By Mel Wilson, LCSW, MBA The widely televised tape of Tyre Nichols being mercilessly beaten by members of the Memphis Police Department was shocking beyond words. Similar to the murder of George Floyd, the country (indeed the world) was again a witness to total disregard for the life of young black man by law enforcement. The brutal death of Mr. ... Read More »
The National Association of Social Workers (NASW) and its Minnesota Chapter issued statements reacting to the murder of unarmed African American George Floyd at the hands of police in Minneapolis on May 25. His death has led to massive protests around the nation and spurred a renewed call to end racism in our society. Other NASW Chapters are weighing in on ... Read More »
By Alison Laurio, News contributor Social worker Reeta Wolfsohn received a message from a client she had worked with well over a decade ago. Back then, “she was a college graduate, an expert in working with the deaf,” Wolfsohn said. “The only work she could get was shadowing a high school student. She had no money, no money even ... Read More »
By Rena Malai, News staff NASW member Sammy Rangel has cumulatively spent about 16 years in prison throughout his life, mainly for charges related to theft and violence. Rangel, who originally is from Chicago, said he started getting into trouble with the law at age 11. He repeatedly ran away from home, and joined a gang — eventually becoming its ... Read More »
By Paul R. Pace, News staff For social worker Jacqueline Durham, being a member of the NASW National Committee on Women’s Issues is personal. “As a first-generation, Cuban-American woman raised in a single-parent household with my two sisters, I have experienced many difficult situations,” Durham said. “I know firsthand there are injustices faced by women, and being part of a ... Read More »
On December 19, 2013, President Obama announced his list presidential pardons of persons in the criminal justice system. In addition to the 13 pardons issued, President Obama commuted the prison terms of eight people convicted on federal crack cocaine charges. Most significantly, the president’s stated reason for his decision is that these individuals were punished under laws that permitted unfair ... Read More »
By Paul R. Pace, News staff NASW has issued a social justice brief regarding President Obama’s nominations to the D.C. Circuit Court in June. Mel Wilson, manager of the NASW Department of Social Justice and Human Rights, authored the brief, titled “President Obama Nominates Three to the D.C. Circuit Court: Why Should Social Workers Care?” Wilson points out that Obama’s ... Read More »
By Rena Malai, News staff North Koreans used solitary confinement as a way to break down U.S. prisoners of war during the Korean War, broadcast journalist Ted Koppel said recently on “Rock Center with Brian Williams.” Koppel’s report highlighted 17-year-old James Stewart, an incarcerated juvenile who committed suicide after being placed in solitary confinement. Isolation was used as psychological torture ... Read More »
Sandra Edmonds Crewe, professor at the Howard University School of Social Work, served on the steering committee for and presented at the Workshop on Research Gaps and Opportunities for Exploring the Relationship of the Arts to Health and Well-Being in Older Adults in September in Washington, D.C. The event was hosted by the National Academy of Sciences, National Institutes of ... Read More »
By Paul R. Pace, News staff Libby, Mont., is a rural working-class town situated in the northwest corner of the state. For several decades, workers and residents were unaware they were being exposed to highly toxic asbestos associated with nearby vermiculite mining and milling operations. The exposure was so intense that in 2002, Libby was declared a Superfund site, the ... Read More »
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