Oppression and Social Justice
Bringing the XXX community to justice
My Name
XXX University
Human Rights
Professor XXX
March 9, 2013
Abstract
This paper describes my personal experience of volunteering and interviewing individuals at the XXX Community Center in Brooklyn during a service day in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. As I dissect my experience, I incorporate the ecosystsems perspective, microaggressions, the Just Practice Framework as well as other scholarly approaches. Additionally, I examine how each are tied to the XXX community and social justice. Furthermore, I discuss the white elephant in the room—no pun intended—which is the fact that I, the White social worker, am analyzing XXX, a mostly Black community. Along with this awareness, I discuss the various methods in which the role of a social worker can support the XXX community as they are brought to justice.
Social Justice involves all human beings being treated equally and with fairness--through policies, programs, and daily interactions—because every person shares the same value and worth regardless of their gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, abilities, and so on. Fortunately, our country has come a long way in “justice for all”; unfortunately, however, we have an incredibly long way to go. XXX is a neighborhood within Brooklyn which substantially suffered from Hurricane Sandy’s flooding and struggled with the aftermath of the storm with many homes and businesses enduring weeks without electricity and heat while temperatures regularly dropped below freezing. In honor of XXX 's recovery and of Martin Luther King, the XXX Community Center and AmeriCorps organized the Peace March of local community members with the intention to “be a visible reminder to the community and the participants that MLK 's legacy lives on and continues to be inspiration to overcome challenges” (“National day of service”, 2013). It was a moving experience to be a part of—people from all different walks of life came together for the
My Name
XXX University
Human Rights
Professor XXX
March 9, 2013
Abstract
This paper describes my personal experience of volunteering and interviewing individuals at the XXX Community Center in Brooklyn during a service day in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. As I dissect my experience, I incorporate the ecosystsems perspective, microaggressions, the Just Practice Framework as well as other scholarly approaches. Additionally, I examine how each are tied to the XXX community and social justice. Furthermore, I discuss the white elephant in the room—no pun intended—which is the fact that I, the White social worker, am analyzing XXX, a mostly Black community. Along with this awareness, I discuss the various methods in which the role of a social worker can support the XXX community as they are brought to justice.
Social Justice involves all human beings being treated equally and with fairness--through policies, programs, and daily interactions—because every person shares the same value and worth regardless of their gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, abilities, and so on. Fortunately, our country has come a long way in “justice for all”; unfortunately, however, we have an incredibly long way to go. XXX is a neighborhood within Brooklyn which substantially suffered from Hurricane Sandy’s flooding and struggled with the aftermath of the storm with many homes and businesses enduring weeks without electricity and heat while temperatures regularly dropped below freezing. In honor of XXX 's recovery and of Martin Luther King, the XXX Community Center and AmeriCorps organized the Peace March of local community members with the intention to “be a visible reminder to the community and the participants that MLK 's legacy lives on and continues to be inspiration to overcome challenges” (“National day of service”, 2013). It was a moving experience to be a part of—people from all different walks of life came together for the
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