Social Work and Antisemitism: Vital information for social work and other mental health training programs
It is a true honor to highlight the timely and essential resource, Social Work and Antisemitism: Issues and Interventions by Professors’ Carole B. Cox and Dana B. Marlowe. This invaluable text skillfully fills a void in urgent need of our attention.
While Jews account for only 2.4% of the US population, antisemitic incidents have increased 344% over the past five years. Jews are without a doubt, a minority group experiencing unprecedented hateful attacks and discrimination. Yet, until now, there has been no concrete academic scholarship available for college and graduate students to learn about ‘the oldest hate.’
Antisemitism has not been included in the social work curriculum. I remember in my own social work graduate training program in the early 1990s, no mention was made of the lived Jewish experience, the Holocaust or anything about antisemitism in our curriculum. That absence has now been swapped for actual misinformation or as some would say, disinformation about the Jewish people and antisemitism.
This dearth of information and the distribution of propaganda-like material negatively affects both Jewish and non-Jewish students. Future social workers are being trained in distortions instead of truth. Jewish students are isolated and under attack.
In their introduction, the authors cite the NASW Code of Ethics which states their commitment to fighting racism and oppression has, “been passive in dealing with antisemitism...” and that, “this suggests there may be a hierarchy of oppressions with some being more valid than others.”
The book outlines how antisemitism is propelled by age-old stereotypes and conspiracy myths, which now manifest across political lines, including both far-right and far-left rhetoric.
The authors also examine how educators and leaders side-step the topic often out of concern for ‘political backlash’ or fear of being perceived as ‘biased.’ They go on to report that many social work frameworks categorize Jews as, "white" and accusations of ‘white privilege’ are also sometimes wielded to silence or dismiss Jewish claims of antisemitism.
Social work DEI frameworks often pin Jews into such a corner despite the fact that we are not a monolith. Assigning “white privilege” to Jewish individuals who come from many different ethnic backgrounds is in itself, antisemitic.
Cox and Marlowe’s groundbreaking text is comprised of nine chapters each offering a summary of main points, discussion questions, short assignments and in-class exercises along with pages of references:
The Human Rights, Social Justice and Social Work establishes foundational values and situates antisemitism within rights-based practice.
Antisemitism: History and Social Work traces antisemitism from ancient stereotypes to modern manifestations.
Holocaust and its Impact examines the Holocaust and its impact on collective and intergenerational trauma.
Palestine, Israel, and Zionism explores complex intersections of Jewish identity, political contexts, and antisemitism.
Contemporary Antisemitism addresses modern forms of online hate, conspiracy theories, far-left and far-right dynamics.
Antisemitism and Mental Health details the psychological toll including anxiety, depression and PTSD along with strategies for healing.
Antisemitism and Intergenerational Trauma connects historic persecution to ongoing patterns of familial and collective trauma.
Antisemitism and Trauma-Focused Interventions Suggests therapeutic approaches and trauma-informed care to support Jewish clients.
Antisemitism: A Guide for Teaching and Social Work Practice is a text unto itself; A veritable roadmap for educators and institutions to seamlessly include antisemitism into anti-oppression work supporting social justice, inclusive pedagogy, and ethical practice.
This book offers a turnkey solution; vital information for social work and other mental health training programs. At this moment in history, most Jewish people I know feel unsafe in their environment. Attacks on Jewish individuals, neighborhoods and synagogues across the globe are the norm.
Antisemitism has been described as, "anti-Jewish racism" as it operates in multiple ways, can be intentional or unintentional, and expressed in coded language, and as conspiracy theories.
Social Work and Antisemitism: Issues and Interventions shines a light on this systemic problem and its real-world impact on student’s mental health, academic culture, and safety.
As social workers, we are charged with looking at our own conscious and unconscious biases not excluding antisemitism. We cannot overlook one minority group over another; all people are deserving of our care.
The authors advocate for intentional, ethics-driven engagement with antisemitism into meaningful education and practice. This book offers a turnkey solution; vital information for social work and other mental health training programs. It would behoove colleges, universities and those organizations that oversee them to pick up a copy.
This book review will also be published in the Am HaSefer Jewish Book Initiative .
I just bought the hardcover book!
Thanks for this. I’ve a friend who is a social worker who is sympathetic yet hasn’t been able to fully comprehend how profoundly traumatic antisemitism is for Jews of all ages and how frequently and consistently we are exposed to an escalating amount of it.