Doin’ The Work: Frontline Stories of Social Change

Anti-Racist Social Work in England – Wayne Reid

09.06.2021 - By Shimon CohenPlay

Download our free app to listen on your phone

Download on the App StoreGet it on Google Play

Episode 45Guest: Wayne Reid, Professional Officer, Social Worker & Anti-Racism VisionaryHost: Shimon Cohen, LCSW

www.dointhework.comListen/Subscribe on: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, SpotifyFollow on Twitter & Instagram, Like on FacebookJoin the mailing listSupport the podcastDownload transcript

If you love what we discuss on the podcast, then you will love our courses! We focus on frameworks, knowledge, and skills to engage in anti-racist, anti-oppressive, justice-based liberatory practice. CEs are available. Check out https://dointhework.com/courses/ to learn more and register. We hope you will join us!

Check out the new Doin’ The Work Collection of hoodies, tees, mugs, and tote bags! Rep the podcast you love while doin’ the work.

Thank you to this episode’s sponsor! The University of Tennessee Knoxville College of Social Work (UTK) has a phenomenal social work program, with the opportunity to do your bachelor’s master’s, and doctorate of social work online. Scholarships are available.

In this episode, I talk with Wayne Reid, who is a Professional Officer and Anti-Racism Visionary at the British Association of Social Workers (BASW). Wayne is my first international guest, and I am so grateful! Wayne talks about how his understanding of anti-racism in social work and his motivation for speaking out and taking action was catalyzed by the murder of George Floyd. He discusses a number of projects he and BASW have been working on, specific to anti-racism in social work – check out the link to his extensive portfolio in the show notes. These are excellent resources. Wayne shares what anti-racist social work means to him and how a concept that should be straightforward becomes very complex in application due to the embeddedness of white supremacy and racism in laws, policies, institutions, beliefs, and actions. We discuss how no one wants to say they are racist, but actions that support racist policies are being done in the regular operations of social work practice. Wayne talks about his “pure, proactive, and unapologetic” approach to anti-racism within social work and the need for this approach due to constantly being up against white supremacy both as a Black man and as a Black male social worker. He discusses the need for social workers to practice anti-racism as part of our standards of conduct, not just with clients, but with colleagues, and the need for organizations to provide protections and support for social workers of color that explicitly address the many forms of institutional and interpersonal racism they experience, as well as steps organizations can take to transform into anti-racist organizations. Wayne also shares how he got into this work. I hope this conversation inspires you to action.

Anti-racism in Social Work PortfolioTwitter: @wayne_reid79Email: [email protected]

More episodes from Doin’ The Work: Frontline Stories of Social Change