Racial Equity and Social Justice Sessions
NASW Virginia and Metro DC chapters continue to develop education and outreach aimed at reducing racial inequities, human rights infringement, systemic racism, and social injustices. In 2022, the joint conference features 12 sessions and three keynotes—15 total trainings--on such vital issues. Please see below if you are interested in learning more about the clinical aspects of racism and social injustice on social work. We also invite you to read NASW Virginia’s statement on racism and the chapter’s commitment to change and self-examination moving forward after the murder of George Floyd in May 2020.
THURSDAY, MARCH 24
8:30-9 a.m.
OPENING INTRODUCTION: Land Prayer and Discussion of Historical Aspects of Indigenous People. General Session Introduction: Chief Lynette Allston, Nottoway Tribe.
9:10 a.m.-Noon
KEYNOTE: The Bridge Project: Finding Connection in a Time of Division. Keynoters: Kane Smego and CJ Suitt.
Life-long friends with over a decade of collaboration in the fields of youth engagement, creative arts, and community building, poets CJ Suitt and Kane Smego explore what it means to nurture cross-cultural relationships. In this captivating performance and workshop, the duo reimagine healthy masculinity and celebrate the unique perspectives that we all carry, sharing their stories in verse, hip hop, and poetry, as well as guiding participants in telling their own through writing exercises. Beyond the poetry, this program is an invitation to dialogue, fostering social-emotional learning and leading participants in building a more connected community.
1:25-2:55 p.m.
Cultural Humility as an Antiracist Approach (1.5, .25 ethics CE). Speaker: Dr. Brandynicole Brooks.
Cultural humility is centered on lifelong learning and critical self-reflection, recognition and challenges to inherent power imbalance, and the upholding of institutional accountability. This session will inform you about cultural humility, the impact of oppression in the lives of the families served, and ways you can transform your practice individually, interpersonally, and institutionally.
1:25-4:55 p.m.
Effects of Trauma vs PTSD (3 CEs, including 1 ethics CE). Speaker: Dr. Kenyautia Gash.
This introductory training to trauma and PTSD provides the learners with a comprehensive exploration of the psychological trauma field, the nature of trauma (sexual abuse, combat, and natural disasters), how trauma affects individuals, grief reactions, racial distress and traumatic stress. Also included in this training is exploration of the professional’s response to trauma, vicarious traumatization, the use of trauma-informed care as a crisis intervention, comorbid disorders, and general treatment issues.
3:25-4:55 p.m.
Shattering Glass Ceilings: Bridging Gaps of Racial Inequities within the Workplace (1.5 CEs, including 1.5 ethics CEs). Speaker: Jennifer Brown.
The workplace is an environment where your professional expertise is cultivated in an effort to answer the need of the organization. While it is inevitable that racial inequalities occur within the community, what happens when those same inequalities occur within the workplace, and it is accepted? For years, professionals have been unable to breathe while meeting the demands of their employers with enduring racial inequalities tolerated. The expectation ... silence. This workshop equips you with tools to navigate the inequalities within the workplace without having to endure silence. It’s one thing to endure racial inequality within the community; it’s something different when your livelihood is at risk if choosing to break the silence.
FRIDAY, MARCH 25
8-11:20 a.m.
KEYNOTE: US United. Keynoters: Ken Nwadike and Michigan Sheriff Chris Swanson.
Ken Nwadike, Jr., (the Free Hugs Project) and Sheriff Chris Swanson (Flint/Genesee County, Mich.) bring their authentic, fun and at times intense conversations on unity and social justice from the Black and Blue Podcast to live audiences. Over the past 10 years, Ken and Chris have literally risked their lives to create UNITY and peace. You’ll hear Ken share his personal story of overcoming homelessness and developing his work on the frontlines of social justice. Chris will follow with his own experiences as a police officer for 29 years and as a uniter of protesters and officers in Flint, Mich., during a time of volatile protests in response to the killing of George Floyd. Their powerful personal stories inform their creation of US United, the real dialogue that emphasizes the importance of unity.
In addition, Chris will also break down the “truth about human trafficking,” addressing the difference between prostitution and human trafficking, and explaining how victims are hooked through grooming. He delves inside the mind of the predator and helps us understand if we are personally safe. Finally, he explains how participants can be helpful in crushing this human trafficking pandemic.
The duo love audience questions and interactive discussion, so be prepared to participate in real-time polling and live Q&A. To extend their message beyond the event, the discussion will be recorded and shared on the Black and Blue Podcast and other social media channels.
2-5:30 p.m.
Dismantling the “Myth” of the Strong Black Woman (3 CEs, including 1 ethics CE). Speaker: Ciera Jones.
This session will explore a phrase people hear often: “Strong Black Woman.” What does it mean? Does this concept exist? What does it mean for those of us who are a part of this identity and have to live with it every day? How do we live the life of a Black woman and a Black woman who serves others in our work? You’ll hear answers to those questions and discuss how Black social workers and those who support them take care of our unique selves, because it is so important to be able to do so in a way that is culturally relevant and relevant to the times. This session will be heavily interactive—let’s talk!
2-3:30 p.m.
Addressing Clinical Needs of Survivors of Sexual Exploitation (1.5 CEs). Speaker: Lydia Nicole.
This session will cover clinical needs of sexual exploitation survivors, as well as interventions to address these needs. Populations will include children, adolescents, and adults who were victims of child sexual abuse materials (often distributed online) and other exploitation crimes. Therapeutic approaches and areas to address with the survivor and family also will be covered. You’ll be modeling techniques and learning examples of materials to use.
2-5:30 p.m.
Affirmative Social Work and Supervision for Transgender and Nonbinary Clients (3 CEs, including 1 ethics CE). Speaker: 2020 NASW Virginia Social Worker of the Year David Lewis and Catherine Casey, MD.
Learn how to identify ways that providers and supervisors can create a safe environment for transgender and gender nonbinary clients, apply the principals of gender-affirming therapy (Gender Affirming Model of Care), build deeper understanding of common risks and barriers, and look at our own implicit bias that might come up in client and supervisor relationships. You’ll become familiar with affirming and nonbinary terms and a wide range of human development, as well as see videos to understand common client experiences and improve our ability to serve clients who have multiple barriers to support access. This is not a basic or “safe-space” training; it will provide useful resources (children, families, adult clients) and address all practice levels. You’ll also dive into more challenging clinical topics, case studies, social work ethics, and current standards of practice.
SATURDAY, MARCH 26
10:50 a.m.-2:55 p.m.
The Social Determinants of Mental Health: Advancing Holistic Health Equity (3 CEs, including 3 ethics CEs). Speaker: Ellen Fink-Samnick.
The Social Determinants of Health remain an industry priority. While robust evidence validates the impact of psychosocial circumstances on the health of clients and communities, there is another vital dimension. Mental health incidence and social determinants are intertwined. Emphasis on trauma is emerging across practice settings. Expanded reimbursement targets health and behavioral health integration. Substance use, especially opioids, is a funding urgency. The time for attention to the Social Determinants of Mental Health (SDoMH) is now. Engage in a comprehensive session to provide the essential knowledge base for this important dimension of population health. Learn definitions and demographics, explore the evidence, and review reimbursement, resources and initiatives. Discover innovative new models to interview and assess clients that address real missions and unnecessary hospitalizations, and promote workforce safety and retention. Master this imperative for the industry.
LGBTQ+ and Allyship: As a Spectrum (3 CEs, including 1.5 ethics CEs). Speakers: Rebekah Lowenstein and Julie Wilcox.
Increase your cultural competence, knowledge, and awareness of the LGBTQAAI2S + population and your role as a social worker. This 3-hour training will be divided into two parts. Both will cover ethics (1 hour and .5 hours respectively) while reviewing the most current terms, needs, and risks for this population. The first half of the session will be geared towards every social worker and will focus on current terms, what we mean by LGBTQ+ as a spectrum, and what your role is and isn't as a professional ally. The second half will explore the more advanced provider or for the one who wants more specific techniques and resources for the population. It will heavily focus on nonbinary and trans-identifying individuals, discussing key aspects in identifying authentically for clients. Regardless of whether you have training in this area, or if this is a population that you serve regularly, this training is key for ethically competent social workers.
10:50 a.m.-12:20 p.m.
Preparing Social Workers to Integrate Professional Values and Antiracist Approaches in Practice. (1.5 CEs) Speaker: Dan Freedman.
This interactive presentation will focus on the potentials for integrating social work values and antiracist theories as a framework for structuring the professional development of social work students and practitioners. You’ll learn about the components of a value-based and antiracist practice models, including the benefits for integrating these approaches, and the impact this can have on promoting equity and inclusion in practice. The group also will examination of the characteristics of, and challenges towards, maintaining these types of professional development initiatives.
10:50 a.m.-2:25 p.m.
Understanding and Preventing Sexual Violence Among Communities of Color (3 CEs). Speaker: Veronica Cruz.
According to the Institute for Women’s Policy, women of color experience higher rates of sexual assault, intimate partner violence and homicide than non-woman of color. Sexual assault is about manipulation, methodology, and cultural and systemic infrastructures. This workshop will explore and identify risk and protective factors for sexual violence. The culture of silence will be discussed to fully understand how breaking the silence of sexual violence can help prevent sexual abuse. You’ll discuss various forms of sexual trauma and the psychosocial and collateral factors related to sexual violence. The presenter is a bicultural, forensic social worker specializing in criminal defense mitigation, dual-diagnosis, crisis intervention, addictions, trauma, and diverse ethnic groups. This is an interactive workshop where case vignettes will be presented and discussed to further enhance the learning experience.
12:55-2:25 p.m.
Forced and Child Marriage in Virginia (1.5 CEs). Speaker: Alex Goyette.
Forced and child marriage are serious yet often overlooked forms of family violence, which also intersect with numerous other forms of gender-based harm that impact individuals of all genders, ages, religions, cultural backgrounds, national origins, and economic status. Unfortunately, individuals facing forced marriage often slip through the cracks of protective systems. The challenges of providing support to forced marriage survivors are exacerbated for children and youth. This workshop will provide an overview of forced and child marriage in Virginia, the dynamics driving this form of abuse, the client-led service model used to address clients’ complex needs, and the services and legal remedies available for survivors and at-risk individuals. It will include best-practice guidance and unique tools for responding to these cases and interactive case scenarios. The workshop will conclude with an overview of recent policy reforms and opportunities for continued advocacy to improve systems to meet survivors’ needs.
2:45-4:15 p.m.
CLOSING KEYNOTE: Cousins: Connected Through Slavery (1.5 CEs). Keynoters: Betty Kilby Baldwin and Phoebe Kilby.
What happens when a White woman, Phoebe Kilby, contacts a Black woman, Betty Kilby Baldwin, saying she suspects they are connected through slavery? A surprise. Betty responds, “Hello, cousin.” Open to exploring difficult truths and sharing an admiration for Dr. Martin Luther King, they embark on a path towards reconciliation. Each tells her dramatic story--from Betty’s experience desegregating her county’s only high school to Phoebe’s eventual question to Betty: “How do I begin to repair the harms?” Be part of this “piercingly honest” conversation, which offers examples of reparations on a personal level. Based on their 2020 book, COUSINS: Connected Through Slavery, a Black Woman and a White Woman Discover Their Past--and Each Other. All authors' proceeds from sales of the book are donated to the Kilby Family Scholarship Fund, which offers college scholarships to descendants of the people Phoebe's family enslaved, including Betty's grandchildren. Betty’s granddaughter is studying to be a social worker in Texas! Betty and Phoebe will inspire others to sit down at the table of sisterhood and brotherhood to promote racial healing."
