National Association of Social Workers

From the President

Weaving the Fabrics of Diversity

By Elvira Craig de Silva, DSW, ACSW

NASW began as a merger of seven distinct social work groups and has been weaving together the threads of social work's diverse practice areas for more than 50 years. Not only are we diverse in ethnicity and culture; we are also diverse in our experiences, our abilities and our interests.

Last year taught us that racism, poverty and anti-immigration policies are weakening our country's rich fabric. They threaten the integrity of NASW's fabric as well. This is what my presidential initiative, "Weaving the Fabrics of Diversity," is focused on addressing.

Social workers are thinking about these issues. Discussions at several NASW events in 2005 laid the groundwork for my initiative.

At the Social Work Congress, 400 social work leaders had a two-day discussion of what should drive the profession in the next decade. The congress identified 12 social work imperatives, two of which addressed racism:

• "Address the impact of racism, other forms of oppression, social injustice, and other human rights violations through social work education and practice.
• "Continuously acknowledge, recognize, confront, and address pervasive racism within social work practice at the individual, agency, and institutional levels."

The 2005 Delegate Assembly created renewed urgency to deal with issues of inclusion and diversity. When the Assembly did not approve a program priority goal that specifically addressed diversity issues, numerous social work members of color directly challenged the association leadership to "act upon those issues that it says are important."

After hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the experiences of too many poor people and people of color sparked painful, but necessary, conversations at NASW and everywhere about race, poverty and immigration. NASW's board began crafting a deliberate plan to ensure that NASW represents, welcomes and supports the broadest cross-section of social workers and stands up for the rights of all marginalized people. Board members then made a firm commitment to address these issues through a targeted initiative.

While the Diversity Initiative is new, our proud social work history and related NASW policies have made our positions clear. We do, however, have a new opportunity to make this already diverse fabric richer and stronger with new commitments and refocused energy.

NASW's current policy statement on racism begins, "Racism is pervasive in U.S. society and remains a silent code that systematically closes the doors of opportunity to many individuals." As social workers, we work hard to eradicate racism through our professional training and advocacy. Yet we must admit that racism is pervasive still. We see it every time we look at new research that shows disparities aligned with racial and ethnic differences.

NASW's statement on economic policy continues to ring true. It reads, "A country's economic system should be evaluated according to its consequences for the fulfillment of people's intrinsic needs. By these standards, the U.S. economy is in deep trouble, because the basic human needs of an ever-increasing number of people are not being met." Social workers and NASW have always been on the front lines working to mitigate the effects of poverty, but we must do more. Poverty in this country is real and is a widening hole in our American fabric.

Lastly, immigration weaves the frayed threads of poverty and racism with strings of fear. As a country, we tend to become protectionists when we perceive newcomers as a threat to our financial status and way of life. Immigrants easily become "terrorists," "criminals" and "free-loaders" instead of contributors. The generosity of the past gets trampled by the fears of the present.

Social workers always have been instrumental in helping newcomers make the transition into American society and helping communities embrace increased diversity. We can't allow questionable political motives and re-energized fears to weaken the exceptional experiment in true diversity called American democracy.

For my presidential initiative, I have created a task force charged with establishing a framework, identifying key components and proposing an implementation plan.

As individuals, what we say and do affects our colleagues and the people we serve. Let's make sure that everything we do helps weave stronger and more vibrant threads into the already rich fabric that is social work and NASW.

To comment to Elvira Craig de Silva: president@naswdc.org

From September 2006 NASW News. © 2006 National Association of Social Workers. All Rights Reserved. NASW News articles may be copied for personal use, but proper notice of copyright and credit to the NASW News must appear on all copies made. This permission does not apply to reproduction for advertising, promotion, resale, or other commercial purposes.