For Immediate Release
April 9, 2010

WASHINGTON—The National Association of Social Workers (NASW-USA) is obligated by our ethical code to raise concerns about the “Anti-Homosexuality Bill” that now stands before the Parliament of the Republic of Uganda.  At stake are the human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) citizens of Uganda.  NASW-USA has been joined by the International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW) and the Canadian Association of Social Workers (CASW), in calling upon the Ugandan Parliament to reject this detrimental bill.

The “Anti-Homosexuality Bill” in the Ugandan Parliament could set a serious  precedent for other countries—allowing extreme penalties of death and life in prison, and punishable offenses for a broad range of individuals if they fail to report suspected homosexuality to the authorities. The measure violates fundamental human rights and hinders effective public health responses to HIV and AIDS.

“Human rights are universal, regardless of sexual orientation,” said James J. Kelly, PhD, ACSW, NASW’s president.  “Criminal penalties against individuals based on their sexual orientation or gender identity violate basic human rights, demean human dignity, and also undermine efforts to limit the spread of HIV.”

Research shows that a person who feels forced to conceal his or her sexual orientation is less likely to seek assistance with HIV prevention, or to seek medical care for complications from HIV infection.  As a result, statistics on HIV infection rates are inaccurate, further hurting efforts by health care personnel to stem the spread of the virus.

NASW-USA believes that people with same-gender sexual orientation should be afforded the same respect and rights as those with other-gender orientation.  Discrimination and prejudice directed against any group is damaging to the social, emotional and economic well-being of both the affected group and of society as a whole. This holds true for Ugandan society as well as any other.

Challenging social injustice and affirming the dignity and worth of the human person are core principles of the social work profession.  Social workers pursue social justice, particularly with and on behalf of vulnerable and oppressed individuals and groups of people, including the LGBT community.   NASW-USA in honoring the critical importance of human rights asks the Ugandan government to reject this life-limiting legislation.

For more information, please see Human Rights and International Affairs on SocialWorkers.org.

In celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the Academy of Certified Social Workers (ACSW), Representative Edolphus “Ed” Towns (D-NY) submitted acknowledgment of the Academy into the Congressional Record on February 26, 2010. Honoring the work and impact ACSW holders have had in society over the past fifty years, below we have provided a link for you to download the Congressional Record and the congratulatory letter from Rep. Towns recognizing members of the Academy.

Both the Congressional Record and congratulatory letter reflect the achievements of all ACSW holders. ACSW holders, educate others on the value of the Academy and the social work profession by displaying these documents in your office and presenting a copy to your employer.

https://www.socialworkers.org/credentials/acsw50/default.asp

A major responsibility for the council is to review and make recommendations regarding grant applications.

By Paul R. Pace, NASW News Staff - Vol. 54, No. 9, October 2009

NASW member W. June Simmons, CEO of the Partners in Care Foundation, has been appointed to the National Advisory Council on Aging. The council is among several national research advisory councils reporting to the director of the National Institutes of Health concerning pertinent programs.

“As a social worker, I am honored to represent the field — especially during these challenging times — on this very important advisory council,” Simmons said in a statement.

A major responsibility for the council is to review and make recommendations regarding grant applications to support biomedical research and research training activities.

Simmons will serve on the Advisory Council until December 2012 and will participate in council meetings held at the NIH.

According to the Partners in Care Foundation, Simmons’ career includes numerous activities involving aging issues.

She was a delegate to the 2005 White House Conference on Aging. She serves as senior adviser to the Alliance for Children and Families’ National Initiative for Transforming Social Service Geriatric Practice. She is an appointee to the HMO Caregiver Work Group, a national think tank funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to advance managed care models for caring for the aging population.

Simmons is an advisory board member of the Practice Change Fellows Selection Committee and was founding chair of the National Chronic Care Consortium. She initiates and directs the Institute for Advancement of Geriatric Social Work Education, a cooperative venture between major Southern California graduate schools of social work to develop the region as a center of excellence in geriatric social work education.

In addition, Simmons serves on major national and local technical committees, panels and advisory boards.

Look for these articles in the upcoming October issue, available soon at NASW NEWS online.

From the Director: “Death Panel” Rhetoric Moves Us Backward

By Elizabeth J. Clark, PhD, ACSW, MPH

America is described by experts as a death-avoiding society – but only when we are talking about the physical death of a loved one. Out of touch with death as a natural phenomenon, we have become fascinated with death in many other forms. We are surrounded by death imagery, and we use death to sell things such as newspapers, magazines, movies and video games. In the past few months, death also has been used to sell a political viewpoint in the health care reform debate. This happened when the term “death panels” entered our everyday lexicon.

Unification Transition Team Releases Final Report

In June 2007, a unification transition team was charged with examining possible organization structures, identifying resources and skills needed for transition, and engaging social work members in unification. The team released its final report this summer. The team was created at the conference Social Work: Future of the Profession, which brought together 33 representatives from 10 organizations, including NASW.

NASW Lauds Work of New NIH Director Collins

NASW is looking forward to working with social work supporter Dr. Francis S. Collins, the newly appointed Director of the National Institutes of Health. Social workers have an important and growing role at NIH through clinical social services and research grants on psychosocial care; health disparities; family caregiving; and innovative, community-based health, mental health, and substance abuse intervention.

Income-Based Repayment Gives Financial Relief to Student Borrowers

NASW is partnering with the Income-Based Repayment (IBR) program to help spread the news about a new way to reduce student loan repayments. The IBR became available on July 1, providing much-needed financial relief for hundreds of thousands of federal student loan borrowers. IBR allows a borrower to make student loan repayments based on his or her income.  The program also sets a cap on monthly payments based on income, and any remaining debt—including interest—is forgiven after 25 years of payments or after as few as 10 years if the borrower works in a non-profit, government, or other public service job.

BusinessWeek Magazine’s health care-themed August 17th issue includes an article on eldercare, titled “A Pro in Your Corner.” Focusing on the role and expertise of geriatric care managers among the vast network of caregivers, the article’s sidebar, “Decoding the Credentials,” specifically included NASW’s Case Management credentials. The master’s level Certified Advanced Social Worker in Case Management (C-ASWCM), and the baccalaureate degree Certified Social Work Case Manager (C-SWCM) distinguish the professional social work case manager from those not specifically trained and accomplished in the case management practice model. Visit the NASW Credential Center Web page to learn more.

Ken Lewis, author of Child Custody Evaluations: Understanding the Five Stages of Custody (NASW Press) is quoted in a recent article on the Michael Jackson Custody Case on www.lifescript.com.

From: Michael Jackson Custody Case: Who Gets the Kids?
By Fran Golden, Special to Lifescript |July 15, 2009

Honesty Is Best
Social workers are often appointed by family court judges to do custody evaluations, especially in the case of a difficult divorce or death of a sole parent. In some custody cases, the court may ask kids who they prefer to live with.

It’s a tough decision to choose between Mom and Dad, but honesty is the best policy, says Ken Lewis, author of Child Custody Evaluations: Understanding the Five Stages of Custody, (National Association of Social Workers).

Kids should be assured by their parents that the evaluator is a friend, not a foe, Lewis says.

Some parents or guardians try to cheat the system, he adds, by telling their kids what to say. That can do more emotional harm than good.

Therapist Kendrick agrees.

“Now you have people saying, ‘Come with me,’ and children don’t ever want to be put in that position,” he says, “because they can’t win.”

Whoever tries for custody in a divorce or in the Jackson case – the grandparents, biological mother or the nanny credited with raising the children – the job of an evaluator is to listen to the kids and be the impartial ears and eyes of a judge.

The Chicage Tribune recently featured a social worker and cancer survivor in St. Charles who  offers oasis to those who need moments of peace, quiet.

By Alexa Aguilar |Special to the Tribune | July 29, 2009

When Deborah Marqui of St. Charles planted the first flowers in her garden more than 30 years ago, she envisioned it as a place her family would enjoy in the years to come.

But instead it flowered into a 2-acre “healing garden” that helped her through two bouts of cancer and now offers a peaceful escape to anyone looking for a quiet place.

The shaded woods and flowering beds hidden just off a busy St. Charles street offered her so much peace that after she lost a friend to cancer, she decided to open the gardens monthly to the public. She’s seen the research that links time spent in nature and quiet with health benefits. But she also has experienced firsthand its restorative effects….”I needed to heal my body, mind and spirit,” said Marqui, a licensed clinical social worker. “Cancer has a way of waking you up. … I needed to chill and ground myself.”…full article

The Washington Post’s recent article, “The Making of an Agent” featured social worker Krista Bradford as she trains as a secret service recruit.

“Krista had just assessed a 4-year-old autistic girl. She told the girl’s mother to buy crayons and blocks, she later recalled. As a social worker, Krista was tired of rappelling into lives after they’d crumbled. She wanted to try something preemptive, such as law enforcement.Krista herself had experienced the limits of social services. She was given up at birth in an adoption that failed, and later moved into an adolescent group house where she reached for a serving bowl and was stabbed in the hand with a fork.

“I’ll be a good protector,” Krista believed. “I know how important it is to be protected.”"

Video of Arizona State Legislature Representative and Social Worker Kyrsten Sinema talking about her new book with local media.

Kyrsten Sinema serves as the Assistant Leader to the Democratic Caucus in the House of Representatives and represents central Phoenix in the Arizona Legislature. Now in her third term, she is the ranking Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee and the ranking Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee.

Kyrsten holds both a law degree and a Master’s degree in Social Work from Arizona State University, and is currently pursuing her Ph.D. in the School of Justice and Social Inquiry at ASU. She is an adjunct professor in the School of Social Work at ASU and practices law when not in session. Kyrsten also serves as faculty for the Center for Progressive Leadership, teaching tomorrow’s community leaders about the political process.

From Social Justice and the First Lady - Newsweek

by Eleanor Clift - July 3, 2009

“They are the legacy of a failed social policy that began in the 1980’s with the de-institutionalization of people with mental illness on the assumption that communities with the help of pharmaceuticals would absorb their care. “And that didn’t happen,” says Schroeder Stribling, a licensed clinical social worker and deputy executive director at N Street. As she takes me through the facility, she introduces me to someone she proudly calls “the anchor,” a cheerful African-American woman who is eager to tell me all the classes she has taken from yoga to anger management. She’s been coming to N Street for nine years and Stribling counts her as a success story by the four measurements she uses: health, housing, income and employment. Tanya has been substance free for two years, she’s in subsidized housing, she gets disability, and during the day, she does classes. N Street does try to place people in jobs if possible, and they’ve started a pilot program with “supportive senior services,” what we used to call nursing homes, where they pay half the salary for the first year for people they place to encourage their hiring.”