ipl-logo

Focused On The Power Of Privilege And Oppression

1179 Words5 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Cultural competence components

I’ve been so consumed and focused on the power I do not have and the oppression I have experienced because I am African American. I have failed to recognize the privileges I experience due to being Christian. Privilege involves unearned rights and advantages solely based on membership in a cultural group. Christians have several advantages because the presumption that the belief in Christianity is a social norm; this can often exclude the traditions and values of other religions through institutional religious discrimination. (Blumenfeld, 2006) As a Christian, it is guaranteed that I get Christmas off work without justification because it is a national holiday. I love the fact that during Christmas time, I can hear Christmas music on the radio …show more content…

It’s discouraging to see people of the Islamic faith being threatened or being victims of violence because of their religious faith, fortunately; I do not have this problem. What is it about some people that they have such a pressing psychological need to feel superior to someone in society? There are men who need women to be inferior, Christians who need non-Christians to be inferior, religious believers who need non-believers and atheists to be inferior, citizens who need foreigners to be inferior, and heterosexuals who need gays to be inferior. Why can 't those who are different be equal in their differences? However, I do believe that Christians are losing privileges; we are losing the ways in which we had previously been treated better than everyone else. It 's not unlike the controversial topic of the elimination of "white privilege". Religious privilege and especially Christian privilege is one of the few traditional privileges that continue to be openly defended in modern …show more content…

According to Sue (2005),
“A culturally competent social worker is one who is actively in the process of becoming aware of his or hers assumptions about human behavior, values, biases, preconceived notions, and personal limitations.” (Sue, 2005) I work with many individuals with varied race, ethnicity, national origin, color, sex, sexual orientation, age, marital status, political belief, religion and mental or physical disability that are different from my personal identity and I do not find it difficult for me to educate myself and seek understanding the nature of their social diversity and oppression. In fact, I find it intriguing learning about their backgrounds. However, on occasions their values may conflict with my values and when this occurs it is vital for me to remind myself that my ultimate goal is to improve the quality of life and enhance their well-being. For instance, I had an African American adolescent client that was in foster care who wanted to break her family cycle by graduating from high school and pursuing higher education, which was the deciding factor for her wanting to terminate her pregnancy. As an African American woman I understood her decision, however; as a Christian woman I could not support it. Despite my beliefs, I gave her all the necessary

Show More
Related
525 Words | 3 Pages

I think that as social workers we should be aware and respect the different cultures that we will be in contact and work together. with. I suggest including on the intake forms there

Read More
720 Words | 3 Pages

As a witness for blacks who were voiceless and ignored, he speaks out against the white church for saying little about slavery and racial justice. His passion for social justice comes from growing up in Arkansas in the Jim Crow era. The memories of his father and lynch mobs never left him. Black church comforted him, but made him wonder. “If the white churches are Christian, how come they segregate us?

Read More
1504 Words | 7 Pages

This article explains how this lack of awareness is unethical in social work practice and can cause clients great harm. Social workers need skills to assess clients’ entire systems. If ignored, social workers may echo society’s oppression by assuming that clients need to change, rather than working for societal change. This research also warns us that on the other hand, lack of cultural competence can also lead to overcompensation by social workers; clinicians may spend too much time focusing on culture or may excuse dysfunctional behavior. Child disciplines and physical abuse in immigrant Latino families; Reducing violence and misunderstanding.

Read More
1204 Words | 5 Pages

In black theology the goal is to discern what God is up to and how God is working on behalf of the downtrodden and fighting for them against their oppressors. This line of thinking led Cone to make the bold claim, which must have been quite shocking and offensive, especially to white Christians in the late 60s and early 70s, that “any message that is not related to the liberation of the poor in the society is not Christ 's message,” which for him meant that “Christian theology must become Black Theology” that has as its primary consideration the needs of the oppressed and marginalized in society

Read More
443 Words | 2 Pages

Privilege is a strong word it is define as “a special right advantage, or immunity granted or available only to a particular person or group of people”. How has privilege shaped my life, by dealing with race, by being an African American it a privilege to be free and not bond to someone like my ancestors had to go through in the slave days. John Blake mention in his article It’s time to talk about ‘black privilege’ , that being black we have privilege it gave an example, “Black History month congress had passed a sweeping civil right act 1875 that band discrimination”(J.Blake).yes, I agree with him that a great privilege to have and be able celebrate the great things or ancestors did and how they pave the way for African American. Privilege

Read More
970 Words | 4 Pages

For centuries, Christianity has been used by white supremacists as a tool of oppression against people of color. More recently, Christianity has been used to justify the subjugation of black people through their enslavement and later segregation. Despite this, the black community has often been attracted to Christianity, “the religion of their oppressors,” for numerous reasons, including the hope for liberation (Brown Douglas xii). Black people raised in the Christian tradition have also rejected the religion in recognition of its unjust qualities. The challenge facing black Christians and those who deny white supremacy is whether to have faith in the liberating and positive aspects of Christianity, or to doubt the religious institution in light of its history of oppression.

Read More
264 Words | 2 Pages

Within the profession of occupational therapy, practitioners come across many individuals from varying backgrounds as clients or as teammates. For this purpose it is important to be culturally competent because it helps in treatment of individuals we may be working with regularly. In addition, being culturally competent helps prepare the OT practitioner for how mental health or other conditions are viewed in an individual's culture which will also impact the approach to treatment. One of the main obstacles I may see if the language barrier which may limit the amount of information the practitioner can receive from the client.

Read More
1353 Words | 6 Pages

Personal Identity and Managing Personal Values Who I identify as, the groups that I belong to, and the values I have will knowingly and unknowingly attach a level of privilege and power that can and will impact my professional identity and the work I do as a professional. The purpose of this paper is to examine how my identity could impact my work as a social worker, how my personal values conflict with my professional values, and to recall a time when I reduced the participation in oppression. The groups of which I belong can impact my ability to help individuals and communities in a number of ways.

Read More
96 Words | 1 Pages

As a woman of color, I believe it is essential that I become aware of my own biases in order to help individuals that have different beliefs, values, and cultural practices. When I was done completing the “Multicultural Counseling Competencies: A Self Examination” assessment, I became aware of my strengths, weaknesses, and areas where I need to grow as a future college counselor. To begin with, I notice that I questioned myself continuously whether I take the time to evaluate the limits of my competency when helping a student from a different cultural heritage from mine.

Read More
547 Words | 3 Pages

Allegory and Symbolism of “The Masque of the Red Death” The Masque of the Red Death is a story of symbolism and allegory. Everything from the arrangement of the seven chambers, the ebony clock, and the color red. The seven chambers are arranged ever so carefully, “The apartments were so irregularly disposed that the vision embraced but little more than one at a time.” The chambers are color coded by which I see as the seven stages of life.

Read More
1082 Words | 5 Pages

There are many open wounds in the African-American community that have not healed what so ever. Disintegration of family structures in the African-American community has been a persistent problem for far too long. High out of wedlock birth rates, absent fathers, and the lack of a family support network for many young African-Americans have led to serious problems in America's urban areas. The persistence of serious social problems in inner-city areas has led to a tragic perpetuation of racial prejudice as well. African Americans still face a litany of problems in the 21st century today.

Read More
1789 Words | 8 Pages

Despite social workers best efforts to keep their feelings in check and to respect differences, being confronted with situations in which their values and morals conflict with those of their clients is a common scenario. For example, one may feel uncomfortable dealing with clients because of his or her sexual orientation. This issue arises because of the practitioner’s religious affiliation which results in the practitioner being unable to accept homosexuality. Another example, a pregnant client, ask her pro-life social worker for help obtaining an abortion. As the act of abortion conflicts with the social workers’ values, they may feel torn.

Read More
914 Words | 4 Pages

By “acknowledging and recognizing, confronting, and addressing pervasive racism within social work practice at the individual, agency, and institutional level, and promote culturally competent social work interventions and research methodologies in the areas of social justice, well-being, and cost-benefit outcomes.” (Blank, 2013) The NASW supports cultural competence, which means people of different culture, class, background, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation, religion, physical, and mental abilities, and anything among those areas are protected in a way because racism or any type of discrimination is not tolerated at any level whatsoever. One thing for sure is we do have to recruit a more diverse group of professionals. They need more of a diverse population according to a study done.

Read More
1128 Words | 5 Pages

How you, as a social worker, might interpret the needs of Paula Cortez, the client, through the two cultural lenses you selected. How you, as a social specialist, may decipher the requirements of Paula Cortez, the customer, through the two social focal points you chose. Cultural competence in social work is the primary guideline of social work education and practice. According to Carpenter (2016) As the population in the United States continues to diversify rapidly, the requirement for culturally competent social work administrations is similarly as essential as it ever has been.

Read More
1262 Words | 6 Pages

In the book Beyond Tractability it says religion serves as a way for people to distinguish themselves from others. Just like the way people use ethnic groups and race to distinguish themselves from others. Religion now serves the same purpose [2]. So now just like the way we have racial discrimination and ethnic discrimination, there is religious discrimination. NEGATIVE EFFECTS OF RELIGION ON SOCIETY

Read More

More about Focused On The Power Of Privilege And Oppression

Related Topics

Open Document