SOCW 6361 Walden University Social Policy Analysis & Advocacy Discussion Responses
Discussion: Developing Advocacy Strategies – Based On Food Insecurity
NASW focuses on social change through advocacy. This is evidenced in its Social Justice Briefs. In addition to an overview of critical social problems, the briefs include additional examples of policy analysis and various alternatives for social change that will broaden the context for your own investigation into the social problem you selected for your Social Change Project.
For this Discussion, you will review NASW’s social justice initiatives for social change by reviewing their Social Justice Briefs. This will also support you as you activate your advocacy in the form of a letter or email to a local or state representative for your Assignment this week.
To Prepare:
- Read Chapter 11 of the Jansson text.
- Review the Social Justice Briefs resource from NASW found https://www.socialworkers.org/Advocacy/Social-Just…
- Select one Social Justice Brief that resonates with you based on your advocacy goals or recent investigation into a social problem.
By Day 5
Respond to at least two of your colleagues and compare your respective approaches to advocacy. Does your method need to change based on the social problem or geographic region?
Student Response #1 (F.G.) needing reply:
Identify the title of the Social Justice Brief you selected.
Explain why you chose the Social Justice Brief.
The social justice brief I have chosen is National eviction Crisis in the era of the Coronavirus Pandemic. As we all know, we are all experiencing something we never thought we would experience. The Coronavirus Pandemic has cause trauma, damage, losses, and significant negative experiences in everyone’s lives Some of the consequences of the Coronavirus Pandemic are the loss of jobs, which have caused many families to lose their homes due to the lack of income.
Describe how you might advocate for change based on the analysis in the brief.
Advocating for this Social Justice Brief will focus on the lack of decent, stable, affordable housing, which has resulted in an eviction crisis. I would use the fact that we are currently living through the Coronavirus Pandemic to persuade. Policy advocates frequently support themselves with existing advocacy groups and volunteers to support them. Furthermore, to be successful a strategy needs a predominant style (Jansson, 2018); therefore, the strategy would be focused on providing statistics, an assessment of the impact, and recommendations on how the Federal, state, and local government can help the affected communities and families and address the harm COVID-19 Pandemic has caused. I will advocate for affordable housing for the affected renters, housing resources for low-income renters during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Furthermore, I would advocate for funding for the poor funded neighborhoods, where the crime is higher and job-seeking systems is lower due to safety insecurity, property values, and lack of educational success.
Reference
Jansson, B.S. (2018). Becoming an effective policy advocate: From policy practice to social justice (8th ed.).
National Association of Social Workers
. (n.d.) Social justice briefs.
https://www.socialworkers.org/Advocacy/Social-Justice/Social-Justice-Issue-Briefs.
Student Response #2 (A.J.) needing reply:
Identify the title of the Social Justice Brief you selected.
The title of the Social Justice Brief I selected is voting rights. Out of all the social justice briefs listed, I find this one the most relatable as it pertains or can affect the social problem I have been discussing over the past few weeks.
Explain why you chose the Social Justice Brief.
A big issue as it pertains to the social issue of abortion, especially in Louisiana is the voting aspect of it. Though voter ID laws get most of the attention when discussing voter suppression, redistricting, also known as gerrymandering, is another effective tool for diluting African American and Hispanic voting power (National Association of Social Workers). Although this issue does not affect all the populations, it does however affect these in which they are two of the highest races of persons seeking abortion. This in return with other personal substantial issues makes it more difficult for them to vote for policies against this social issue. In the absence of such standards, states seeking to dilute the minority vote will continue to redistrict along racial lines, thereby guaranteeing continued unfair and distorted representation in the U.S. House of Representatives (National Association of Social Workers). Again, without the votes or the strict policies on people voting, it will make abortion policies lean in the hands of those who favor ‘pro-life”.
Describe how you might advocate for change based on the analysis in the brief.
If anything, I would advocate for change by taking the initiative; standing in the front to see this analysis in the brief go through which means putting a stop to the hindering of such voting rights for those affected by it. Taking the initiative could mean: An individual who takes the time to visit his or her members of Congress puts them on notice that there is an issue that requires their attention (
Lewis-Burke Associates, LLC, 2017
). Also, successful advocacy often requires a disciplined, persistent, and concerted effort to communicate an organization’s interests (Lewis-Burke Associates, LLC, 2017). Even if changes aren’t made right then and there, I would stay consistent with my approach and changes with keeping the initiative spirit up with continuous advocacy skills, educating, and different approaches to see the change eventually.
Lewis-Burke Associates, LLC. (2017). Advocacy handbook: A resource guide for social workers. Council on Social Work Education. https://cswe.org/Advocacy-Policy/CSWEAdvocacyHandbook_Oct2017.aspx
National Association of Social Workers. (n.d.). Social justice briefs. https://www.socialworkers.org/Advocacy/Social-Justice/Social-Justice-Issue-Briefs
