1 00:00:03,240 --> 00:00:06,200 Speaker 1: Welcome to stuff Mom Never told you. From House top 2 00:00:06,280 --> 00:00:14,200 Speaker 1: works dot com. Hello, and welcome to the podcast. I'm 3 00:00:14,280 --> 00:00:17,960 Speaker 1: Kristen and I'm Caroline, and today's episode is one we 4 00:00:18,200 --> 00:00:20,799 Speaker 1: promised y'all a while back, and we are true to 5 00:00:20,880 --> 00:00:25,000 Speaker 1: our word. So this is our episode on social work 6 00:00:25,120 --> 00:00:28,920 Speaker 1: and social workers. And first of all, shout out to 7 00:00:28,920 --> 00:00:32,280 Speaker 1: the social workers listening. Yeah, y'all are a hard working, 8 00:00:32,600 --> 00:00:38,760 Speaker 1: passionate bunch of people who are underappreciated and underpaid across 9 00:00:38,840 --> 00:00:41,040 Speaker 1: the country. And you know what, Caroline, some of our 10 00:00:41,040 --> 00:00:45,519 Speaker 1: best friends with social workers. It's true. And uh to 11 00:00:45,960 --> 00:00:48,440 Speaker 1: two of my close friends or social workers, and they, 12 00:00:49,159 --> 00:00:54,600 Speaker 1: I don't think I've met two more passionate people about children. Honestly. Yeah, 13 00:00:54,760 --> 00:00:56,840 Speaker 1: I can say the exact same thing. One of my 14 00:00:56,880 --> 00:01:01,360 Speaker 1: best friends is a social worker working specifically with survivors 15 00:01:01,400 --> 00:01:06,520 Speaker 1: of domestic violence, and she's just like a superhero, a 16 00:01:06,560 --> 00:01:09,760 Speaker 1: living superhero. Yeah. They they deal with a lot. And 17 00:01:10,000 --> 00:01:15,480 Speaker 1: especially if any social workers out there themselves have um 18 00:01:15,520 --> 00:01:19,480 Speaker 1: histories with things like domestic abuse or or or molestation 19 00:01:19,600 --> 00:01:23,080 Speaker 1: or anything, um, the job is that much harder. It 20 00:01:23,080 --> 00:01:27,600 Speaker 1: can be very triggering if you decide to pursue that 21 00:01:27,680 --> 00:01:30,600 Speaker 1: line of work. Because of a desire to help others 22 00:01:30,600 --> 00:01:34,080 Speaker 1: from having to go through it themselves, and we received 23 00:01:34,120 --> 00:01:38,160 Speaker 1: a lot of yes, please do that requests after we 24 00:01:38,240 --> 00:01:41,319 Speaker 1: mentioned on our episode about women in welfare a while 25 00:01:41,360 --> 00:01:45,600 Speaker 1: back that we were considering talking about um social work 26 00:01:45,680 --> 00:01:47,880 Speaker 1: on an episode, So we wanted to share just a 27 00:01:47,920 --> 00:01:51,440 Speaker 1: little bit of the feedback that we were already hearing 28 00:01:51,600 --> 00:01:54,680 Speaker 1: from some of you out there listening who are also 29 00:01:54,880 --> 00:01:59,160 Speaker 1: in the field. Yeah listener Anna wrote in with several 30 00:01:59,240 --> 00:02:02,840 Speaker 1: points that she wanted to address things like safety in 31 00:02:02,880 --> 00:02:06,560 Speaker 1: the field, how she and her colleagues have been threatened 32 00:02:06,560 --> 00:02:09,800 Speaker 1: with physical violence or attacked by clients both children and 33 00:02:09,840 --> 00:02:13,959 Speaker 1: adults alike. She pointed out that men are generally in 34 00:02:14,120 --> 00:02:17,440 Speaker 1: upper management while women tend to be on the front lines, 35 00:02:17,520 --> 00:02:20,079 Speaker 1: which of course follows along with so many things we've 36 00:02:20,080 --> 00:02:22,960 Speaker 1: talked about on the podcast before, where men do tend 37 00:02:23,000 --> 00:02:25,600 Speaker 1: to be in the roles of power while women are 38 00:02:25,600 --> 00:02:28,960 Speaker 1: expected to be the nurturers. She said many jobs want 39 00:02:29,000 --> 00:02:31,080 Speaker 1: a master's degree, which is hard to pay back with 40 00:02:31,120 --> 00:02:33,520 Speaker 1: a low paying job, and in some areas where rent 41 00:02:33,560 --> 00:02:37,440 Speaker 1: is high, social workers even with master's degrees can't afford 42 00:02:37,520 --> 00:02:40,160 Speaker 1: rent and have to live in Section eight housing She 43 00:02:40,240 --> 00:02:43,000 Speaker 1: also talks about agencies being in the dark ages when 44 00:02:43,000 --> 00:02:46,880 Speaker 1: it comes to technology, in addition to a lot of 45 00:02:46,880 --> 00:02:48,880 Speaker 1: the same issues you see when you just talk about 46 00:02:48,919 --> 00:02:53,520 Speaker 1: nonprofits in general, which is things like high turnover rate, burnout, 47 00:02:53,720 --> 00:02:59,480 Speaker 1: and low compensation. And some fans on Facebook also requested 48 00:02:59,520 --> 00:03:02,280 Speaker 1: that we had as the issue of the negative stereotyping 49 00:03:02,360 --> 00:03:05,680 Speaker 1: of social workers and the perception that they are just 50 00:03:06,160 --> 00:03:10,320 Speaker 1: out there to take your kids away, right the baby 51 00:03:10,360 --> 00:03:13,880 Speaker 1: snatcher stereotype that a social worker, rather than being there 52 00:03:13,919 --> 00:03:18,560 Speaker 1: to help facilitate a safer family environment, is there to 53 00:03:18,760 --> 00:03:21,679 Speaker 1: simply remove children from the home. And I got to 54 00:03:21,720 --> 00:03:27,360 Speaker 1: say that the biggest challenge of researching for this episode 55 00:03:27,440 --> 00:03:32,040 Speaker 1: and and condensing this into a podcast is just how 56 00:03:33,160 --> 00:03:38,400 Speaker 1: much social work covers, I mean, across the lifespan, across 57 00:03:38,520 --> 00:03:44,160 Speaker 1: all sorts of issues and relationships. Social workers are there. 58 00:03:44,200 --> 00:03:48,200 Speaker 1: And in fact, social workers comprise the largest group of 59 00:03:48,240 --> 00:03:54,080 Speaker 1: mental health professionals in the United States, more than psychiatrists, psychologists, 60 00:03:54,080 --> 00:03:58,200 Speaker 1: and psychiatric nurses combined. I did not know that now 61 00:03:58,480 --> 00:04:01,840 Speaker 1: there are two hundred thousand than clinically trained social workers 62 00:04:01,880 --> 00:04:05,800 Speaker 1: in the United States alone, and the primary mission of 63 00:04:05,840 --> 00:04:09,000 Speaker 1: what they do, according to the National Association of Social 64 00:04:09,000 --> 00:04:12,360 Speaker 1: Workers code of ethics is quote to enhance human well 65 00:04:12,400 --> 00:04:15,560 Speaker 1: being and help meet the basic human needs of all people, 66 00:04:15,760 --> 00:04:18,719 Speaker 1: with particular attention to the needs and empowerment of people 67 00:04:18,720 --> 00:04:23,720 Speaker 1: who are vulnerable, oppressed, and living in poverty. And as 68 00:04:23,800 --> 00:04:27,799 Speaker 1: part of that, some of these specific issues that social 69 00:04:27,839 --> 00:04:36,560 Speaker 1: work tackles include poverty, discrimination, abuse, addiction, physical illness, divorce, housing, 70 00:04:36,640 --> 00:04:42,599 Speaker 1: domestic violence, unemployment, educational problems, disability, mental illness, and also 71 00:04:42,720 --> 00:04:47,760 Speaker 1: really focusing in on crisis prevention as well as individual 72 00:04:48,000 --> 00:04:52,400 Speaker 1: family and community counseling. And they work all over the place. 73 00:04:52,440 --> 00:04:56,320 Speaker 1: I mean especially in the U. S Department of Veterans Affairs, 74 00:04:56,560 --> 00:04:59,520 Speaker 1: but you can find social workers in schools and hospitals, 75 00:04:59,600 --> 00:05:04,000 Speaker 1: mental earth clinics and senior centers. UH, even in private practices, 76 00:05:04,040 --> 00:05:08,440 Speaker 1: not to mention prisons, the military companies, and in so 77 00:05:08,480 --> 00:05:12,880 Speaker 1: many wide and varied public and private agencies serving people 78 00:05:12,920 --> 00:05:17,160 Speaker 1: in need. And a lot of times when natural disasters 79 00:05:17,200 --> 00:05:22,839 Speaker 1: happen and the American Red Cross takes UH disaster relief 80 00:05:23,240 --> 00:05:26,440 Speaker 1: mental health specialists down there, a lot of them are 81 00:05:26,520 --> 00:05:31,720 Speaker 1: volunteer social workers. Because social workers are incredible and like 82 00:05:31,800 --> 00:05:33,599 Speaker 1: this is a total we hope this is a total 83 00:05:33,640 --> 00:05:36,640 Speaker 1: love letter to you about the hard work that you do, 84 00:05:36,760 --> 00:05:39,960 Speaker 1: because I do know that my social worker friends, by 85 00:05:40,040 --> 00:05:43,600 Speaker 1: virtue of working for the state, they cannot be very 86 00:05:43,680 --> 00:05:47,960 Speaker 1: political outwardly UM. And they certainly would not want to 87 00:05:48,000 --> 00:05:50,800 Speaker 1: be caught at a protest for one way or the 88 00:05:50,839 --> 00:05:54,480 Speaker 1: other politically for instance. UM. They are passionate about just 89 00:05:54,600 --> 00:06:00,839 Speaker 1: volunteering and being involved. And I texted my social work 90 00:06:01,200 --> 00:06:05,720 Speaker 1: bestie yesterday before we were coming into record this episode, 91 00:06:05,720 --> 00:06:09,719 Speaker 1: Caroline saying, like, Okay, what is something that you know 92 00:06:09,760 --> 00:06:15,160 Speaker 1: we should definitely emphasize um. And she responded that lots 93 00:06:15,200 --> 00:06:18,719 Speaker 1: of social workers think very macro but work on a 94 00:06:18,839 --> 00:06:23,560 Speaker 1: micro level because they really believe an individual client advocacy 95 00:06:23,600 --> 00:06:26,800 Speaker 1: and the importance of helping that one person. And she 96 00:06:26,880 --> 00:06:31,480 Speaker 1: also emphasized like their passion collective passion for social justice, 97 00:06:31,839 --> 00:06:35,640 Speaker 1: because social justice is really front and center and even 98 00:06:35,760 --> 00:06:40,000 Speaker 1: part of the n A s W Code of Ethics, 99 00:06:40,080 --> 00:06:44,560 Speaker 1: and a major appeal to people who are deciding whether 100 00:06:44,600 --> 00:06:50,600 Speaker 1: they would want to go into social work or counseling. UM. 101 00:06:50,640 --> 00:06:56,120 Speaker 1: Because while social workers and counselors might do similar things, 102 00:06:56,600 --> 00:06:59,240 Speaker 1: they are not the same thing as as you might 103 00:06:59,240 --> 00:07:03,200 Speaker 1: have imagine, since they have different names. Um. First of all, 104 00:07:03,240 --> 00:07:09,840 Speaker 1: they require different degrees, but also counseling is more specific 105 00:07:09,920 --> 00:07:14,600 Speaker 1: to the individual and the setting. Whereas social workers are 106 00:07:14,640 --> 00:07:19,240 Speaker 1: looking to improve quality of life, UM, the case work 107 00:07:19,320 --> 00:07:22,760 Speaker 1: is going to address not just the individuals, but also 108 00:07:23,280 --> 00:07:28,000 Speaker 1: environmental issues across all aspects of their life and cultures. UM. 109 00:07:28,040 --> 00:07:30,520 Speaker 1: That might include things like staying in touch with teachers 110 00:07:30,880 --> 00:07:35,720 Speaker 1: and employers. UM. So if you are someone who is 111 00:07:35,760 --> 00:07:40,600 Speaker 1: not familiar with social work, but you like things like 112 00:07:41,480 --> 00:07:46,600 Speaker 1: destigmatized mental health, health care access for seniors and the disabled, 113 00:07:46,920 --> 00:07:52,560 Speaker 1: workers compensation and legal protections against discrimination based on race, gender, faith, 114 00:07:52,680 --> 00:07:56,480 Speaker 1: sexual orientation, etcetera, well you have social workers to thank 115 00:07:56,520 --> 00:07:59,160 Speaker 1: for that. Well. Yeah, they've been on the front lines 116 00:07:59,320 --> 00:08:04,080 Speaker 1: literally in figuratively of these movements. For I mean, I 117 00:08:04,120 --> 00:08:06,920 Speaker 1: want to say our country's history, not that you would 118 00:08:06,960 --> 00:08:09,040 Speaker 1: call the people who did this type of work and 119 00:08:09,120 --> 00:08:14,760 Speaker 1: activism early in our country social workers, UM. But the 120 00:08:14,840 --> 00:08:17,880 Speaker 1: way that social work evolved, it evolved out of a 121 00:08:17,960 --> 00:08:22,680 Speaker 1: tradition of UH advocating for the whole person. And we 122 00:08:22,760 --> 00:08:27,559 Speaker 1: found a terrific condensed history of social work. UM. Because 123 00:08:27,600 --> 00:08:30,040 Speaker 1: if it were not a condensed history, we would still 124 00:08:30,080 --> 00:08:34,520 Speaker 1: be reading four weeks UM. But over at Michigan State 125 00:08:34,559 --> 00:08:38,240 Speaker 1: University's School of Social Work. They have terrific history that 126 00:08:38,480 --> 00:08:43,360 Speaker 1: starts out emphasizing how just these basic concepts of mutual 127 00:08:43,440 --> 00:08:48,319 Speaker 1: aid and charity that are foundational to American social work 128 00:08:48,960 --> 00:08:54,600 Speaker 1: have really intersectional roots, both in terms of religions and cultures. 129 00:08:54,720 --> 00:08:59,440 Speaker 1: It's not just Christian and European immigrants who contributed to 130 00:08:59,480 --> 00:09:02,400 Speaker 1: all of the US. You have values found in the 131 00:09:02,520 --> 00:09:07,920 Speaker 1: Koran and mutual aid practices um from all sorts of 132 00:09:07,960 --> 00:09:13,480 Speaker 1: both indigenous and uh industrialized cultures. Yeah, exactly, And I 133 00:09:13,520 --> 00:09:15,600 Speaker 1: mean this should sound familiar to you if you listen 134 00:09:15,640 --> 00:09:20,359 Speaker 1: to our last episode on nonprofits. There's a lot of overlap. Obviously, 135 00:09:20,760 --> 00:09:23,880 Speaker 1: when you look at the origins of our modern nonprofit 136 00:09:23,960 --> 00:09:27,360 Speaker 1: sector in our modern social work landscape, it comes a 137 00:09:27,400 --> 00:09:33,760 Speaker 1: lot out of not only those uh mutually beneficial cultural 138 00:09:33,800 --> 00:09:37,560 Speaker 1: practices in this country across all sorts of cultures, but 139 00:09:37,600 --> 00:09:39,760 Speaker 1: it really also comes out of a lot of efforts 140 00:09:39,760 --> 00:09:44,160 Speaker 1: in the progressive era to address issues that come along 141 00:09:44,280 --> 00:09:50,800 Speaker 1: with urbanization, industrialization, and immigration. Yeah, massive issues with poverty, 142 00:09:51,280 --> 00:09:54,880 Speaker 1: child welfare, and mental health. From the get go, we're 143 00:09:54,880 --> 00:10:00,640 Speaker 1: talking pre American Revolution even UM and before are social 144 00:10:00,679 --> 00:10:06,160 Speaker 1: workers existed. Uh. These volunteers who would engage in this 145 00:10:06,280 --> 00:10:12,319 Speaker 1: kind of charitable work were called friendly visitors, which, yeah, 146 00:10:12,520 --> 00:10:15,320 Speaker 1: it sounds so creepy, right, it sounds really creepy. It 147 00:10:15,400 --> 00:10:20,480 Speaker 1: also kind of sounds like your period, but not always 148 00:10:20,480 --> 00:10:24,080 Speaker 1: the friendly visitor. Uh. Yeah, the friendly visitors sounds like 149 00:10:24,800 --> 00:10:29,920 Speaker 1: a horror movie like the Baba Duke. Yes, yes, um, 150 00:10:29,960 --> 00:10:34,360 Speaker 1: but these friendly visitors were indeed friendly. Um. They were 151 00:10:34,760 --> 00:10:43,760 Speaker 1: usually white and wealthier private individuals who had like terrific intentions. Um. 152 00:10:43,800 --> 00:10:46,960 Speaker 1: But they thought that they could sort of morally influence 153 00:10:47,080 --> 00:10:51,880 Speaker 1: the poor out of poverty through organizations like the Association 154 00:10:52,000 --> 00:10:55,160 Speaker 1: for the Improvement of the Condition of the Poor and 155 00:10:55,240 --> 00:11:00,240 Speaker 1: the Children's Aid Society. Um. But on the upshot, these 156 00:11:00,240 --> 00:11:04,600 Speaker 1: people were coming face to face with the substandard living conditions. 157 00:11:04,600 --> 00:11:08,200 Speaker 1: This was raising the alarm bells about the need to 158 00:11:08,679 --> 00:11:13,240 Speaker 1: address things like poverty and child labor. Yeah. And I 159 00:11:13,240 --> 00:11:17,319 Speaker 1: mean keep in mind too, the Civil War, which had 160 00:11:17,600 --> 00:11:21,960 Speaker 1: obviously a massive impact on the way that our country 161 00:11:22,040 --> 00:11:25,360 Speaker 1: is shaped and the way that we treat each other. Um, 162 00:11:25,400 --> 00:11:30,600 Speaker 1: it's spurred massive private social welfare initiatives like the Red Cross. 163 00:11:30,679 --> 00:11:33,360 Speaker 1: So we talked in our nonprofit episode, Kristen mentioned in 164 00:11:33,400 --> 00:11:36,320 Speaker 1: that in that episode about how you know, you see 165 00:11:36,360 --> 00:11:40,160 Speaker 1: a wave of philanthropy as people are donating money to 166 00:11:40,720 --> 00:11:44,480 Speaker 1: communities that have been devastated. You see people coming together 167 00:11:44,520 --> 00:11:48,000 Speaker 1: to make bandages and clothes for soldiers and the poor. 168 00:11:48,559 --> 00:11:50,720 Speaker 1: And it's really no different when it comes to the 169 00:11:50,720 --> 00:11:53,400 Speaker 1: how the Civil War relates to the history of social work. 170 00:11:54,000 --> 00:11:57,560 Speaker 1: And did you know, Caroline, because I didn't before reading 171 00:11:57,559 --> 00:12:02,240 Speaker 1: for this podcast, that the Bureau of Refugees Freedman an 172 00:12:02,240 --> 00:12:06,760 Speaker 1: Abandoned Land simply known as the Freedman's Bureau, was the 173 00:12:06,840 --> 00:12:11,240 Speaker 1: first federal social welfare program. UM. It was established to 174 00:12:11,720 --> 00:12:18,320 Speaker 1: assist emancipated slaves during reconstruction and basically be like, okay, um, 175 00:12:18,800 --> 00:12:22,520 Speaker 1: enslaved people, you all are free white people in the South, 176 00:12:22,880 --> 00:12:26,800 Speaker 1: y'all are still really racist, probably, so we're going to 177 00:12:26,880 --> 00:12:30,520 Speaker 1: make sure that everybody gets along and that y'all don't 178 00:12:30,600 --> 00:12:37,840 Speaker 1: just enslave them again. Um. But it was only in 179 00:12:37,920 --> 00:12:43,240 Speaker 1: existence officially from eighteen sixty five to eighteen seventy two, 180 00:12:43,480 --> 00:12:46,839 Speaker 1: and really it was only in its first year that 181 00:12:46,960 --> 00:12:50,720 Speaker 1: it had as much like the most like steam and 182 00:12:50,880 --> 00:12:54,840 Speaker 1: support um and military backing, and then it kind of 183 00:12:55,120 --> 00:13:00,360 Speaker 1: petered out, but not before establishing Howard University and the 184 00:13:00,400 --> 00:13:04,280 Speaker 1: Hampton Institute. I didn't that's the part that I didn't know. Yeah, 185 00:13:04,360 --> 00:13:06,320 Speaker 1: you know about the Freedmance Bureau. I didn't know about 186 00:13:06,320 --> 00:13:11,360 Speaker 1: the Freeman Bureau. We go on, and we're gonna come 187 00:13:11,400 --> 00:13:16,760 Speaker 1: full circle with Hampton very soon, all right now. Not surprisingly, 188 00:13:16,840 --> 00:13:21,360 Speaker 1: because this is spenty, women were extremely influential in establishing 189 00:13:21,400 --> 00:13:27,120 Speaker 1: things like settlement houses, which focused on environmental rather than 190 00:13:27,200 --> 00:13:31,600 Speaker 1: individual sources of poverty. So rather than saying it's your fault, 191 00:13:31,840 --> 00:13:35,120 Speaker 1: you are failing in some way and therefore you are 192 00:13:35,200 --> 00:13:39,240 Speaker 1: on poverty, it addressed the ways that people were living 193 00:13:39,559 --> 00:13:46,560 Speaker 1: and tried to introduce better hygiene, a better sense of community. Uh. 194 00:13:46,600 --> 00:13:50,080 Speaker 1: There was one settlement house that even had a gymnasium 195 00:13:50,320 --> 00:13:54,280 Speaker 1: and places to do laundry. Yeah, I mean, um, rather 196 00:13:54,400 --> 00:13:59,520 Speaker 1: than say friendly visitors who would maybe come over and 197 00:13:59,520 --> 00:14:02,240 Speaker 1: then go back, it sounds like they're going to tickle you. Honestly, 198 00:14:02,280 --> 00:14:04,080 Speaker 1: I'm going to be on friendly visitors. It sounds like 199 00:14:04,080 --> 00:14:07,640 Speaker 1: they're wearing nickey mouse gloves and they're gonna take anyway 200 00:14:07,760 --> 00:14:12,800 Speaker 1: like pajama grams. Um. Yeah, they didn't do all that much. 201 00:14:13,000 --> 00:14:17,560 Speaker 1: It doesn't seem like from from our reading to really 202 00:14:17,600 --> 00:14:23,160 Speaker 1: address the issues of living in more squalid conditions, you know, 203 00:14:23,320 --> 00:14:29,680 Speaker 1: whereas settlement houses were intentionally established in poorer neighborhoods to 204 00:14:30,960 --> 00:14:35,520 Speaker 1: show people how they could live and improve their living conditions, 205 00:14:35,560 --> 00:14:40,040 Speaker 1: and also to work to connect them to employment opportunities, 206 00:14:40,160 --> 00:14:44,240 Speaker 1: with a particular focus on women and children. And so 207 00:14:44,320 --> 00:14:47,960 Speaker 1: in eighteen eighty six, New York's Neighborhood Guild was the 208 00:14:48,040 --> 00:14:51,440 Speaker 1: first such settlement house. And then in eighteen eighty nine 209 00:14:51,520 --> 00:14:53,960 Speaker 1: we get a name that should probably be at least 210 00:14:54,120 --> 00:14:59,040 Speaker 1: vaguely familiar to semanty listeners. Jane Adams and Ellen Gates 211 00:14:59,240 --> 00:15:02,720 Speaker 1: star found to Chicago's Hull House. And by the way, 212 00:15:02,880 --> 00:15:06,560 Speaker 1: Adams was the first woman to receive the Nobel Peace 213 00:15:06,560 --> 00:15:11,280 Speaker 1: Prize in ninety one to Shabby Jane, not to shabby indeed, 214 00:15:11,440 --> 00:15:16,080 Speaker 1: and we talked about Jane in our episode on Boston Marriages, 215 00:15:16,240 --> 00:15:17,760 Speaker 1: which you can go back and listen to if you 216 00:15:17,800 --> 00:15:22,760 Speaker 1: haven't already, and Stephie missed in history class has devoted 217 00:15:23,280 --> 00:15:27,400 Speaker 1: podcast episodes to Jane Adams and the Hull House. And 218 00:15:27,800 --> 00:15:31,840 Speaker 1: while we could also spend the next I don't know 219 00:15:31,920 --> 00:15:35,240 Speaker 1: five hours talking about Jane Adams because she did such 220 00:15:35,280 --> 00:15:38,600 Speaker 1: incredible work and was so well respected and is really 221 00:15:39,080 --> 00:15:43,600 Speaker 1: the godmother of social work in a lot of ways. Instead, 222 00:15:44,800 --> 00:15:50,200 Speaker 1: because information about her is so accessible, we want to 223 00:15:50,320 --> 00:15:55,480 Speaker 1: highlight some of her unsung black contemporaries who were doing 224 00:15:55,520 --> 00:15:59,960 Speaker 1: equally important work. Um. So, first off, let's just note 225 00:16:00,040 --> 00:16:05,600 Speaker 1: that in the first formal social work training program was 226 00:16:05,720 --> 00:16:10,520 Speaker 1: established in what would become Columbia Universities School of Social Work, 227 00:16:10,640 --> 00:16:14,840 Speaker 1: and by nineteen nineteen there were seventeen schools of social 228 00:16:14,880 --> 00:16:17,840 Speaker 1: work in the United States. So things are really picking up, 229 00:16:17,880 --> 00:16:21,360 Speaker 1: and women are really at the forefront of this developing field. 230 00:16:21,680 --> 00:16:25,440 Speaker 1: But if you look at histories of social work, most 231 00:16:25,520 --> 00:16:29,600 Speaker 1: of the time you see white women who absolutely we're 232 00:16:29,600 --> 00:16:32,040 Speaker 1: at the forefront of that field and who were absolutely 233 00:16:32,080 --> 00:16:35,360 Speaker 1: doing incredible work. But you know what, we want to 234 00:16:36,440 --> 00:16:41,240 Speaker 1: give some credit where credit is do because also, y'all, 235 00:16:41,720 --> 00:16:45,400 Speaker 1: a lot of progressive era settlements at this time were 236 00:16:45,440 --> 00:16:51,080 Speaker 1: exclusively staffed by and served white people. But of course 237 00:16:51,720 --> 00:16:55,120 Speaker 1: black communities needed social reform. Yeah, focusing just on the 238 00:16:55,120 --> 00:16:58,560 Speaker 1: white women and just on the Jane adamszz is, while 239 00:16:58,600 --> 00:17:00,760 Speaker 1: that tells a significant poor and of the story, is 240 00:17:00,800 --> 00:17:03,600 Speaker 1: definitely not the full story. So you have amazing women 241 00:17:03,640 --> 00:17:08,439 Speaker 1: like Janie Porter Barrett, who Kristen graduated from the Hampton 242 00:17:08,480 --> 00:17:13,120 Speaker 1: Institute callback and she founded the Locust Streets Settlement House 243 00:17:13,160 --> 00:17:16,880 Speaker 1: in eighteen ninety in Hampton, Virginia, which was the first 244 00:17:17,080 --> 00:17:21,080 Speaker 1: United States settlement house for African Americans. And she founded 245 00:17:21,119 --> 00:17:25,080 Speaker 1: it to help girls and women to become good homemakers 246 00:17:25,080 --> 00:17:28,520 Speaker 1: and to improve the social life of the community. Yeah. 247 00:17:28,640 --> 00:17:33,879 Speaker 1: Barrett started out just inviting local kids into her home 248 00:17:34,480 --> 00:17:39,159 Speaker 1: and almost like a daycare of sorts, um, and then 249 00:17:39,320 --> 00:17:43,280 Speaker 1: it developed into the Settlement House. And then in nineteen 250 00:17:43,320 --> 00:17:47,600 Speaker 1: fifteen she founded the Virginia Industrial School for Colored Girls, 251 00:17:47,960 --> 00:17:54,520 Speaker 1: specifically to serve previously incarcerated girls. And double call back 252 00:17:54,680 --> 00:17:59,359 Speaker 1: to our episode on women in nonprofits. They received huge 253 00:17:59,359 --> 00:18:03,560 Speaker 1: philanthrope help from the Russell Sage Foundation, which was started 254 00:18:04,200 --> 00:18:07,080 Speaker 1: al a woman, not a man named Russell. Yeah, Russell 255 00:18:07,160 --> 00:18:11,840 Speaker 1: was the woman's husband, although it was Russell's money, Russell's billions. Yeah, 256 00:18:11,880 --> 00:18:15,320 Speaker 1: you gotta love billions, um. And then we have to 257 00:18:15,400 --> 00:18:20,000 Speaker 1: introduce you to Sarah Fernandez. She is another Hampton grad 258 00:18:20,040 --> 00:18:23,520 Speaker 1: and another contemporary of Jane Adams, who ended up in 259 00:18:23,560 --> 00:18:28,440 Speaker 1: Baltimore's poor Black blood Field neighborhood to establish settlement houses 260 00:18:28,480 --> 00:18:32,320 Speaker 1: there and also in Rhode Island for black residents. She 261 00:18:32,440 --> 00:18:37,280 Speaker 1: helped revitalize blighted black neighborhoods with a public library, infant 262 00:18:37,359 --> 00:18:40,880 Speaker 1: daycare center, kindergarten, and even some home x style classes 263 00:18:40,920 --> 00:18:45,080 Speaker 1: for girls. And she championed in general just better living, 264 00:18:45,119 --> 00:18:48,719 Speaker 1: working in social conditions for black people, especially black women. 265 00:18:49,280 --> 00:18:52,719 Speaker 1: And this whole education thing, in this daycare thing is 266 00:18:52,800 --> 00:18:55,440 Speaker 1: really something you see come up again and again in 267 00:18:55,480 --> 00:18:57,879 Speaker 1: the progressive era. It's sort of the idea behind like 268 00:18:57,960 --> 00:19:01,399 Speaker 1: headstart about we need to say at our children off 269 00:19:01,440 --> 00:19:04,800 Speaker 1: however young on the right foot. You see so many 270 00:19:04,840 --> 00:19:09,159 Speaker 1: club women of this era, black or white, helping to 271 00:19:09,320 --> 00:19:13,439 Speaker 1: establish daycares to not only help working mothers, the working 272 00:19:13,480 --> 00:19:15,480 Speaker 1: poor who had to like go to work in someone 273 00:19:15,520 --> 00:19:19,720 Speaker 1: else's home, probably cleaning, um, but to also help those 274 00:19:19,840 --> 00:19:23,520 Speaker 1: children grow up to maybe have a better life. Yeah. 275 00:19:23,640 --> 00:19:30,320 Speaker 1: And Fernandez really was one of the leading social workers 276 00:19:30,600 --> 00:19:34,320 Speaker 1: of her time. I mean, she was renowned, really um 277 00:19:34,800 --> 00:19:37,240 Speaker 1: and she loved her social work so much by the 278 00:19:37,280 --> 00:19:40,520 Speaker 1: way that she was also a poet and is considered 279 00:19:40,520 --> 00:19:43,560 Speaker 1: part of the Harlem Renaissance. Um. And in one of 280 00:19:43,560 --> 00:19:48,040 Speaker 1: her poems, Denial, she writes, yet oftentimes, as I make 281 00:19:48,080 --> 00:19:51,719 Speaker 1: the daily round of crowded city by ways, I've found 282 00:19:52,000 --> 00:19:55,120 Speaker 1: shining up from the mark and slum of things, something 283 00:19:55,359 --> 00:19:59,080 Speaker 1: so beautiful. My spirit sings, And that to me is 284 00:19:59,119 --> 00:20:02,480 Speaker 1: the heart of a social worker. Yeah, I think. Yeah, 285 00:20:02,520 --> 00:20:05,840 Speaker 1: that sums it up really well. And two other examples 286 00:20:06,160 --> 00:20:09,679 Speaker 1: of incredible women giving back to their communities are Eartha 287 00:20:09,720 --> 00:20:13,320 Speaker 1: White in Jacksonville, Florida and Victorian Matthews in New York 288 00:20:13,760 --> 00:20:17,760 Speaker 1: who started the White Rose Industrial Association for Young Black 289 00:20:17,800 --> 00:20:22,600 Speaker 1: Working Women and helped found the National Association of Colored Women. 290 00:20:22,960 --> 00:20:25,680 Speaker 1: And this is coming from a book by Barbara Lovey 291 00:20:25,720 --> 00:20:31,080 Speaker 1: simon the empowerment tradition in American social work history. And uh, 292 00:20:31,240 --> 00:20:34,480 Speaker 1: we just wanted to mention them because White, for instance, 293 00:20:34,800 --> 00:20:39,240 Speaker 1: is another woman who looked around at her Black community 294 00:20:39,280 --> 00:20:43,800 Speaker 1: and said, well, there are no white leads settlements here, 295 00:20:44,560 --> 00:20:48,720 Speaker 1: so I'll start one. UM. And also too, there were 296 00:20:49,200 --> 00:20:53,199 Speaker 1: this was common among h certain immigrant groups and Jewish 297 00:20:53,200 --> 00:20:57,840 Speaker 1: communities and the Black community where they did prefer and 298 00:20:57,840 --> 00:21:02,640 Speaker 1: and trusted more UM charity of this sort that came 299 00:21:02,720 --> 00:21:06,000 Speaker 1: from within their own community UM, which also makes sense. 300 00:21:06,040 --> 00:21:09,160 Speaker 1: So there was even a deeper value to that UM. 301 00:21:09,240 --> 00:21:13,240 Speaker 1: And people like Sara Fernandez were also instrumental in mobilizing 302 00:21:13,440 --> 00:21:16,720 Speaker 1: black women, uh in the suffrage movement as well. So 303 00:21:16,760 --> 00:21:21,959 Speaker 1: there is a lot going on. Yeah, yeah, definitely at 304 00:21:21,960 --> 00:21:23,760 Speaker 1: the turn of the century, there's a lot going on 305 00:21:23,800 --> 00:21:26,560 Speaker 1: in terms of social work, early social work. There were 306 00:21:26,600 --> 00:21:30,760 Speaker 1: four hundred settlement houses across the US by nineteen ten. 307 00:21:31,400 --> 00:21:34,119 Speaker 1: And don't think there weren't ripple effects. The effects that 308 00:21:34,200 --> 00:21:36,919 Speaker 1: these women and their work had were not limited to 309 00:21:37,119 --> 00:21:39,000 Speaker 1: just what was going on within the walls of the 310 00:21:39,040 --> 00:21:43,040 Speaker 1: settlement homes. They affected the juvenile court system, uh, the 311 00:21:43,080 --> 00:21:47,440 Speaker 1: widows pension programs, child labor laws, public health reform, not 312 00:21:47,520 --> 00:21:51,040 Speaker 1: to mention organizations like the Women's Trade Union League, the 313 00:21:51,200 --> 00:21:54,560 Speaker 1: Urban League, and the inn double a CP. And to 314 00:21:55,240 --> 00:21:59,879 Speaker 1: just show you how uh, these earlier women in the 315 00:22:00,040 --> 00:22:04,240 Speaker 1: early history of social work are making so much influence 316 00:22:04,400 --> 00:22:10,200 Speaker 1: now that we're getting into even government in hull houses. 317 00:22:10,400 --> 00:22:16,280 Speaker 1: Julia Lathrop establishes the Federal Children's Bureau. So social work 318 00:22:16,680 --> 00:22:22,520 Speaker 1: is becoming its own, for real, official thing, validated and 319 00:22:22,560 --> 00:22:26,359 Speaker 1: recognized even by the US government. And we're going to 320 00:22:26,480 --> 00:22:31,720 Speaker 1: talk about a pivotal moment in the professionalization and standardization 321 00:22:32,200 --> 00:22:34,920 Speaker 1: of social work when we come right back from a 322 00:22:35,000 --> 00:22:49,919 Speaker 1: quick break. One thing that I was really happy to 323 00:22:49,960 --> 00:22:54,040 Speaker 1: note in our research was that it was a woman 324 00:22:54,200 --> 00:22:58,080 Speaker 1: person at the forefront of calling for more standardization within 325 00:22:58,119 --> 00:23:01,439 Speaker 1: the field. Normally his Historically, when you and I talk 326 00:23:01,520 --> 00:23:04,160 Speaker 1: about things like this, Kristan, it is a man coming 327 00:23:04,200 --> 00:23:08,760 Speaker 1: into an established, more feminized field and calling for more 328 00:23:08,920 --> 00:23:12,679 Speaker 1: standardization and professionalization so that he can make more money 329 00:23:13,280 --> 00:23:17,639 Speaker 1: helming it whatever it is. But we have a Mary 330 00:23:17,720 --> 00:23:20,040 Speaker 1: Ellen Richmond who was one of the first to call 331 00:23:20,119 --> 00:23:23,399 Speaker 1: for such standardization, and she actually delivered a speech at 332 00:23:23,400 --> 00:23:28,760 Speaker 1: the National Conference of Charities and Correction calling for not 333 00:23:28,880 --> 00:23:32,080 Speaker 1: only more standardization there I said it again, but also 334 00:23:32,160 --> 00:23:35,320 Speaker 1: more training for social workers. Yeah, and she knew what 335 00:23:35,480 --> 00:23:39,480 Speaker 1: she was talking about. Her book, Social Diagnosis was one 336 00:23:39,520 --> 00:23:43,960 Speaker 1: of the first social work books to incorporate scientific principles 337 00:23:44,280 --> 00:23:50,920 Speaker 1: from law, medicine, psychology, psychiatry, and history. So excellent idea 338 00:23:51,200 --> 00:23:53,960 Speaker 1: way to go. But what does it take to get 339 00:23:53,960 --> 00:23:56,719 Speaker 1: the ball rolling, to get people to really pay attention 340 00:23:58,000 --> 00:24:02,159 Speaker 1: A dude saying it? So I spoke to soon, Well, no, 341 00:24:02,320 --> 00:24:06,119 Speaker 1: I mean, Mary Ellen Richmond is still a badass. You 342 00:24:06,160 --> 00:24:08,199 Speaker 1: will never not be a badass. You will never not 343 00:24:08,280 --> 00:24:14,200 Speaker 1: be the first but it was Dr Abraham Flexner, totally 344 00:24:14,320 --> 00:24:20,919 Speaker 1: fake name who who really convinced the field that it 345 00:24:21,000 --> 00:24:26,280 Speaker 1: needed to ratchet up its standards, needed to flex its standards. 346 00:24:27,080 --> 00:24:30,439 Speaker 1: Uh yeah. In nineteen fifteen he gave a speech called 347 00:24:30,560 --> 00:24:34,800 Speaker 1: is social worker Profession? And it basically dismissed social workers 348 00:24:34,880 --> 00:24:40,320 Speaker 1: lack of specificity, technical skills or specialized knowledge. So never 349 00:24:40,560 --> 00:24:44,520 Speaker 1: mind the incredible life changing work that all of these 350 00:24:44,520 --> 00:24:47,800 Speaker 1: people had been doing up to this point. Um, he's 351 00:24:47,880 --> 00:24:50,600 Speaker 1: just going to dismiss a lot of those methods. And 352 00:24:50,680 --> 00:24:55,840 Speaker 1: so by the nineteen twenties, thanks to Flexner's advocacy, but also, 353 00:24:55,960 --> 00:25:00,320 Speaker 1: of course Mary Ellen Richmond's work, uh, casework emerged as 354 00:25:00,320 --> 00:25:03,639 Speaker 1: the dominant form of professional social work in the US. 355 00:25:03,800 --> 00:25:09,040 Speaker 1: And listen, Flexner delivered that speech at the same conference 356 00:25:09,880 --> 00:25:15,680 Speaker 1: that Richmond had in So maybe it was a dude. 357 00:25:15,680 --> 00:25:20,840 Speaker 1: Maybe it was also the seventeen years in between. I 358 00:25:20,880 --> 00:25:23,920 Speaker 1: don't know, But so social workers listening, if case work 359 00:25:24,040 --> 00:25:26,880 Speaker 1: is the band of your existence, then just blame Dr 360 00:25:26,960 --> 00:25:31,040 Speaker 1: Abraham Flexner. But in terms of the rising status of 361 00:25:31,119 --> 00:25:34,080 Speaker 1: social work, it was really the Great Depression and two 362 00:25:34,119 --> 00:25:39,480 Speaker 1: World Wars that rapidly expanded its scope and influence because 363 00:25:39,680 --> 00:25:45,440 Speaker 1: in terms of the Great Depression. When everybody's poor, we're like, oh, 364 00:25:45,720 --> 00:25:51,879 Speaker 1: maybe maybe poor people aren't deserving or undeserving or morally 365 00:25:51,960 --> 00:25:57,760 Speaker 1: and intellectually broken people. Maybe we could use some social services. 366 00:25:58,720 --> 00:26:02,280 Speaker 1: And this is when we are introduced to the concept 367 00:26:02,600 --> 00:26:07,840 Speaker 1: and now highly politicized concept of entitlements. And we don't 368 00:26:07,840 --> 00:26:11,080 Speaker 1: want to rehash a lot of this detail that we 369 00:26:11,119 --> 00:26:15,159 Speaker 1: went into in our episode, uh, Welfare Queens, but we 370 00:26:15,200 --> 00:26:17,679 Speaker 1: do want to shout out Francis Perkins, who was a 371 00:26:17,720 --> 00:26:22,840 Speaker 1: social worker and also appointed to f DRS Cabinet. She 372 00:26:22,920 --> 00:26:26,960 Speaker 1: was the first female cabinet member, and she was the 373 00:26:27,040 --> 00:26:32,600 Speaker 1: Treasury Secretary and responsible really for the nineteen thirty five 374 00:26:32,880 --> 00:26:39,119 Speaker 1: Social Security Act, someone who we could absolutely easily devote 375 00:26:39,119 --> 00:26:41,479 Speaker 1: a whole podcast too. But you'll learn a little bit 376 00:26:41,520 --> 00:26:45,600 Speaker 1: more about her and this whole welfare process um and 377 00:26:45,640 --> 00:26:47,919 Speaker 1: how it really started for white people if you go 378 00:26:47,960 --> 00:26:51,600 Speaker 1: back and listen to the episode titled Welfare Queens, in 379 00:26:51,640 --> 00:26:55,960 Speaker 1: which we bust up that racist stereotype and sort of 380 00:26:56,000 --> 00:26:59,399 Speaker 1: like we did with Jane Adams, instead of spending all 381 00:26:59,440 --> 00:27:02,240 Speaker 1: our time on Perkins, we want to talk about someone 382 00:27:02,840 --> 00:27:07,960 Speaker 1: you probably definitely haven't heard of. Yeah, that's thyra J. Edwards, 383 00:27:08,000 --> 00:27:11,600 Speaker 1: and reading her biography and her accomplishments, it's overwhelming. I 384 00:27:11,640 --> 00:27:14,640 Speaker 1: mean the woman was, she was brilliant, she was undaunted, 385 00:27:14,840 --> 00:27:20,440 Speaker 1: she was driven um and yet still in nineteen forty 386 00:27:20,560 --> 00:27:24,080 Speaker 1: four she was called just one of the most outstanding 387 00:27:24,200 --> 00:27:28,800 Speaker 1: Negro women in the world, rather than just what she was, 388 00:27:28,920 --> 00:27:32,399 Speaker 1: which is one of the most outstanding women in the world. 389 00:27:32,800 --> 00:27:36,800 Speaker 1: But overshadowing some of her incredible legacy and her incredible 390 00:27:36,800 --> 00:27:40,399 Speaker 1: work is the fact that when she was working, the 391 00:27:40,520 --> 00:27:44,679 Speaker 1: political climate was such that anyone who was in any 392 00:27:44,760 --> 00:27:51,640 Speaker 1: way connected to communism, socialism, the Communist Party was immediately suspect, 393 00:27:52,200 --> 00:27:56,920 Speaker 1: and Edwards was. She was a supporter of the Communist 394 00:27:57,000 --> 00:28:00,000 Speaker 1: Party in the United States, and she did travel abroad 395 00:28:00,000 --> 00:28:05,440 Speaker 1: odd but well before that, before she becomes a globe 396 00:28:05,440 --> 00:28:10,040 Speaker 1: trotter and famous international journalist as well as a social worker, 397 00:28:10,640 --> 00:28:13,919 Speaker 1: she travels to Gary, Indiana, where she lives in the 398 00:28:14,000 --> 00:28:18,480 Speaker 1: nineteen twenties, and it's there, as her biography describes, she 399 00:28:18,640 --> 00:28:23,360 Speaker 1: builds a national reputation as a social worker, club woman, speaker, 400 00:28:23,440 --> 00:28:29,000 Speaker 1: and interracial activist. UM and child welfare was really her 401 00:28:29,119 --> 00:28:34,359 Speaker 1: core passion, and she also, though was not interested in 402 00:28:36,000 --> 00:28:42,720 Speaker 1: only addressing the issues of black communities and maintaining segregation. 403 00:28:43,040 --> 00:28:47,800 Speaker 1: She wanted to see interracial change. And Yo, this is 404 00:28:47,840 --> 00:28:53,280 Speaker 1: happening in the nineteen twenties. So a woman definitely ahead 405 00:28:53,280 --> 00:28:58,760 Speaker 1: of her time. Because Um, even through postwar American social 406 00:28:58,760 --> 00:29:03,280 Speaker 1: work theory, the idea was that black social workers should 407 00:29:03,280 --> 00:29:07,320 Speaker 1: only work with black communities and vice versa, whereas Edwards 408 00:29:07,320 --> 00:29:11,360 Speaker 1: took a very intersectional approach to her work and insisted 409 00:29:11,400 --> 00:29:15,040 Speaker 1: that that was, you know, the best way to do it. UM. 410 00:29:15,120 --> 00:29:18,400 Speaker 1: She eventually became the executive director of the Congress of 411 00:29:18,440 --> 00:29:22,520 Speaker 1: American Women. During World War Two, she traveled abroad and 412 00:29:22,560 --> 00:29:26,680 Speaker 1: became a world famous journalist. She established the first organization 413 00:29:26,960 --> 00:29:32,240 Speaker 1: to help children Holocaust survivors in Rome. UM. This woman 414 00:29:32,640 --> 00:29:37,400 Speaker 1: did so much, and regardless of the community that she 415 00:29:37,520 --> 00:29:42,920 Speaker 1: was helping, obviously like her devotion was two civil rights 416 00:29:43,320 --> 00:29:48,600 Speaker 1: for her fellow black community. UM. She was buds, for instance, 417 00:29:48,640 --> 00:29:51,600 Speaker 1: with labor leader A Philip Randolph, who was also one 418 00:29:51,640 --> 00:29:55,320 Speaker 1: of the Big Six of the Civil rights movement. UM. 419 00:29:55,560 --> 00:29:59,880 Speaker 1: And considering all of that, when I found her through 420 00:29:59,880 --> 00:30:03,520 Speaker 1: the this research, I was so stunned that I had 421 00:30:03,600 --> 00:30:06,560 Speaker 1: never heard of her. Yeah, well, especially after all of 422 00:30:06,560 --> 00:30:10,000 Speaker 1: these years of doing sminty Like, yeah, so it's it's 423 00:30:10,000 --> 00:30:13,120 Speaker 1: no surprise that your average human person out there might 424 00:30:13,160 --> 00:30:15,800 Speaker 1: not have heard of her. And if you want to 425 00:30:15,840 --> 00:30:19,000 Speaker 1: learn more about her, which I do, uh, Greg Andrews 426 00:30:19,160 --> 00:30:23,520 Speaker 1: wrote a well reviewed biography of her, Theory J. Edwards 427 00:30:23,600 --> 00:30:27,520 Speaker 1: Black Activists in the Global Freedom Struggle, and I'm just 428 00:30:27,680 --> 00:30:30,960 Speaker 1: I'm just still blown away that aside from his book 429 00:30:31,040 --> 00:30:35,080 Speaker 1: and reviews of his book online and um an entry 430 00:30:35,120 --> 00:30:38,480 Speaker 1: of about her over at black past dot org and 431 00:30:38,600 --> 00:30:43,040 Speaker 1: here and there, you really got a dig to find her. Well, yeah, 432 00:30:43,080 --> 00:30:48,360 Speaker 1: which is true. I mean, despite her fame and despite 433 00:30:48,400 --> 00:30:50,760 Speaker 1: all the things she accomplished in her day, Like that's 434 00:30:50,800 --> 00:30:53,920 Speaker 1: just so true of so many of these amazing women, 435 00:30:54,680 --> 00:30:58,840 Speaker 1: especially Black women of that era. But meanwhile, while this 436 00:30:58,920 --> 00:31:03,520 Speaker 1: is going on, professionalization of the field is continuing. In 437 00:31:03,600 --> 00:31:06,200 Speaker 1: nineteen fifty two you get the formation of the Council 438 00:31:06,280 --> 00:31:09,560 Speaker 1: on Social Work Education, and in nineteen fifty five the 439 00:31:09,680 --> 00:31:14,320 Speaker 1: establishment of the National Association of Social Workers. And there 440 00:31:14,440 --> 00:31:18,320 Speaker 1: was another amazing woman around this time who was keeping 441 00:31:18,520 --> 00:31:20,880 Speaker 1: a very busy This is a woman who, again, like 442 00:31:21,680 --> 00:31:24,120 Speaker 1: all of these women, so incredible and we could also 443 00:31:24,120 --> 00:31:28,000 Speaker 1: fill an entire episode about Dorothy Height, who was trained 444 00:31:28,000 --> 00:31:31,960 Speaker 1: as a social worker and who started her career as 445 00:31:31,960 --> 00:31:35,920 Speaker 1: a New York Welfare Office case worker in the nineteen forties. 446 00:31:36,280 --> 00:31:39,760 Speaker 1: She also oversaw the y w C as desegregation across 447 00:31:39,800 --> 00:31:42,680 Speaker 1: all of its facilities, then took the helm of the 448 00:31:42,800 --> 00:31:46,040 Speaker 1: National Council of Negro Women from nineteen fifty seven to 449 00:31:46,240 --> 00:31:52,120 Speaker 1: nineties seven, UH, tackling programs around voting rights, poverty, and AIDS. 450 00:31:52,160 --> 00:31:54,880 Speaker 1: This woman did not stop. No, I mean and and 451 00:31:54,920 --> 00:31:57,920 Speaker 1: that's just one of the many things she was doing 452 00:31:58,160 --> 00:32:01,720 Speaker 1: during that window. For instance, in nineteen seventy one, she 453 00:32:01,840 --> 00:32:06,840 Speaker 1: helped found the National Women's Political Caucus. UM. Obama calls 454 00:32:06,840 --> 00:32:09,760 Speaker 1: her the godmother of the civil rights movement and a 455 00:32:09,840 --> 00:32:13,400 Speaker 1: hero to so many Americans. UM. At his inauguration, she 456 00:32:14,120 --> 00:32:17,720 Speaker 1: was seated right up there UM with the first family 457 00:32:18,080 --> 00:32:21,640 Speaker 1: and President Bill Clinton also awarded her the Presidential Medal 458 00:32:21,640 --> 00:32:27,040 Speaker 1: of Freedom. And this laundry list of accomplishments and commitments 459 00:32:27,520 --> 00:32:33,040 Speaker 1: that Height had goes to show really the scope of 460 00:32:33,440 --> 00:32:38,280 Speaker 1: social work, something that might seem like like a minimal 461 00:32:38,360 --> 00:32:41,480 Speaker 1: kind of job, but it actually is very much linked 462 00:32:41,560 --> 00:32:47,080 Speaker 1: with our history and culture of civil rights and activism 463 00:32:47,240 --> 00:32:50,840 Speaker 1: and politics. Because again at the heart of social work 464 00:32:51,040 --> 00:32:57,240 Speaker 1: is social justice, and Dorothy height U is an embodiment 465 00:32:57,280 --> 00:33:00,440 Speaker 1: of that. Yeah, and her her obituary area in the 466 00:33:00,440 --> 00:33:04,640 Speaker 1: New York Times actually reminded me of our episode that 467 00:33:04,640 --> 00:33:07,840 Speaker 1: we did on Paully Murray because they credit her in 468 00:33:07,840 --> 00:33:11,200 Speaker 1: the obituary with treating the problems of equality for women 469 00:33:11,560 --> 00:33:15,840 Speaker 1: and equality for African Americans as a steamless whole, merging 470 00:33:15,920 --> 00:33:21,440 Speaker 1: concerns that had been largely historically separate. Um. Just further 471 00:33:21,560 --> 00:33:25,760 Speaker 1: driving home that there have always been so many incredible 472 00:33:25,840 --> 00:33:29,560 Speaker 1: and inspirational Black women who have recognized the importance of 473 00:33:29,560 --> 00:33:34,040 Speaker 1: addressing both parts of their identity or or these two 474 00:33:34,080 --> 00:33:37,000 Speaker 1: parts of their identity and how they interact with each other. 475 00:33:37,680 --> 00:33:41,280 Speaker 1: And jumping back to what was happening in the social 476 00:33:41,320 --> 00:33:45,680 Speaker 1: work field, um, once we get into the civil rights era, 477 00:33:46,840 --> 00:33:49,240 Speaker 1: by this point, from around the nineteen forties to the 478 00:33:49,360 --> 00:33:53,240 Speaker 1: nineteen sixties, it was really middle class white people who 479 00:33:53,240 --> 00:33:59,360 Speaker 1: were overwhelmingly benefiting from newly established public welfare agencies like 480 00:33:59,520 --> 00:34:03,520 Speaker 1: the Department and of Health, Education and Welfare. Which again, uh, 481 00:34:03,520 --> 00:34:05,320 Speaker 1: if you want to learn more about this, go back 482 00:34:05,320 --> 00:34:09,399 Speaker 1: and listen to our episode on welfare queens. And that 483 00:34:09,480 --> 00:34:13,160 Speaker 1: leads us though to the nineteen sixties and lb j's 484 00:34:13,440 --> 00:34:18,760 Speaker 1: War on Poverty, which really starts this back and forth 485 00:34:19,160 --> 00:34:23,600 Speaker 1: of government funded public assistance and social welfare programs where 486 00:34:23,640 --> 00:34:26,560 Speaker 1: you have someone like Reagan coming and being like, oh, no, 487 00:34:26,840 --> 00:34:30,239 Speaker 1: government is way too big, we gotta rein it in. 488 00:34:30,400 --> 00:34:33,720 Speaker 1: And the eighties were not very fun for social workers 489 00:34:34,440 --> 00:34:40,239 Speaker 1: because those federal cuts under Reagan dovetailed with things like 490 00:34:40,440 --> 00:34:43,640 Speaker 1: the crack epidemic um. And then once we get into 491 00:34:43,719 --> 00:34:49,320 Speaker 1: the Clinton administration, he inherits a massive deficit and a 492 00:34:49,719 --> 00:34:55,600 Speaker 1: very polarized Congress who has little interest in helping him, 493 00:34:55,680 --> 00:34:59,799 Speaker 1: and he's somewhat signed into signing the controversial Welfare Reform Act, 494 00:35:00,200 --> 00:35:06,319 Speaker 1: of which some would say did irrevocable damage to at 495 00:35:06,360 --> 00:35:11,440 Speaker 1: least federally funded um social assistance and so called entitlements. 496 00:35:11,520 --> 00:35:16,000 Speaker 1: So I think that's part of why social work gets 497 00:35:16,000 --> 00:35:20,759 Speaker 1: a bad rap, because it's been politicized, it's been politicized 498 00:35:20,760 --> 00:35:23,360 Speaker 1: and has gotten bogged down in a lot of government 499 00:35:23,600 --> 00:35:27,120 Speaker 1: bureaucracy um. And if we look at the bird's eye 500 00:35:27,200 --> 00:35:30,680 Speaker 1: landscape of social work today, y'all, it's hard out there 501 00:35:31,200 --> 00:35:34,880 Speaker 1: for a social work agency, but plenty of jobs to 502 00:35:34,920 --> 00:35:39,560 Speaker 1: be had. Hello, if you if you're thinking about college 503 00:35:39,680 --> 00:35:42,640 Speaker 1: or a new field or a new job, consider social 504 00:35:42,640 --> 00:35:46,399 Speaker 1: work because America needs you. Yeah. I mean, as our 505 00:35:47,040 --> 00:35:50,120 Speaker 1: parents and grandparents are aging, there is going to be 506 00:35:50,320 --> 00:35:55,279 Speaker 1: that growing demand and healthcare and social assistance. UM. But 507 00:35:55,960 --> 00:35:59,680 Speaker 1: are growing pains in the meantime for social workers are 508 00:35:59,719 --> 00:36:02,960 Speaker 1: going to involve growing case leads and social workers, just 509 00:36:03,040 --> 00:36:07,359 Speaker 1: like workers in nonprofits, are seeing higher turnover and are 510 00:36:07,400 --> 00:36:12,200 Speaker 1: struggling with things like reaching people in more distant rural areas. 511 00:36:12,520 --> 00:36:16,400 Speaker 1: And because they're simply not enough bodies um to fill 512 00:36:16,440 --> 00:36:21,280 Speaker 1: all of the jobs needed. Uh, you're seeing more outsourcing, 513 00:36:21,480 --> 00:36:26,120 Speaker 1: which then also spirals back to larger caseloads on the 514 00:36:26,280 --> 00:36:29,120 Speaker 1: existing social workers. And it's the same kind of spiral 515 00:36:29,120 --> 00:36:34,360 Speaker 1: that we talked about UM with nonprofits. UM. So there 516 00:36:35,000 --> 00:36:37,040 Speaker 1: there is a desperate need there that the supply and 517 00:36:37,120 --> 00:36:42,640 Speaker 1: demand is completely imbalanced. UM. But if we look at 518 00:36:42,680 --> 00:36:48,040 Speaker 1: who is meeting the demand, eighty four percent are women. 519 00:36:49,160 --> 00:36:52,400 Speaker 1: Are women and women making not a ton of money. 520 00:36:52,520 --> 00:37:01,200 Speaker 1: The median pay median is ndred, the average is about thousand. Yeah. 521 00:37:01,360 --> 00:37:08,600 Speaker 1: My social worker friends would laugh bitterly at that fort number. UM. 522 00:37:08,719 --> 00:37:12,160 Speaker 1: And as wold, a lot of guys frankly and I'm 523 00:37:12,200 --> 00:37:14,560 Speaker 1: not trying to be a jerk about it, but dudes, 524 00:37:15,000 --> 00:37:18,120 Speaker 1: according to the numbers, just don't want to be social workers. 525 00:37:18,560 --> 00:37:23,839 Speaker 1: Um in Jack Fishel at Mike suggested that it's kind 526 00:37:23,880 --> 00:37:26,800 Speaker 1: of a mix of things really that you can attribute 527 00:37:26,800 --> 00:37:31,040 Speaker 1: this to. You have the low pay and a reputation 528 00:37:31,200 --> 00:37:35,600 Speaker 1: for feminine gendering that result in just ten percent of 529 00:37:35,719 --> 00:37:41,760 Speaker 1: current male social social workers even considering the profession before college. Um, 530 00:37:41,800 --> 00:37:44,719 Speaker 1: it's just considered something that women do. It's nurturing, you're 531 00:37:44,760 --> 00:37:46,800 Speaker 1: taking care of people. You're going into homes and holding 532 00:37:46,840 --> 00:37:51,959 Speaker 1: babies or snatching them according to other stereotypes and uh. 533 00:37:52,120 --> 00:37:54,920 Speaker 1: That stat was coming from a survey conducted by the 534 00:37:55,040 --> 00:37:59,480 Speaker 1: National Association of Social Workers that also found that current 535 00:37:59,520 --> 00:38:03,319 Speaker 1: male so SHI workers were likeliest to be inspired to 536 00:38:03,360 --> 00:38:08,120 Speaker 1: become one by exposure to another social worker. Hey, does 537 00:38:08,160 --> 00:38:11,759 Speaker 1: this sound like a familiar refrain of seeing it? To be? 538 00:38:11,960 --> 00:38:14,399 Speaker 1: It that we talk about all the time in terms 539 00:38:14,440 --> 00:38:17,000 Speaker 1: of women in STEM there's not enough visibility, There aren't 540 00:38:17,080 --> 00:38:19,400 Speaker 1: role models. Girls don't know they can be these things 541 00:38:19,440 --> 00:38:22,040 Speaker 1: because we never see women in these roles. It's the 542 00:38:22,120 --> 00:38:25,960 Speaker 1: same thing for social work. And you might say, like, 543 00:38:26,440 --> 00:38:28,640 Speaker 1: why would I want to be a social work because 544 00:38:28,719 --> 00:38:31,880 Speaker 1: isn't it just like you said, overwork under pay in 545 00:38:31,920 --> 00:38:35,760 Speaker 1: government bureaucracy. Well, not necessarily if you need a job, 546 00:38:36,000 --> 00:38:38,319 Speaker 1: you're kind of shooting yourselves in the foot because it 547 00:38:38,440 --> 00:38:43,160 Speaker 1: is an extremely fast growing sector and if you want 548 00:38:43,160 --> 00:38:46,240 Speaker 1: to help other men out, uh, kind of pay it forward. 549 00:38:46,680 --> 00:38:51,360 Speaker 1: The disproportionate number of clinical female social workers and mental 550 00:38:51,440 --> 00:38:56,240 Speaker 1: health services might determ men from seeking services. So again, 551 00:38:56,320 --> 00:39:00,440 Speaker 1: you might also be role modeling for men who not 552 00:39:00,719 --> 00:39:04,640 Speaker 1: necessarily want to become social workers, but who could use 553 00:39:04,680 --> 00:39:08,080 Speaker 1: some attention from a social worker and male social workers. 554 00:39:08,200 --> 00:39:12,920 Speaker 1: You guys can enjoy a wage gap, Yeah, take advantage 555 00:39:12,960 --> 00:39:15,680 Speaker 1: of the wage gap. Guys, come on down. What's not 556 00:39:15,840 --> 00:39:22,040 Speaker 1: to love? Yeah, So, according to two thousand and six study, 557 00:39:23,400 --> 00:39:26,680 Speaker 1: the difference in average salaries for men and women working 558 00:39:26,719 --> 00:39:29,879 Speaker 1: full time in a single social work job was just 559 00:39:30,040 --> 00:39:33,840 Speaker 1: over twelve thousand dollars And so when you control for 560 00:39:33,880 --> 00:39:38,440 Speaker 1: other factors like age, race, geography, uh degree, urban or 561 00:39:38,520 --> 00:39:42,040 Speaker 1: rural setting, blah blah blah um, that salary gap does 562 00:39:42,160 --> 00:39:46,399 Speaker 1: drop to about just over seven thousand dollars um. So 563 00:39:46,480 --> 00:39:49,960 Speaker 1: that means that overall, the percentage wage gap between male 564 00:39:50,000 --> 00:39:53,520 Speaker 1: and female social workers is about four, which ps is 565 00:39:53,680 --> 00:39:58,759 Speaker 1: higher than the national average. Um, and guys, if you 566 00:39:58,800 --> 00:40:05,560 Speaker 1: aren't convinced yet, there are many studies do confirm a 567 00:40:05,760 --> 00:40:10,080 Speaker 1: disproportionate number of men in social work management. You guys 568 00:40:10,080 --> 00:40:13,560 Speaker 1: are putting the man in social work management. This was 569 00:40:13,640 --> 00:40:19,080 Speaker 1: something that my social work bestie UM brought up in 570 00:40:19,120 --> 00:40:21,080 Speaker 1: her text to me, and she was like, I don't 571 00:40:21,080 --> 00:40:23,400 Speaker 1: know if this is just anecdotal or what, but I 572 00:40:23,440 --> 00:40:27,239 Speaker 1: see a lot of incredibly talented women getting passed over 573 00:40:28,040 --> 00:40:33,120 Speaker 1: by not as qualified men for a number of reasons. 574 00:40:33,160 --> 00:40:37,399 Speaker 1: But it is an issue. And Um, dear friend, if 575 00:40:37,400 --> 00:40:39,759 Speaker 1: you're listening, it is not all in your head. Um. 576 00:40:39,800 --> 00:40:42,040 Speaker 1: And that was something to write that our stuff I've 577 00:40:42,040 --> 00:40:45,560 Speaker 1: never told you listeners had pointed out right exactly, it 578 00:40:45,680 --> 00:40:48,040 Speaker 1: is not in your head. And I've heard my social 579 00:40:48,040 --> 00:40:52,839 Speaker 1: work friends talk about this and their theories involved things like, um, 580 00:40:52,880 --> 00:40:55,839 Speaker 1: because men are so underrepresented, you want to show that 581 00:40:55,920 --> 00:40:58,720 Speaker 1: a man is involved, that a man can be in charge, 582 00:40:59,040 --> 00:41:01,359 Speaker 1: and that maybe a man and you know, is better 583 00:41:01,400 --> 00:41:04,600 Speaker 1: able to somehow handle the bureaucracy and the paperwork and 584 00:41:04,640 --> 00:41:08,719 Speaker 1: the dirty work. And it's like, there's nothing wrong with 585 00:41:09,280 --> 00:41:13,080 Speaker 1: men being social work managers. It's just such an obviously 586 00:41:13,280 --> 00:41:18,120 Speaker 1: imbalanced pipeline. UM, and I do wonder though, like how 587 00:41:18,200 --> 00:41:21,240 Speaker 1: much of that is. Of course you've got gender norms 588 00:41:21,280 --> 00:41:25,680 Speaker 1: and expectations, but how much are all of these individual 589 00:41:25,840 --> 00:41:29,920 Speaker 1: people's backgrounds playing into this. I would be more interested 590 00:41:29,960 --> 00:41:32,120 Speaker 1: to learn too, And social workers, I want to hear 591 00:41:32,120 --> 00:41:37,920 Speaker 1: from you about specific circumstances that lead certain people to 592 00:41:38,080 --> 00:41:40,759 Speaker 1: want to be on those front lines, to want to 593 00:41:40,840 --> 00:41:47,840 Speaker 1: be UM directly dealing with families and mental health and education, um, 594 00:41:47,840 --> 00:41:51,400 Speaker 1: things like that versus being in the office. You know. 595 00:41:51,480 --> 00:41:53,879 Speaker 1: I I would be interested to hear too, like what 596 00:41:53,960 --> 00:41:56,239 Speaker 1: it is about you in your lives that made you 597 00:41:56,320 --> 00:42:00,680 Speaker 1: choose one over the other. So with that, let us 598 00:42:00,680 --> 00:42:03,560 Speaker 1: know social workers listening. I'm sure you have lots of 599 00:42:03,600 --> 00:42:08,120 Speaker 1: thoughts and hopefully you enjoyed UM hearing about some of 600 00:42:08,280 --> 00:42:11,239 Speaker 1: your four mothers. Um. I just I just think it's 601 00:42:11,239 --> 00:42:15,800 Speaker 1: pretty fascinating that this is a profession that women really 602 00:42:15,880 --> 00:42:20,680 Speaker 1: developed and yet today men run huh not like we 603 00:42:20,760 --> 00:42:26,440 Speaker 1: ever see that. That was the sound of our librarianship episode, 604 00:42:26,440 --> 00:42:30,880 Speaker 1: in our nonprofit episode, and our our teacher episode. UM. 605 00:42:30,960 --> 00:42:33,560 Speaker 1: So mom stuff at house folks dot com is our 606 00:42:33,600 --> 00:42:36,400 Speaker 1: email address. You can also tweet us Moms of podcast 607 00:42:36,560 --> 00:42:39,279 Speaker 1: or messages on Facebook. And we've got a couple of 608 00:42:39,280 --> 00:42:41,479 Speaker 1: messages to share with you when we come right back 609 00:42:41,640 --> 00:42:50,640 Speaker 1: from a quick break. I have one here from Jane. 610 00:42:50,680 --> 00:42:55,160 Speaker 1: In response to our Mothers of Invention episode, Jane says, 611 00:42:55,320 --> 00:42:57,960 Speaker 1: love the podcast. You keep me connected to my younger 612 00:42:58,040 --> 00:43:01,120 Speaker 1: feminist self. I'm sixty five, while putting me in touch 613 00:43:01,200 --> 00:43:04,279 Speaker 1: with how the younger generation thinks about things. As I 614 00:43:04,360 --> 00:43:06,600 Speaker 1: was listening to Mother's of Invention, I saw the o 615 00:43:06,760 --> 00:43:10,360 Speaker 1: bit for Valerie Hunter Gordon, a British army wife, and 616 00:43:10,400 --> 00:43:12,840 Speaker 1: thought she deserved a shout out. By the time she 617 00:43:12,960 --> 00:43:16,160 Speaker 1: had her third child in ninety seven, at twenty six, 618 00:43:16,560 --> 00:43:18,920 Speaker 1: she figured there had to be a better way to 619 00:43:18,960 --> 00:43:22,640 Speaker 1: deal with diapers. She crafted a washable outer garment from 620 00:43:22,719 --> 00:43:27,759 Speaker 1: nylon parachute material and inserted a throwaway liner of cellulose 621 00:43:27,800 --> 00:43:31,839 Speaker 1: wrapped in cotton wool, later switching to plastic, dubbed the 622 00:43:31,880 --> 00:43:35,440 Speaker 1: Patty p a d d I. It wasn't the first 623 00:43:35,440 --> 00:43:38,560 Speaker 1: disposable diaper, but it helped sell more people on a 624 00:43:38,560 --> 00:43:42,560 Speaker 1: product that at first struck many as extravagant. Keep up 625 00:43:42,600 --> 00:43:44,920 Speaker 1: the good work, and Jane, thank you so much for 626 00:43:45,000 --> 00:43:48,360 Speaker 1: listening and alerting us to Valerie Hunter Gordon. I have 627 00:43:48,440 --> 00:43:53,040 Speaker 1: a letter here from Marty, who writes, you cannot imagine 628 00:43:53,080 --> 00:43:56,160 Speaker 1: how happy I was to find your amazing podcast last year. 629 00:43:56,440 --> 00:43:59,719 Speaker 1: My favorite thing it was recommended to me by my 630 00:44:00,239 --> 00:44:02,840 Speaker 1: thirty year old daughter. That's right, see and see. I 631 00:44:02,880 --> 00:44:06,719 Speaker 1: am that mom who may have not told you, but 632 00:44:06,840 --> 00:44:10,719 Speaker 1: really the cool thing is you're telling me. I've learned 633 00:44:10,760 --> 00:44:13,160 Speaker 1: amazing things by listening to your podcast and of some 634 00:44:13,200 --> 00:44:16,240 Speaker 1: of the best discussions with my three grown daughters. Sminy 635 00:44:16,320 --> 00:44:19,160 Speaker 1: has validated some of my opinions and has me questioning 636 00:44:19,239 --> 00:44:21,799 Speaker 1: many things I never thought to question. I do not 637 00:44:21,840 --> 00:44:25,160 Speaker 1: feel alienated from your show because of my age. Ever, 638 00:44:25,800 --> 00:44:27,839 Speaker 1: as a mom, I can tell you that I am 639 00:44:27,880 --> 00:44:29,960 Speaker 1: proud of you as I am proud of my own 640 00:44:30,040 --> 00:44:35,120 Speaker 1: daughters for throwing a little light. Oh Marty, thank you 641 00:44:35,680 --> 00:44:38,440 Speaker 1: all that means so much, and thanks to your daughters 642 00:44:38,480 --> 00:44:42,680 Speaker 1: for introducing you to stuff mom never told you and listeners. 643 00:44:42,719 --> 00:44:44,960 Speaker 1: If you have stuff to share with us, mom stuff 644 00:44:45,000 --> 00:44:46,759 Speaker 1: at how stuff works dot Com is where you can 645 00:44:46,800 --> 00:44:48,720 Speaker 1: do it and for links to all of our social 646 00:44:48,719 --> 00:44:50,799 Speaker 1: media as well as all of our blogs, videos and 647 00:44:50,840 --> 00:44:54,000 Speaker 1: podcasts with our sources So you can learn even more 648 00:44:54,040 --> 00:44:56,960 Speaker 1: about social work. Head on over to stuff Mom Never 649 00:44:57,040 --> 00:45:03,720 Speaker 1: told You dot com. For more on this and thousands 650 00:45:03,719 --> 00:45:13,760 Speaker 1: of other topics, visit how stuff Works dot com.