Partners for Our Children

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Don’t co-opt social workers on the path to police reform

On August 18th, the Seattle Times published an opinion piece by Dr. Eddie Uehara, Dean of University of Washington School of Social Work.  Don’t co-opt social workers on the path to police reform argues that social workers’ talents are best used to address the root and upstream causes of social inequity and injustice, rather than reactively as ‘softer’ police officers during a 911 call. She concludes the article by stating, “in addition to a professional workforce dedicated to working alongside communities, what the field of social work can contribute is rigorously tested programs that support community mental health, healthy youth development and community decision-making.”

Read the full article here.