SWP 331 Lecture 2: decolonization

• School: Ryerson University
• Department: Social Work
• Course: SWP 331
• Professor: Kristin Smith

Document Summary

Colonialism: occupation and exploitation of a land and people by a dominant group, as well as the continuation of this exploitation and oppression by and of their descendants. Post-colonialism/decolonization: does not indicate the end of colonialism, but the fight against the current crimes of colonialism and the legacies of past crimes. Social workers in history: the first social workers: unofficial, charities, churches, elders, government regulation replaced altruism with calculated structure. Pros: some accountability for actions, a baseline for social work practice, more organization in dealing with social problems. Whiteness: an identity, dependent not only on skin colour, but also language, culture, gender, religion, sexual orientation, gender, social class, geographic location. Is a fluid concept, changing over time & events. Ie, before 9/11, muslims lived in relative peace and privilege. After they were and continue to be oppressed and discriminated against. Privilege: the unearned structural advantage of a group: often obscured or excused as something else.