Immigration & Culture at Fieldwork Breakfast

On Tuesday, October 24, over 50 field instructors from around the tri-state area gathered in Belfer Commons for the annual breakfast and seminar for field instructors, a long standing tradition at Wurzweiler School of Social Work.

Over hot scrambled eggs, pancakes, bagels and fresh fruit, Dr. Roberta Nassar spoke about the tightening of immigration laws since the 1996 Welfare Reform and the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center, common misconceptions about the requirements for US citizenship, and the difficulty of obtaining visas, particularly for young applicants without families to anchor them to their homeland. Dr. Nassar has a long-standing interest in immigration and international social work.

Next, Dr. David Strug discussed how immigration and cultural differences impact on clinical assessment. Dr. Strug used a case study involving a Mexican family living in the US who are referrred to an agency after a report of child abuse. Dr. Strug discussed the different perspectives taken by a case worker who assessed the case without considering the cultural context, and another case worker with a keen understanding of the cultures involved. A genogram helped the audience grasp the relationships within the family.

Finally Dr. Ronnie Glassman, Director of Field Instruction, presented clips from the British film Bend it like Beckham and the Korean film, The Way Home, to illustrate issues of intergenerational cultural conflict.