As others have mentioned, I was amazed by the sheer number of organizations that our cohort had pinned on the map. I found this activity a really wonderful conduit for us, and myself in particular, to be able to connect social work movements in general, and also themes of practice around the world.
I started my journey in Pakistan, as both my parents' homeland but also as a place where I have been directly involved with social work efforts. Pakistanis largely rely on private individuals and organizations for support. One such individual, Laila Nusrat, is a personal acquaintance of mine and a family friend. She established Bali Memorial Trust with her husband, and privately organizes services such as free medical clinics, orphanages, homes for the elderly, and relief efforts after major disasters, such as the flooding in Sindh in 2011. When I visited a girls' orphanage in Lahore, and a free medical clinic run by Laila and other members of the community, I was struck by the ease by which community members could access services. In all other aspects of Pakistani society, we grew accustomed to paying bribes to get even mundane tasks done, and extra money is expected, albeit nonverbally, at any government agency to process paperwork, get identification cards made, etc. It was also striking to me, coming from the United States, that the paperwork and sign-in process was so low-maintenance and- seemingly to me- relatively unobtrusive. As a result, medical personnel were able to see and treat several patients in the same time as it might take a doctor to see one or two in a clinic in the United States.
This is all a very lengthy way for me to say that I pinned Bali Memorial Trust because of my personal connection to the place, knowing that the model is not one that I am 100% comfortable with (those with wealth charitably giving to disadvantaged individuals) but also recognizing that Pakistani citizens are mobilizing to help their own, and not just to provide emergency relief, but in ways that can make a difference on an infrastructural level.
I sometimes feel very insulated as a practitioner, because I recognize that some of the values that are precious to me (and informed by my academic and personal background) might not be held universally in ways that are easily recognizable. Still, what I found so heartening about this activity was that so many places pinned on the map seemed to be informed by direct needs from their respective communities. To echo something that Laney mentioned, I really appreciated the diverse, grassroots level community movements that I saw all across the globe. I guess it still comes as a surprise to me that I can use a social constructionist lens to hold several truths together, and to practice in ways that can be more culturally relevant and reflective of every individuals' experience. I (sadly) sometimes still struggle with this construct that I created somewhere along the line, that the professionalization of social work means that there is one overarching universal definition of what social work should look like. Seeing all of these efforts working in vastly different ways to serve vastly different needs made something click for me to run counter to that narrative. Here's to more of that.
I started my journey in Pakistan, as both my parents' homeland but also as a place where I have been directly involved with social work efforts. Pakistanis largely rely on private individuals and organizations for support. One such individual, Laila Nusrat, is a personal acquaintance of mine and a family friend. She established Bali Memorial Trust with her husband, and privately organizes services such as free medical clinics, orphanages, homes for the elderly, and relief efforts after major disasters, such as the flooding in Sindh in 2011. When I visited a girls' orphanage in Lahore, and a free medical clinic run by Laila and other members of the community, I was struck by the ease by which community members could access services. In all other aspects of Pakistani society, we grew accustomed to paying bribes to get even mundane tasks done, and extra money is expected, albeit nonverbally, at any government agency to process paperwork, get identification cards made, etc. It was also striking to me, coming from the United States, that the paperwork and sign-in process was so low-maintenance and- seemingly to me- relatively unobtrusive. As a result, medical personnel were able to see and treat several patients in the same time as it might take a doctor to see one or two in a clinic in the United States.
This is all a very lengthy way for me to say that I pinned Bali Memorial Trust because of my personal connection to the place, knowing that the model is not one that I am 100% comfortable with (those with wealth charitably giving to disadvantaged individuals) but also recognizing that Pakistani citizens are mobilizing to help their own, and not just to provide emergency relief, but in ways that can make a difference on an infrastructural level.
I sometimes feel very insulated as a practitioner, because I recognize that some of the values that are precious to me (and informed by my academic and personal background) might not be held universally in ways that are easily recognizable. Still, what I found so heartening about this activity was that so many places pinned on the map seemed to be informed by direct needs from their respective communities. To echo something that Laney mentioned, I really appreciated the diverse, grassroots level community movements that I saw all across the globe. I guess it still comes as a surprise to me that I can use a social constructionist lens to hold several truths together, and to practice in ways that can be more culturally relevant and reflective of every individuals' experience. I (sadly) sometimes still struggle with this construct that I created somewhere along the line, that the professionalization of social work means that there is one overarching universal definition of what social work should look like. Seeing all of these efforts working in vastly different ways to serve vastly different needs made something click for me to run counter to that narrative. Here's to more of that.
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