The Just Practice Framework in Action: Contemporary Case Studies

The Just Practice Framework in Action presents a collection of case studies illustrating the integration of social justice into social work practice from the most intimate spaces of individual, clinical practice to macro-level advocacy and community building. The contributors to this volume offer detailed accounts of how they have brought the Just Practice framework to inform and transform their practice as clinicians, researchers, advocates, organizers, and educators. Their stories bring the framework to life, illustrating its potential for transformative social work practice.

Each case illustration in this text speaks to the nuances of meaning that shape practice; social workers’ navigation of complex power relations; the historical, cultural, political, organizational, and community contexts of social work; and the possibilities and constraints social workers have faced. Contributors address housing rights and homelessness, refugee resettlement, neighborhood gentrification, Indigenous rights, and immigration. They explore campus and community action around issues of food security, mental health care, disability rights, and water as a human right. Their accounts offer grounded insights into challenges and possibilities of social justice-oriented social work that both strengthen and inform the Just Practice framework.