The Impact on Antisemitism on Social Workers and the Profession

Background and Purpose

Antisemitism continues to increase across the globe. Social work, with its focus on social justice and oppression, has yet to take an active role in combatting this ancient prejudice. Ignoring it impacts both Jewish social workers who can be the targets of antisemitism and the profession's authenticity, as its goals are based on social justice and security for all groups. Concomitantly, the recent attempt by the International Federation of Social Work to expel the Union of Israeli Social Workers has been considered an antisemitic act as such censure and exclusion was never levied against social workers in any other country.

The purpose of this study is to explore the impact of antisemitism on social workers and the profession itself. The objectives are 1) To understand the impact of antisemitism on Jewish social workers, 2) To understand how antisemitism impacts the profession, 3) To develop effective methods for challenging and combating antisemitism in the profession.

Methods

This qualitative study explores the impact of antisemitism on the experiences of Jewish social workers in many spheres of practice in the United States and Canada. Building on findings from earlier studies, this study focuses on an in-depth exploration of how antisemitism manifests in practice and its impact on both workers and the profession.

Using a qualitative design with 3 focus groups of 10 participants each enabled participants to discuss and share their experiences in safe, supportive settings. Participants were Jewish social workers, recruited through the Jewish Social Worker Interest Group, Jewish Social Work Consortium, and Hineni, a Facebook site for Jewish social workers. The groups were conducted synchronously via Zoom to ensure accessibility for participants across different geographic areas.

The focus group questions explored experiences of antisemitism in professional settings, including interactions with clients, colleagues, and agencies, and antisemitism's perceived impacts on practice. Open-ended questions were designed to elicit detailed narratives, which are generally less available with other methods. The data were coded and analyzed to identify themes relevant to the research questions.

Results

Key themes that emerged included experiences of client rejection, the politicization of clinical practice, feelings of confusion and anger toward the profession, and feelings of others' insensitivity towards antisemitism. Clients stating they could not work with a Jewish therapist provoked feelings of loss. Disappointment and disillusionment with the profession were common themes, with those with the most years in practice particularly sensitive to these feelings.

Another important theme was people's reluctance to recommend social work as a career for Jewish people.

Conclusions and Implications

Antisemitism has a devastating impact on Jewish social workers and also raises doubt about the sincerity of the profession itself. Further large-scale studies are needed to understand the antecedents to the spread of antisemitism, its role in social work, and the design of measures and interventions that can combat it. Finally, it is critical to note that history shows antisemitism to be a precursor of oppression and hatred of other groups.