Social Justice

What is social justice? In one of my graduate classes, we have been discussing how we define social justice and what issues we are specifically motivated to work on. If we were to describe social justice in one word it could be:

• humane


• respect


• equity


• equality


• redistribution


• transformative


• access


• etc.

At my field placement the other day, a few of us talked about how "extreme" we might go to be equally accessible to all people. One issue that we focused on was if a person was unable to read. Would we put up a red sign to say we were closed and a green one to say we were open? Are we right to assume that everyone can read numbers (times of service)?

I think that in all of this it is important for us to look at who our target group is and make changes based on those demographics as well as what suggestions those people may have. As social workers, we want to help people, but we also need to be reminded that community-based ideas may work better in the long run than pushing our personal agendas.

Blueprint to End Homelessness...?

So, my field placement is a part of a community where we have a "blueprint to end homelessness". You have no idea how difficult it is to actually implement. People become homeless everyday. As we talk about eliminating the word "shelter" from our vocabulary, I wonder what individuals and families are going to do when they need a place to stay and we have shelter for them. Yes, we want to help people establish more sustainable living situations, but it is not an easy fix. What can be done to empower people and decrease homelessness without taking away the services? I believe that part of this coalition to end homelessness is the desire to stop the cycle of poverty that we see in our communities. We want to truly help, not rescue people in their crises. "Rescuing" helps short-term, but does not take into consideration what other factors are ultimately impacting the situation. Long-term sustainability is key. While offering a financial amount to prevent eviction is needed, it may not always keep the consumer from falling back into that same dilemma again.