related to the mental health problems growing among the general population, including social workers. In this article, I propose that there cannot be critical social work based genuinely on the search for social justice that does not emphasize human relationships; nor can there be social work based on human relationships that does not aspire to the promotion of social justice on a structural level. To argue around this position, discussions about neoliberalism and its impact on human relationships are addressed as a broad framework to think about social work today. The professional past is problematized and the current conditions in which the intervention of social workers takes place are analysed, which lead to reecting on the possibility of resistance. Based on the analysis of the acts of resistance of social workers in some European countries, a radical project of social work is proposed, which puts solidarity and care at the centre as a transforming impulse in our societies.El capitalismo neoliberal ha impactado de manera brutal en términos del incremento de la desigualdad en todo el mundo. Esto tiene una estrecha relación con los problemas de salud mental que enfrenta de manera creciente la población en general, incluyendo a las/os trabajadores sociales. En este artículo planteo que no puede haber un trabajo social crítico, basado genuinamente en la búsqueda de la justicia social, que no ponga énfasis en las relaciones humanas; y que tampoco puede haber un trabajo social basado en las relaciones humanas que no aspire a la promoción de la justicia social en un plano estructural. Para argumentar en torno a esta posición, se abordan discusiones sobre el neoliberalismo y su impacto en las relaciones humanas como un marco amplio para pensar a trabajo social hoy. Se problematiza el pasado profesional y se analizan las condiciones actuales en que se produce la intervención de las/os trabajadores sociales, para pensar desde allí la posibilidad de la resistencia. En base al análisis de los actos de resistencia del trabajo social en algunos países europeos, se propone un proyecto radical de trabajo social, que pone al centro la solidaridad y el cuidado como impulso transformador en nuestras sociedades.perspectivas nos permiten considerar al lenguaje como principio ordenador y evidenciar la emergencia y actualidad del enfoque interpretativo. Planteamos esta lectura justamente porque consideramos que al trabajo social le ha costado, y le cuesta, incluirse en esta perspectiva, pese a las arraigadas tradiciones tanto técnico-instrumentales como teórico-epistémicas que abogan o promulgan la importancia de la interpretación. El final del texto abre a nuevas interrogantes, antes que a respuestas formalmente elaboradas. El punto de apertura y cierre, en espiral, es la reflexividad y la crítica

Practising social work in a ‘stateless state’; an exploration of the views, experiences and practice of children and family social workers in the West Bank and East Jerusalem

In over 65 years of conflict that followed the creation of Israel and the subsequent occupation of Palestinian land, the official international organizations representing the profession of social work have been in a state of avoidance with regards to dealing with crucial questions about social work under occupation. Until, last year hardly any relevant statement could be traced in the archives of the International Federation of Social Workers and the International Association of Social Workers referring to this issue. This article attempts to provide an initial exploration of the views and every-day professional lives of children and family social workers in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. The authors investigate and reflect on the challenges and opportunities Palestinian social workers face while working in the context of military conflict. There is a particular focus on the impact of the occupation of Palestinian lands and the experiences of trauma affecting children who seek the support of social services

La crisis de los Refugiados en Grecia: El desarrollo del racism. Respuestas antirracistas e implicaciones para el Trabajo Social

Racism in Greece across time, has been constructed through social divisions and legitimized via violent and punitive policies. Reflecting on the historical development of racism and with a special focus on the current refugee crisis, this paper provides insights into the profession’s ambiguous role that is called to undertake in the implementation of unjust and oppressive policies and reproduction of social inequalities. Based on the anti-racist and solidarity paradigm that has risen especially during the crisis, the discussion indicates the urgent need for social work to resist and struggle against racism via anti-oppressive action both at micro and macro levels.El racismo en Grecia se ha venido construyendo a lo largo del tiempo a través de divisiones sociales y su legitimación se ha producido a raíz de políticas punitivas y violentas: Reflexionar acerca del desarrollo histórico del racismo poniendo el énfasis en la actual crisis de los refugiados es la clave del presente artículo. Junto a ello se reflexiona acerca del papel ambiguo que en ocasiones desempeña la profesión del trabajo social en este ámbito cuando a menudo sin pretenderlo contribuye a implementar políticas injustas y a reproducir desigualdades sociales. Basado en los paradigmas antiracista y de solidaridad que han emergido especialmente en los tiempos de crisis, la discusión de este artículo apunta a la urgente necesidad para el trabajo social de resistir contra el racismo por medio de una acción antiopresiva tanto a nivel macro como a nivel micro.Racism in Greece across time, has been constructed through social divisions and legitimized via violent and punitive policies. Reflecting on the historical development of racism and with a special focus on the current refugee crisis, this paper provides insights into the profession’s ambiguous role that is called to undertake in the implementation of unjust and oppressive policies and reproduction of social inequalities. Based on the anti-racist and solidarity paradigm that has risen especially during the crisis, the discussion indicates the urgent need for social work to resist and struggle against racism via anti-oppressive action both at micro and macro levels

Lessons learnt while integrating services for children: qualitative interviews with professional stakeholders

Background In the English NHS, integrated care is seen as an opportunity to deliver joined-up care for children and families. This paper examines the lessons learnt by professional stakeholders in the process of developing different examples of integrated models of care/frameworks for children’s services. Methods Initial desk research was undertaken to identify different examples of integrated care models and systems/frameworks for children’s services. This identified forty-three examples in England. Of these, twelve examples were shortlisted after consultation with the senior managers within the Health and Care Partnership that had commissioned the research, and a more detailed online search for published documents was undertaken. Semi-structured qualitative interviews were then conducted with sixteen professional stakeholders in eight of these examples, ranging from one to four interviewees per example. Interviews focused on the lessons learnt from integrating and transforming services. Data were analysed using framework analysis. Results The eight examples vary in their design but have several broad commonalities. A number of common themes and learning have emerged, of which two were identified within all eight examples: the first is about focusing on children and young people; the second is about focusing on partner engagement and collaboration and the importance of building trust and relationships between partners. A number of other important themes also emerged together with several challenges. Conclusions A number of common factors were identified that are essential to success in integrating health and care systems. Common across all localities were being child-centric and focusing on child outcomes plus the importance of building trust, engagement and relationships with partners. The findings can help health and care system leaders transform services to ensure efficiency, improvement in services and integration

‘Educating for peace’: conflict, division and social work education in Cyprus

Social work practice and training in the context of political and ethnic conflict has seen renewed interest among scholars. Recent research has tried to shift focus away from simplistic interpretations of social work as an unshakably ‘benevolent’ profession. A recent emphasis on social work’s colonial legacies and the structural causes of political violence provide us with important new directions on how to rethink and reshape social work education and practice in these contexts. Cyprus presents a very interesting, yet under-explored, case study as it remains an island de facto divided, along ethnic lines. The division has resulted in the physical and political separation of the two most populous ethnic communities (Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots). United Nations (UN)-sponsored peace talks have gained momentum in recent years. This paper offers the first systematic exploration of the views of social work students across both sides of the divide. Through a mixed-method approach, students were able to express their thoughts and beliefs on ‘the other’ and on social work in the post-conflict realities. The study confirms the contradictory nature of social work education in Cyprus challenges the futility of nationalism and argues for the importance of bi-communal social work partnerships

Challenge and opportunity: Making sense of the ‘first lockdown’ experience of families with young children and health and social care practitioners in Southend-on-Sea (the United Kingdom)

COVID-19 has had a significant and measurable impact on individuals and families in economically deprived areas both in the United Kingdom and internationally. This article examines issues of community resilience and service adaptability and focuses on the period during the first lockdown in the United Kingdom (May to July 2020). Data were collected from members of the local community in Southend, with specific reference to the ‘A Better Start Southend’ programme of support. The evidence presented in this article uncovers the impact of the ‘first lockdown’ on families with young children, and local children’s and community services

‘Neither invisible nor abnormal!’ Exploring the invisibility and pathologisation of LGBT people in the Greek National Health System

This article presents findings from a research study aiming at exploring in-depth experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) individuals and communities in the Greek healthcare system. This was the first study of its kind in Greece. Data collected from interviews with LGBT groups and individuals, as well as doctors, suggest that homophobia and transphobia are profound factors of systematic exclusion and restriction from access to good quality healthcare. Our findings suggest that within the healthcare context, LGBT people are routinely invisibilised and/or pathologised. The authors emphasise the urgent need for challenging chronic and institutionalised invisibility experienced by LGBT people as a necessary precondition of social equality and genuine universalism within the Greek Health System

Social work for critical peace: A comparative approach to understanding social work and political conflict

This paper uses a case study approach to explore issues of social work policy and practice in three sites of political conflict in Europe: Northern Ireland; Bosnia and Herzegovina; and Cyprus. It begins with a review of the international literature on social work and political conflict and then discusses the strengths and limitations in engaging with comparative case study approaches. The authors explain how they view the writing of the paper as an intellectual encounter that helped establish the beginning stages of their comparative analysis. This starts with an analysis of the existing knowledge base about the three case studies that each share similar patterns of colonial histories, political and community conflict and the social work response. The second part of the paper extends this analysis to a critique of the impact of neo-liberal social and economic policies that often adversely impact upon the role of social workers in resolving conflict and building peace. The paper concludes with an appeal for social work to rediscover its rights-based role in working with victims and survivors of political conflict, what the authors describe as: ‘social work for critical peace’

A critical examination of the political construction and function of Greek social work

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