Summary

One of the barriers to decolonisation work in social work in Africa and around the world has been the dismissal of colonisation as a thing of the past that ended with the colonial era. There continues to be a denial of ongoing colonisation and neocolonialism hence erasing the responsibility to fix them in social work. in this presentation, the present-day manifestations of colonialism in social work will be discussed and a decolonisation-first theory-practice provided. Some processes of decolonising self and mind from the colonisers/colonised perspective will also be shared to stimulate listeners to start on or progress the much-needed decolonisation and indigenisation of social work. 

Keywords (separate with commas)

Colonialism; decolonial; decolonisation-First Theory-practice ; indigenisation; social work; decolonising self;decolonising mind

Summary

Background: Hazardous alcohol use is one of the major risk factors for people’s health worldwide and certain populations, such as indigenous people (IP) experiencing homelessness, are disproportionately affected by its consequences. A myriad of interventions that target these complex issues have been developed. Among them, managed alcohol programs (MAPs) are harm-reduction interventions that aim to reduce the effects of severe alcohol use and homelessness. MAPs provide accommodation, social and health support in addition to regular doses of alcoholic beverages to stabilize drinking patterns and replace the use of non-beverage alcohol (mouthwash, hand sanitizer, etc.). Although the positive impacts of MAPs have been reported, very little is known about how to adapt this program to the living conditions of urban IP.Objectives: Using a decolonial approach, this paper aims to discuss the results of a qualitative evaluation of the first MAP in Montreal (Canada), implemented by the indigenous organization Projets autochtones de Montréal.Methods: Ethnographic methods (participant observation and informal interviews), and semi-structured interviews (n=12) were used to explore the adaption of the MAP and its effects on the lives of its residents. The collected data were thematically analyzed.\ Results:\ Efforts to culturally adapt the MAP model to urban indigenous people encountered challenges such as multiplicity of identities and diversity of lifestyles. However, the flexibility of the MAP’s harm reduction approach allowed the accommodation of diverse indigenous values and practices, fostering a sense of belonging among its residents. Several beneficial impacts such as stabilization of alcohol use and reduction/cessation of drug use were also reported. Improvement of residents’ health was also noted.\ Conclusion:\ The cultural adaptation of the Montreal MAP fosters a sense of belonging among its residents. Beneficial changes in substance use patterns and health improvement were also reported.\ 

Keywords (separate with commas)

Cultural adaptation, interventions, addiction, Indigenous, decolonial\ 

Summary

Despite efforts to engage North American Social Work with different frameworks, including Global Indigenous Frameworks, Social Work analysis, education, and interventions, they remain largely within the Modernity, Eurocentric-whiteness worldview. Decoloniality is the process of decolonization from the Aba Ayla (Latin America). It provides an alternative framework for social workers to discuss and understand human mobility and migration from the “other” standpoint. In 2014, former U.S. president Barack Obama declared the large-scale migration from the three Northern countries of Central America (Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras) a ‘crisis’ (Galli, 2018). Since then, Central Americans seeking safety movements has continued to gain international attention, particularly in 2018 and 2021, including caravans. The presentation aims to explore the construction of Central Americans migrating–specifically, the experiences of youth on the move. Based on research from the Rights for Children and Youth Partnership (RCYP), the presentation will examine youth as an excluded category using a decoloniality framework. As it is constructed, youthhood is a suspension between two stages: childhood and adulthood (Parada et al., 2024). While children (defined legally as those under 18) are afforded particular protections, youth between 18 and 30 are not afforded the same protections yet have been simultaneously recognized as not quite reaching adulthood. This in-between suspension becomes further complicated when discussing northward migration from Central America, as the migrant is also considered the liminal persona, whereby they are neither here nor there (Menjivar, 2006). We argue that the duality of existence–both as migrants and as youth–is used to treat the youth migrant as responsible for their illegalized movements and infantilized when and if it pleases decision-makers and politicians.

Keywords (separate with commas)

Decoloniality, liminal persona, Central America, youth migration, caravans

Summary

"Social workers are bridge builders between groups, organizations, governments, countries with the potential to support setting limits, defining needs, and strengthening capacity for mutual understanding. Yet social work practice is infiltrated with echoes of colonialism, capitalism, ableism, and patriarchal thinking and relating in the world. Somatic social work practices seek to unravel our conditioned responses shaped by oppression and trauma. When social workers teach somatic practices to clients in clinical work, we co-regulate with and support our clients’ ability to regulate their own nervous system, and thus increase their ability to face challenging circumstances, set limits, and navigate the “triggers” from traumatic experiences.What might this look like on the macro level? How could traditions across the globe that align with natural cycles and celebrate interdependence be reflected in our policies and practices? How might our macro practices help stretch our social nervous system to hold more joy and connection, to help us more skillfully move through grief, fear and uncertainty as cultures and nations?Using art as a medium for exploration, we are creating a multisensory vision board to imagine what a macro somatic social work practice might look, feel, sound, smell and taste like. Through images, sounds and textures, we will imagine a social work practice that marries indigenous knowledge and ways of knowing, organizing, and problem solving, in concert with the natural world. We will frame them within the language of neuroscience to contextualize these practices. "\ 

Keywords (separate with commas)

Art as intervention, decolonial practices, somatic social work, macro social work, creative social work practices\