An Examination of Anti-Racist and Anti-Oppressive Theory and Practice in Social Work Education

Social work education is subject to further changes partly in response to media and governmental scrutiny and pressure, with particular criticism being levelled at anti-racist social work theory and practice. This paper questions whether this is due only to the dominance of a particular ideology in Britain, or if it is also a consequence of the failure of social work education to adequately address the complexity of the issues involved. The authors suggest that much of the anti-racist social work literature is theoretically inadequate, being informed by neither sociological, political nor economic theory or research on racism in Britain. This has made it vulnerable in a climate which is hostile to struggles for racial and other forms of social equality. The authors conclude that a radical, yet realistic, way forward is to move away from the current narrow focus on anti-racism to a broader anti-oppressive framework. This recognizes the need to continue the fight against racial, alongside class, gender and other forms of oppression, whilst setting achievable objectives within the social work process.