Faculty Publications and Research

The Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement continues to bring attention and direct action to incidents of racially motivated aggression and police violence. Although BLM is a not a formal centralized organization, numerous branded bodies, such as the international BLM Global Network (BLM Global Network, n.d.), use the term “Black Lives Matter” to represent the mandate of their group. Regardless, BLM operates as a collection of individuals and organizations that commonly promote change aimed at combatting police brutality while supporting an overall agenda of Black liberation. The movement began in 2013 in response to the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the murder of  Travon Martin, an African American teenager. Over the past eight years, BLM has taken action following law enforcement– related deaths of other African Americans across the United States (Day, 2015). In 2020, the movement gained national attention during protests that resulted from the killing of George Floyd by police officer Derek Chauvin in Minneapolis. BLM has emerged as one of the largest social movements the country has seen to date (Buchanan, Bui, & Patel, 2020).

The Grand Challenges for Social Work outlined by the American Academy of Social Work and Social Welfare offer a multitude of opportunities for our profession to develop active responses for pressing societal ails. Each challenge charges social workers to engage in innovative and wide-reaching professional endeavors that span research, practice, and policy. Efforts for addressing the grand challenge to “eradicate social isolation” rely on the uniquely “social” dimension of our work pertinent to increasing and strengthening connections across diverse demographic groups (Lubben, Gironda, Sabbath, Kong, & Johnson, 2015).

The Grand Challenges for Social Work developed by the American Academy of Social Work and Social Welfare (AAS-WSW) offer opportunities for the profession to confront pervasive societal issues. Although these challenges outline varying large-scale aims for social work, each also advocates for innovative strategies that can be readily implemented throughout areas of practice. The challenge to “promote smart decarceration” is no exception with the overarching goal of reimagining the current criminal justice system through progressive evidence-based approaches that transcend discipline and professional divisions (AASWSW, 2017). The need is clear as the United States has the largest incarcerated population in the world by both number and ratio incapacitated.

Not surprisingly, a great deal of literature continues to emerge that addresses the effects of COVID-19 on various populations of interest to social work policy and practice. A substantial number of such articles have been and will be published in Health & Social Work and other journals central to the discipline. This growing body of literature addresses a wide range of presenting concerns across varied settings with attention to particular disparities faced by vulnerable populations. While the focus of social work practice centers around the needs of those we serve, it is essential to consider how COVID-19 has affected—and may enduringly affect—us, both as individuals and professionals.

As per the journal’s scope, the articles and columns published in Health & Social Work address health in a broad context with attention to affected populations and related practice and policy implications. While reflecting these aims, this issue also spurs thought into larger social justice challenges within our healthcare system. The cornerstone of social work and what makes our profession distinctly unique is its mandate for social justice, which is plainly stipulated in the National Association of Social Workers’ (NASW, 2021) Code of Ethics. Heightened by our increased knowledge of social determinants of health and the outcomes of disparities, it is widely accepted that healthcare is a social justice issue founded in the general premise that all people should have equal rights and opportunities for treatment (Almgren, 2017; Finn & Jacobson, 2013). This is supported by the Statement of Principles for Ethics in Social Work put forth by the International Federation of Social Workers and the International Association of Schools of Social Work (Bywaters & Napier, 2009; International Federation of Social Workers, 2018). Articles in this issue bring social justice in healthcare to light in confronting unequal rights, opportunities, and treatment among hospital patients and workers, homeless populations, Latinx families, those in rural settings, and those living in communities at risk for environmental threats. Although we are all well acquainted with the idea of social justice, it remains uncertain whether the profession shares a standard definition of the concept and a distinct understanding of how to translate it into practice (Banerjee, 2011). It is much easier to come to a collective agreement when social justice is lacking, than to truly understand what it is and how to achieve it.

At the start of the Biden–Harris administration and the 117th Congress, the National Association of Social Workers (NASW, 2021) outlined critical policy recommendations across an array of topics in the 2021 Blueprint of Federal Social Policy Priorities. These resolutions were developed through an evidence-based lens closely aligned with the Grand Challenges for Social Work supported by the profession (American Academy of Social Work and Social Welfare, 2017). These policy priorities recognize that social workers perform essential functions in mental, behavioral, and physical healthcare within varied settings and among diverse populations across the country. The 2021 blueprint frames health in a comprehensive manner wherein mental and behavioral health are regarded as essential elements in one’s overall health and wellness.