Social Work, White Supremacy, & Law Enforcement (Part 1)

For the past four months, we have met to discuss current events and life threatening issues affecting the country and our lives. This Thursday, June 25, our guests will address white supremacy within the social work profession and the latest suggestion by social work organizations that social work ought to join forces with law enforcement. White supremacy and police brutality are major problems of pandemic proportions, happening while we grapple with COVID-19. Where is social work in all of this? We will hold a two-part discussion (6/25 and 7/2).

 This week, two of our guests have submitted an Open Letter to NASW and Allied Organizations on Social Work’s Relationship with Law Enforcement. Our MSW and PhD students have also made public their deeply-held concerns about the state of social work education and the role of white supremacy within the social work profession. 

We will discuss these issues with a focus on individual, peer and family relations, and community organizing. Our overarching theme, Identity and Vulnerabilities, will be used to frame the discussion. 

Guests:

• Laura S. Abrams, PhD, Chair & Professor, UCLA Luskin Social Welfare
• Alan J. Dettlaff, PhD, Dean & Professor, University of Houston Graduate College of Social Work
• Jamie Simmons, MSW Student, Social Work, University of Michigan
• Nina Jackson, PhD Candidate, Joint Program, University of Michigan
• William D. Lopez, PhD: Clinical Assistant Professor, Public Health, University of Michigan 

Please join us!