Social Worker Oppression

As future social workers, we will advocate on behalf of individuals who are oppressed in society. In the future, our clients may be individuals who suffer from a mental illness and these individuals may be denied certain rights because of their mental illness. When advocating on behalf of these individuals it is important for the social worker to respect their self-determination. The social worker can do this by “beginning where the client is”. In order to begin where the client is, the social worker must understand the challenges that exist in the client's environment. These oppressed individuals may also be barred form certain societal advantages because of social policy. For example, currently in our legislation our state officials are