Monday, December 15, 2014
Monday, December 8, 2014
Blog 11 - Multicultural Social Work Examining Oppression and Valuing Diversity
In the last
blog, I wanted to speak about my new experience in a new environment and new
people. Dr. Gerstenblatt gave me
personally a great tool to start this endeavor and this career. I was given the opportunity to look at the
same subject from different lenses and advocate for my ideas with new materials
and tools. I learned how to seek
knowledge in believing in the power of ideas to change attitudes and lives and
ultimately the world. By learning to
listen to the most inspired thinkers, I started being a curious person that
want to engage with similar ideas and others.
In addition
to the reading material, I learned many new things by reading the blogs and
observations of my colleagues. Each
week, I used to apply without meaning to, some of the material discussed in
class. I felt powerful and able to
defend my actions by advocating to others by the knowledge I have.
Finally, the story telling project was so
different. It is amazing to see how can
an event lived by someone shapes his life totally different than someone else. I felt so weak compared to the powerful
journey lived by different people. I
felt empowered by the strength they had to overcome the injustice they lived
caused by society, family or self. There
is injustice in America and in the whole world.
I am going to embrace this power given by Dr. Gerstenblatt, the
knowledge and the tools we earned to try to stop and make a DIFFERENCE. I want to slow this speedy life and stop to
help others because everyone matters and every action can make a
difference. I will not be ashamed to
hide my tears if injustice happened for others and it hurts – like Michael
Brown and Eric Garner. I want to be able
to join the National March in Washington DC, this Saturday December 13
announced by Al Sharpton. This is what I
learned through the eyes of a Social WorkerBlog 10 - Killing Innocent People
Does Islam
really allow the killing of innocent people?
This is one misunderstanding
that keeps rising up against Islam. Islam does not in anyway allow for
the killing of any innocent soul.
The Qur’an assures Christians and Jews of paradise if they
believe and do good works, and commends Christians as the best friends of
Muslims. Dangerous falsehoods are being promulgated to the American public. The
Quran does not preach violence against Christians.
Quran 5:69 says (Arberry):
“Surely they that believe, and those of Jewry, and the Christians, and those
Sabeaans, whoso believes in God and the Last Day, and works righteousness–their
wage waits them with their Lord, and no fear shall be on them, neither shall
they sorrow.”
In other words, the Quran
promises Christians and Jews along with Muslims that if they have faith and
works, they need have no fear in the afterlife. It is not saying that
non-Muslims go to hell– quite the opposite.
These criminals that are
deforming the wisdom and harmony of Islam by declaring wrong interpretation of
the Quran. Some of these militants
killing innocents are Muslims that committed a grave sin, because killing in
Islam is forbidden. These groups are not
only killing Americans but also killing other Muslims for speaking different
language. They are raping women and
children and burning people alive in the name of Islam.
This is another kind of violence in the world where legal systems are broken allowing them to hide behind powerful words of Islam to justify their crimes. Until when we are going to keep the fear of injustice of minorities in the world against people from different color, race, language or country?
How can we fight violence happening without being THUGs
ourselves? We ordinary people can make a
difference. We can fight violence by
opening our heart. We can bring to an
end the bloodiest century that humanity has ever known.
Reference:
Blog 9 - Police Brutality
Is Police
Brutality Color-Blind?
Is police brutality the abuse of authority by the unwarranted infliction of excessive force by law enforcement personal during the performance of duty? Why an abuser is left unpunished? Is it because the victim is Black and the abuser is White?
“We have a problem” as the famous Apollo astronauts said. Along with the tragic events in Ferguson, and the Missouri police shooting death of Michael Brown, Eric Garner in New York after a choke-hold was put on him by police is both a tragedy and an outrage. In the New York case, based on publicly available tapes of the killing, the policeman applying the choke-hold should have at least been charged by the grand jury with the use of excessive force.
The police brutality toward Michael Brown and Eric Gardner is a blatant reminder that in the eyes of the law, black lives are worth a lot less in this country than whites and that black men are still seen as needing to be controlled and killed if necessary.
Black women lost child after child to a system that considered their offspring disposable property. Black wives, partners and moms screamed, moaned, and grieved as they lost their children, husband and soul mates.
Sometimes they fought, sometimes they tried to run away, and often the fragile family that was still intact consoled them.
As a society should we stop expending emotion over something that seems that it will never ever change? Even if it is a blind hope. In the hope that this injustice doesn't happen again.
In situations like Ferguson, where there is a heavily black
population policed by a mostly white police department, there should be major
outreach to recruit, hire and train black policemen and women. This should
happen in countless communities throughout America where there is a racial
disparity between the local population and the local police.
We should expand the use of small cameras on the uniforms of
police, which might have prevented death or led to justice in the Ferguson
case, but would have done no good in the New York case where the tape was seen
by the grand jury and the nation.
Most members of the police force perform honorable work under
dangerous conditions to
serve their communities well. But there are bad apples, there are mistakes occasionally made and there is a problem when so many black citizens are killed by police in ways similar to the cases in Ferguson, New York and countless other communities. We should all be part of the change as Americans, citizens and especially Social Workers to be the voice that prevail justice in the Justice System. We can all make a change and know that the video below is irrational.
serve their communities well. But there are bad apples, there are mistakes occasionally made and there is a problem when so many black citizens are killed by police in ways similar to the cases in Ferguson, New York and countless other communities. We should all be part of the change as Americans, citizens and especially Social Workers to be the voice that prevail justice in the Justice System. We can all make a change and know that the video below is irrational.
References:
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