Individual Reflection Assignment

Exploring Social Oppression and the Need for Change

1. Reflect on a social issue in Canada that is influenced by systemic oppression (e.g., poverty,

racism, gender inequality).

Ans: In Canada, systemic oppression is deeply rooted, and it also has a great negative impact

on making marginalized people further away from all privileges. It also regulates law, policy,

and social status, and creates systemic barriers to enjoying all basic needs as a resident.

There are lots of social issues that are influenced by systemic oppression, for example,

poverty, racism, gender inequality, disability, black community, all are part of oppression in

society. Today I’ll discuss racism which is a major and most important social issue.

According to Oxford dictionaries, racism means Prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism

by an individual, community, or institution against a person or people based on their membership

of a particular racial or ethnic group, typically one that is a minority or marginalized. Racism can

happen at the individual, institutional, or systemic level. It is deeply rooted in society, and that is

hard to differentiate when I observe it. I think it is a usual part and I take it as a normal

phenomenon of our daily life.

Racism plays an important role in generating noticeable barriers for underprivileged

communities like black, indigenous, and people of different colors rather than white. It can also

be more deeply rooted in attitudes, values, and stereotypical beliefs. In some cases, people don’t

even realize they have these beliefs. Instead, these beliefs are assumptions that evolved and

became part of systems and institutions.

move from her seat in the “whites-only” section of a movie theatre and was arrested. Then in

2018, she was honored with a picture and history on a Canadian $10 bill.

If we talk about critical race theory, it argues that racism is not just individual prejudice but a

deeply embedded structural issue in laws, policies, and institutions that benefits dominant groups

and disadvantages racial minorities. It also gives us an idea about how inequalities happen in

policing, healthcare, and the employment sector for racialized communities.

How does this issue intersect with the principles of social justice and equity in social service

work?

As a person of a minority group who was raised in a South Asian country, sometimes I feel that

I’m a victim of racism in Canada. It does not mean that I do not have enough skills to grow, but

society will not support me to grow normally. Racism always tries to keep the oppressed group at

a marginal level. It is easy to offer me the lowest rate of wage in my work, and if I have the

capability to go for the next step, sometimes the dominant group imposes rules to deter me from

the next promotion. When my daughter goes to school, her classmates always see him as a South

Asian and initially they observe before making her a friend. As a result, if there is another

student from her region could be her friend; otherwise, she has no friends at all. The dominant

group follows some metrics based on stereotypes to netting and eliminating brown people from

the selection process for employment in highly reputed jobs.

The scenario of racism is more acute for black people. Every day, they are facing lots of events

where racism is visibly present to control them. It’s a long history of anti-black racism in

American society. There are plenty of factors that contribute to their oppression. This is a
common assumption that black people are poor and keep silent when people marginalize them.

From ancient society, black people were labeled as slaves and a product of business rather than

humans.

There is an incident that happens in American society with a black lady Anarcha Westcott a

17-year-old enslaved girl who underwent 30 vaginal surgery without any kind of anesthesia for a

vesicovaginal fistula. We can imagine how painful a single surgery is without any kind of

anesthesia. This is the maximum level of oppression they receive in society.

Racism diminishes the principles of social justice and equity. Social justice has often been

referred to as the process of ensuring that individuals fulfill their roles and receive their due from

society. The principle of social justice and equity is based on providing equal facilities to all

society members, but racism doesn’t allow for to maintenance of social justice.

Racism is related to not giving proper facilities and respect based on some common beliefs

and biases. Equity, social justice are vague terms for a person who is a victim of racism. A

standard society always tries to maintain a fair distribution of resources. But racism deters from

fair distribution. For example, in the health sector always white people are prioritized over black

or people from other races, which is a violation of equity.

It is common for law enforcement departments to do racial profiling of crime, which is

based on stereotypes and racism. The way they think about a criminal must be from a black or

South Asian person. It is a clear violation of social justice to criminalize someone without

knowing their involvement. Sometimes Islamophobia prohibits a person from providing a cordial

service because the stereotypes in society educate them that they are dangerous. Youths are also
victimized by racism. A youth who is non-white is getting fewer opportunities than a white

youth. If a crime happens where the victim is a white youth gets more media attention than if the

same event happens with a racialized person. This is also a violation of social justice. For any

company that needs to lay off a person hiring manager will always focus on people of color to

terminate. The equity is a result of systemic oppression in north American society.

It is a common belief in society that black and non-white people of other races have less

affordability to buy and pay rent for a house. This is a biased thinking that helps to ruin social

justice in society. For example, if I say a home seller knows that his home buyer is a person from

the black community, he might think about the payment schedule and feel unsure about getting

the price timely, although the buyer has the ability to pay timely. This is an injustice for the

eligible buyer caused by social inequality.

Social service workers play a vital role in challenging systemic barriers in society. Their

role is critical but important to promote social justice and equity.

Raising awareness in society can help to challenge the systemic error. I would like to

educate people and inspire policymakers to be conscious about racism. I believe that will

change the people of society to be aware of their roles. For example, I know this is a systemic

error to think about black people skeptically. I will try to motivate people about that wrong

idea how it impacts society.

What role can social service workers play in challenging these systemic barriers?

Challenging disputed policies is also helpful to create a balanced society. As a social service

worker, I’ll try to advocate for changing some disputed rules that are harmful to establishing
an equitable society. It is a common bias that people who live in a government house are

sinful people, and there are some policies to control them for living in that house. If I have

the opportunity, I’ll run advocacy to change the limitations of benefits.

Supporting racialized people will also align with challenging barriers to racism. A small

support to oppressed people can amplify their creativity and talent to fight against racism.

Identifying their needs and offering service according to their demand will help to overcome

all inequity.

Accessibility to resources is another tool to challenge systemic barriers. Being a social

service worker, I will be happy to provide some sources and references of resources that will

enrich their knowledge to combat systemic barriers. Sometimes lack of resources prevents

them from getting the idea and working according to their knowledge.

Allyship with marginalized groups is beneficial to challenge and establish social judgment.

This is an active and ongoing process of supporting. If I become an ally with them some

more people will also feel the necessity to be an ally with them. I believe this kind of social

awareness is essential to change the viewpoint from the dominant perspective. For example,

in any movement of a marginalized group to protect their rights, and I feel that my

participation can amplify their voice, I would like to be an ally.

Encouraging leadership is also a way to change social barriers of a marginalized group. If I

notice that one of my clients has leadership skills and knowledge, I will encourage him to be

a leader. It will appoint a spokesperson to talk on their behalf.

Challenging racism in society is not an overnight task. It takes much time to change

society. But I believe a combined initiative can make a better world of justice and equity. As
a social service worker, I’m empowered to remove racism, which is beneficial for all

members of society.