Racism

David was in his final year of social work. Although an experienced and well-respected Indigenous health worker in the north Queensland communities, David felt he needed social work qualifications if he was to have any influence on health and social services delivery to remote communities. So he moved to Brisbane to study and was away from family and culture. He returned home to do his first placement and for his second placement he chose a mainstream family support agency in Brisbane. He wanted something outside of health and in the city. He had a good feeling about this placement. He met me, his supervisor at the pre-placement interview and after talking he suggested that he might enjoy working on an exciting new project we have operating out of the local schools network. Although I encouraged David to do his placement with us, I was a worried about my lack of supervisory experience. Would I be able to give David (an experienced health worker) guidance and support when I myself was younger, inexperienced as a supervisor and non-Indigenous, plus I would be away for the first 3 weeks of his placement? My manager, Denise did not share my anxiety. Denise was so excited about the prospect that they would have an Indigenous student that she told me not to worry she would take on supervision duties for the 3 weeks and be there to lend a hand at other times.

Three weeks passed and I came back to work and was told by my manager that David is nice and does what she tells him to he do but he isn’t very communicative.

I had my first supervision meeting with David who was very deflated but did not say very much except everything was fine and he didn’t want to make trouble. It was obvious from his manner and feedback from other concerned team members that everything was not fine. What I learnt was:

  • Apparently Denise was proud of having an Indigenous student and took him from meeting to meeting and encouraged him to provide an Indigenous perspective what was being discussed.
  • When not at meetings, David sat in the office. The administration ladies were mixed about their thoughts on David. On one hand it was great to be able to refer any of the Indigenous family enquires to him. But then he never sat with them at morning tea or lunch even if he was invited.
  • The School project worker wanted David to start on the project and he was very keen but the Manager thought it best for him to be in the office studying the policies and procedures.

I set to work reviewing David’s draft learning plan that Denise had helped him write and helped David identify what he wanted out of placement and then designed learning opportunities around those. The focus was moved away from attending meetings and dealing with Indigenous intake enquiries and towards the Schools Project that required working 3 days a week off site. It took a little longer before David trusted me and opened up in supervision but gradually we built a strong relationship and David started to share stories of his life and culture and his perspective of Indigenous Affairs and share a few laughs to bring it back to reality.

Key considerations:

  • The cultural lens and attitudes of the agency and workers in determining how different players viewed David – were they seeing David as a person first or Indigenous; a student there to learn or an opportunity to exploit?
  • Review of the cultural /diversity reference in the agency’s mission statements, policy and procedures. What did they say and how were they being or not being implemented.
  • Professional Standards and leaning objectives as set out by the University and AASW – how were they being met in the current situation?
  • Level of agency and individual worker’s understand and appreciation of Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander culture and history.
  • David’s expectations and autonomy.
  • Myoncerns about being a first time supervisor.

What Worked:

  • My decisive action on my return ensured I was acting in the interest of the student even if it meant confronting management. Once I met with David, assessed the situation and talked to David over a period of time about what he would like to happen. Then we both:
    - Constructively but deliberately confronted and challenged the assumptions and racism (conscious and unconscious) raised by David’s presence. Reference was made to Agency’s strategic documents and the AASW Code of Ethics.
    - David’s work plan was reviewed and refocused to achieve his learning objectives and realigned with the AASW Practice Standards.
  • David asked for the whole staff to gather and to talk and come away with some shared sense of awareness and common ground. This happened twice a week over 2 weeks.
  • I felt frustrated that it might be taking too long but David respectfully pointed out that it was important business and not to be rushed or forced on people.
  • I sought advice and support on my supervision approach from the University Field Education. And both David and I received advice and support from the Oodgeroo Unit Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander student support service QUT. For more information about services available to Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander students contact the Oodgeroo unit.

What would we do differently next time?

  • Invite the student to have a say in how the placement is negotiated in terms of cultural and personal, expectations and what needs to be considered and accommodated so that the placement is culturally safe and learning is enhanced.
  • Use supervision as a safe space to explore with the student their understanding and experience of authority and power and identify any negative potential impacts on their learning and experience of placement. Especially relevant in cultures where there is a history of powerlessness and discrimination at the hands of authority.
  • Revisit the agency mission, policy and procedures, work plans and training to see how diversity and inclusive is spoken of and expectations for day to day work and also how it applies to the student placement situation.
  • On David’s initiative, I am working with the local Elders to identify cultural protocol and communication pathways for the future.
  • Build in support and learning touch bases prior to placement so that students are connected and can get support when need.