Anti Discrimination and Cultural Competencies

  Discussion on Access And Equity:

The world today is split vertically between those that have the means to prosper, and those who are trying to achieve those means. This has led to relocation of a large number of people within a nation and from outside. This constant churning has lead not to a homogenous whole, but to societies where there are those who are’ the outsiders’ and thus not being treated as equals and those who are more than the equals. The countries of their adoption needs these people to supplement the work force but are not really in a position mentally to give them the status of equality (Dominelli, 2008).

Historically speaking this is not something that has happened in the recent times. It is something that most nations who have achieved the status of being developed have faced over a long period of time. From the very inception of industrialization when work force was needed to keep the economy growing to the present times when the momentum has to be maintained, many nations have willingly taken in the immigrant into their own country. This has resulted in the local population at times revolting against those who are viewed as usurpers of their resources. They resent these immigrants as a threat to their national character and way of life. Their manner of dressing, speech habits and even their food habits are something that the local population is not able to come to terms with. Add to that the huge cultural difference and one has a mixture that is ready to explode and explode it does (Taylor et al, 2010). The growing numbers of murders, racial riots and other forms of atrocities against the immigrant are on the rise. This is especially true of those nations where there are immigrants in large numbers. That some of these families may have been there for two to three generations has not helped change the equation (Dominelli, 2008) .

Racism and  Racist Practice

The facts that the color of your skin is different, that you eat different and maybe even dress different are the parameters that make the new immigrant stand out. You stand out in the very place that you wish to become a part of and to contribute in the social set up of the place. But the reality is far from the aspirations of such people (Trudgen,2003). They face a lot of discrimination everywhere, be it the work place, malls, shopping centers, schools and even public places like parks for children. Rude comments are passed on them, they are harassed and most of the times are not allowed to mingle freely with the locals. It is not an unusual sight to see the immigrant being pushed aside while waiting for their turn to pay bills or queing to buy tickets at a movie theatre. The way they are stared at and looked up and down is an insult to the very psyche and self respect of such people. But they bear it silently most of the time-afraid to rub the locals the wrong way (Taylor et al, 2010) .

 

 

Evidence:

At the work place the situation is no better for the immigrant. His job skill makes him an equal but the rest of him is not good enough to be accepted as an equal. And the irony is that at times his skills are far superior to those of the local worker. It is not possible for the local aspirant for the job to understand as to why the man from outside is better than him. He feels that it is his right and prerogative to have the most plum jobs as resident. This leads to a growing antipathy towards the immigrant and a refusal to let him into the social system (Gitterman, 2001).

Add to that the fact that the immigrant has more liquid money than the resident. This is primarily due to the fact that even though they are earning well, there is no drastic change in their lifestyle. The money that they earn is saved, to be either sent home or to be spent on something that will benefit the entire family. Family ties are rather strong among the immigrants-especially those coming from the Middle East and the Asian continent (Galliosa et al, 1997).

Intervention Modalities

The familiar is always safer. In familiarity lies a certain sense of security. We are by nature wary of the unknown and the untested. As among animals so among humans-this not falling in line with the known always gives rise to a certain skepticism in the human mind. Thus it is with people who have a different value system, a different culture and consequently a different way of life. It is only a matter of perception and therefore of understanding the difference.

Take the matter of child rearing for instance. In the Middle East and most of Asia wielding the stick to the child is not thought of as anything amiss. This in their view is necessary in order to drill the correct values in the growing years of the child  (Ivey et al, 2007). “Spare the rod and spoil the child” is a precept that is deeply ingrained in their psyches. In many countries though a phone call from a neighbor is all it takes for the Child Welfare Board to rush in and whisk the child away to a foster home. The parents are clueless as to the reason for this and the child at times suffers from a sense of insecurity by being removed from familiar surroundings and parents. This is one area where there is a need to understand the cultural difference and not brand the parents as unfit to bring a child up. Repeated and continuous use of physical force on a child though should attract the severest punishment (Galliosa et al, 1997) .

Attractiveness influencing sets

The other grey area is marital relationships. In the Middle East and Asia a certain amount of physical abuse on the part of the husband is taken as part of being ‘married’. There is no stigma attached and no legal recourse is even thought of under the circumstances. Girls are mentally conditioned to accept this mild form of physical or mental abuse and not complain, as what happens inside the four walls of the house should remain so. Even marital rape is an issue that never enters their thought process.  It never enters their mind to ask for help. In the West though things are rather different and women have the means to get out of the situation . They have help groups and welfare societies which extend help to anyone and everyone in need. And if you cannot make the marriage work then you just walk out of the relationship. The doors of the divorce courts are never closed (Ivey et al, 2007) .

These barriers in understanding a culturally different person lead to looking at the different suspiciously, at times even branding them uncouth and uncivilized which is a very wrong perception.

Communication:

Communication and the desire to communicate is an integral part of human nature. Language has played a very important role in fostering the process of exchanging ideas and thoughts. And over many years language has developed into a very potent tool in the hands of those who know how to use it to their advantage (Galliosa et al, 1997). At times though, this very tool becomes a barrier in understanding and appreciating the other person or his thought process. Unfamiliarity with the lexicon and the syntax of a language can at times lead to a very embarrassing situation often leading to hilarity. Non understanding and lack of comprehension often leads to being misunderstood and more often than not to situations where there is a huge gap in what you wish to express and what you come across as (Dresser, 1996).

This situation where the language of the host country is not known and familiar leads often to people being ignorant of their rights. They suffer in silence not knowing where to go in times of distress and need. And when they do go they are not in a position to explain the exact nature of their problem. They rely heavily on people to translate for them. In most cases the very people who translate are the perpetrators of the atrocities on the victims- husbands, close family members and friends. Even in cases where the Welfare Board designates an officer to the case, the ignorance that the officers bring to the cultural background of the victim is more harmful than a help. In such situations it would be helpful to designate officers who have some understanding of the cultural moorings of the victim (Reynolds, 2003) . On paper everything looks very good but when translated into practice it is fraught with many shortcomings. One understands the logistical difficulties of the situation but it is not something that cannot be overcome. A sympathetic attitude and a little bit of understanding on the part of the officer on duty can work wonders to mitigate the suffering of those seeking help (Dresser, 1996) .

Take case of the Middle Eastern woman aged 25yrs who went to seek the help of the Family Welfare Services. Married to a man 15yrs her senior in age she went back to the abusive husband as she did not want to be separated from her three year old son. She had no support system in place at home –the only other member in the family being her 30year spinster sister-in –law. The sister in law only came to her help when her brother-the victim’s husband was away. The reason being that she too was dependent on him by helping him in his business and therefore unable to break out of a social system that lays great price on the man of the family. This heavy dependence on the male members in the family is typical of the patriarchal way of thinking and mental conditioning. To a western mind this though is totally unacceptable and humiliating.  It is this difference in mind sets and perception that often leads to  failure in any system-especially one that has been designed and put in place in order to help those in need.

These cultural diversities and the lack of a proper communication system is the root cause why so many women belonging to the Diaspora in any country suffer. They do not have the means to break away from generations of mental conditioning. It takes at least two to three generations of living in the adopted country for people to shed their inherited baggage of cultural values and become one in thought at least with the country of their adoption.

 General Reasons for Service Delivery Problems

As mentioned earlier the problem is not in the system, but in delivering that system so that it benefits those who are in dire need of the same. In the case of the woman who was physically abused by her husband, but went back to him, the two officers assigned to her for the night were a man and a woman who were not CALD background. They allowed the husband to interpret what the woman was saying. Needless to point out the interpretation could not have been true either in spirit or in words to what the woman wanted to say. This of course led to the woman being put in charge of a mental health worker who had no ethnic background whatsoever. The husband with his side of the story and faulty representations of the facts was able to prove that his wife was mentally unstable. The woman in question had no support or advocacy in place and so went back to the husband to be with her child. It was only when the physical abuses became intolerable and increased in severity that she finally escaped. She sought the help of Women’s Refuge System and was assigned an Anglo-Australian case manager, who was extremely sensitive to her pain and emotional turmoil. But it took a year of sustained physical abuse and torture for the woman to finally break free. Had she found the right help in her earlier attempt the scars would not have gone that deep and she could have been well on the road to mental and emotional well being much earlier than she actually did.

 

Structural Reasons:

Some of the structural reasons relate not only to the immigrant but those who relocate from the outback and try to enter the mainstream of urban life. They are not accepted even though the Government is trying its best to integrate them into the mainstream of social and cultural life. More often than not these aborigines are looked down upon and their cultural heritage is reduced to museums. Their way of life, their indigenous medicines and their manner of speech all has to be sacrificed. Those who manage to do well or are indirectly helped by the government to succeed are few and far in between. These then become poster boys and girls of the system that show case them as great examples of their policies and its success. What is alarming though is the fact that in order to integrate these people we deprive them of their very identity and cultural moorings (Gitterman, 2001). Their very identity is sought to be annihilated and submerged. This has happened where ever there are indigenous people, be it America, Canada or here. Some of the literature being written by the indigenous people is proof of their bewilderment at the loss of their identity (Gitterman, 2001) .

Recommendations

It is not possible here to enumerate all the problems-major or minor- that beset people belonging to the minority groups. Nor is it humanly possible to resolve them completely. What is needed is to tackle them on a more sympathetic note. Those who are to take care of the ones in need will have to bring in a certain level of understanding of the cultural moorings and different mindsets. It is not possible to treat all cases with the same yardstick. Individuals are similar in many ways and are yet different .The difference is in attitudes, upbringing and generations of cultural values. Unless these are recognized and given their due importance no welfare scheme can ever claim to be so in the true sense of the word. Welfare workers will thus have to be trained to treat each case on merit and not be swayed by generalities and biases.

 

Conclusion:

To conclude, any country that wishes to survive economically, socially and politically in this ever changing world has to treat the immigrant at a human level. Only by giving the person an assurance that his interests are being taken care of can the host country hope to get the best out of the visitor. The need is bi-lateral and unless the relationship is established on a platform of mutual understanding of problems it will be non beneficial. Laws that are made can come alive only if given the Midas touch of understanding and love. Being human and appreciating the difference in cultures leads to a relationship of love and trust, the two most important ingredients for any relationship to thrive.

References:

Dominelli L. (2008). Anti racist social work. (3rd edn). London: Macmillan.

Dresser, N. (1996). Multicultural manners. London: Wiley.

Galliosa, C. & Callan, V. (1997). Communication and culture. New York: Wiley.

Gitterman, A. (Ed.). (2001). Handbook of social work practice with vulnerable and resilient populations (2nd ed.). New York: Macmillan.

Ivey, A., De Anda, D., Ivey, M., Simek-Morgan, L. (2007) Theories of Counselling andPsychotherapy: A multi-cultural perspective, Allyn & Bacon

Reynolds, H. (2003). North of Capricorn: The untold story of Australia’s north.

Taylor, K. & Guerin, P. (2010). Health Care and Indigenous Australians: Cultural safety in practice.South Yarra: Palgrave Macmillan.

Trudgen, R. (2003). Why warriors lie down and die. Adelaide: Aboriginal Resource and DevelopmentServices.