PRACTICE APPRoACHES

Critical Consciousness and Cross-Cultural/Intersectional Social Work Practice: A Case Analysis

Zulema E. Surez, Peter A. Newman, & Beth Glover Reed

ABSTRACT Social workers have an ethical responsibility to address the dynamics and consequences of oppression and to promote social justice. Working across cultures and identities requires expanding our comfort zones, owning our power and privilege, and engaging in active selfreflection that interrogates what we hold to be true. These are vital components of critical consciousness and critical approaches to practice. This paper presents a complex case example of a refugee muslim family to articulate the processes that workers can use to deepen critical consciousness when working with clients. The authors describe ways to attend to the complex intersections (of gender, age, ethnicity, religion, immigration status, and socioeconomic status) in multicultural and socially just practice within complex agency and environmental contexts.

ocial workers have an ethical responsibility to attend to the dynamics and consequences of oppression and to issues of social justice, given the close association between poverty, race, and ethnicity in the United States (Akamatsu, 1998; dominelli, 2002; Gould, 1995; Reed, Newman, Surez, & Lewis, 1997; Van Soest, 1995). Working across social identitiessuch as ethnicity, race, gender, sexual orientation, and socioeconomic status can be daunting for both social workers and clients. This requires active self-reflection that interrogates what we hold to be true and pushes us beyond our comfort zones to owning our power and privilege, both cognitively and emotionally (Akamatsu, 1998; Fook, 2002; Ivey, 1995; Laird, 1998; mcIntosh, 1988; Pinderhughes, 1989; Pitner & Sakamoto, 2005). Yet, failure to engage in a process of developing critical consciousness, and critical reflecting about our identities and positions in society may lead to our missing or misinterpreting important elements
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of a situation and to applying inaccurate or uninformed assumptions (Reed et al., 1997). A number of efforts in the fields of social work, family therapy, and counseling have emerged in recent years that attempt to address the complexities of multicultural, feminist, and antioppressive or critical social work practice (dominelli, 2002; Fook, 2002; Hernndez, Almeida, & dolan-del Vecchio, 2005; Ivey, 1995; mcGoldrick, 1998; Ponterotto, Casas, Suzuki, & Alexander, 2001). despite coming from different fields, these frameworks adopt a postmodern stance by challenging and reappraising extant notions of culture and identity. They move beyond focusing on specific ethnic/racial groups and an understanding of the other, with the presumption that the social worker is from the dominant social identity (i.e., White), to examining within group variations or intersectionalities (how our multiple identities interact and influence one another) across multiple social identities (Fook, 2002; Guadalupe
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Surez, Newman, & Reed | Critical Consciousness and Cross-Cultural/Intersectional Social Work Practice: A Case Analysis

& Lum, 2005). moreover, these frameworks tend to adopt a social justice and person-in-environment perspective as they focus on the individual and oppressive systems impinging upon individuals (Fook, 2002; dominelli, 2002; Waldegrave, 2000). Central to these postmodern approaches for working across differences is an emphasis on self-reflection as a necessary part of the development of critical consciousness and of a more socially just practice. Whether the system works for or against us in particular contexts we may be accomplices in sustaining systems of inequality and privilege if we do not engage in critical consciousness (Love, 2000). Critical consciousness also requires regular analysis of complex environmental contexts, which is consistent with principles of just therapy in working with families (Waldegrave, 2005).

Central to these postmodern approaches for working across differences is an emphasis on selfreflection as a necessary part of the development of critical consciousness and of a more socially just practice.

Thus far, however, the literature provides few examples of how to analyze the complexities of a social workers identities within larger environments as an important part of the practice context. despite acknowledging the importance of social workers critically examining their own backgrounds and characteristics, with few exceptions (see Fook, 2002, for an example) authors do not provide concrete examples of how social workers can incorporate self-examination while engaged in a complex case or of how they can use every practice situation to increase their own consciousness and skills. This is especially the case when the social workers identities include oppressed identities, so that the social worker shares some experiences with clients while differing in others. This paper presents a complex example of a muslim refugee family in crisis that endeavors to articulate the processes and dimensions a social worker can use to deepen his or her critical consciousness while consulting on the case of a muslim refugee family in crisis. In this case, the first author shares some experiences of disadvantage with the client system, but she also has significant societal privileges that they lack. We illustrate key elements of critical

consciousness by demonstrating how to attend to multiple dimensions of our identities and the use of teamwork. We consider (a) the complexity of the intersections among gender, age, ethnicity, religion, immigrant status, and economic classoperating simultaneouslyand (b) the impacts of larger organizational, community, and multiple sociohistorical-cultural-political contexts. The case also describes how the social worker endeavored to compensate for a lack of key resources within the human service agency (Tamasese & Waldegrave, 1996). our emphasis is on addressing gaps in the literature on how to apply key elements of critical consciousness, rather than stressing any particular model for working with families. As will be evident, the situation presents many dilemmasin which every option presents challengesand illustrates how many aspects of the larger environment must be incorporated into assessments and interventions. First, we briefly identify the essence of contemporary multicultural practice models, and expand on theoretical constructs that help to explicate the development of critical consciousness, as it is understood, by drawing on Paolo Freires (1993) work as well as feminist and critical social work theory. Since Jan Fooks (2002) work consolidates and translates many of these constructs into four principles for practicecritical deconstruction, resistance, challenge, and critical reconstructionwe juxtapose these with other relevant theoretical constructs. Then, we trace the reflexive process and inherent challenges that one of us, Zulema E. Surez (from a workingclass Cuban family), underwent in developing critical consciousness when working with a Pakistani, Ahmadi muslim family. Finally, we reflect on the importance and challenges of critical consciousness in the case example, and offer suggestions for practice.

Theoretical Frameworks and Relevant Constructs

Postmodern multicultural models of practice draw from a number of theoriesfeminist, constructivist, ecological, and systems theorieswhile others draw from the work of Paolo Freire (1993). despite differences, most argue for the inclusion of a social justice perspective (Akamatsu, 1998; Fook, 2002; Ivey, 1995; Laird, 1998; Lum, 2003a, 2003b; mcGoldrick, 1998; Reed et al., 1997). Although in-depth discussion of the diverse theoretical foundations of multicultural practice and current debates about multiculturalism are beyond the scope of this paper, the authors highlight related themes and constructs that are engaged in critical consciousness. Postmodern multicultural models transcend the discreteness of special populations to an understanding that all human beings are embedded in and bounded by

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gender, race, culture, and class relationships, sexual orientation, and different abilities that may alternately privilege or oppress them (mcGoldrick, 1998, p. 17). These multiple identities intersect and may change as they are defined and redefined by the power relationships existing within larger social, economic, political, and historical contexts (Fook, 2002; Laird, 1998; Spencer, Lewis, & Gutirrez, 2000). Like many narrative therapists, multicultural and antioppressive practitioners look at the power of dominant knowledge to define others and what is true (Fook, 2002). How we are persuaded to internalize socially prevailing norms and values (totalizing discourses) that perpetuate the system while squelching other less privileged views (subjugated, local, and specific knowledge) is also central (Fook, 2002; Laird, 1998; Love, 2000). For example, racism may be seen as a dominant discourse that is perpetuated in our practice theories through unrecognized [dominant] cultural assumptions and values (Akamatsu, 1998). As in the narrative perspective, dominating discourses are dismantled through naming and deconstruction (Fook, 2002; Hooks, 1994; White & Epston, 1990). Here, deconstruction refers to a process of inquiry of how these dominant discourses are shaped, whose interests they serve and whose they may subjugate, and the exposure of marginalized perspectives. Constructivist understanding also informs multicultural practice (mahoney, 2004; Saleeby, 1994). There are multiple ways of construing the world and of organizing experience, and we do so through tacit meaning-making processes. Therefore, we cannot understand individuals apart from their social and symbolic contexts (dominelli, 2002; Fook, 2002). Critical Consciousness Given the imperative of social justice, we must learn to recognize how dominant assumptions influence our clients and ourselves (Love, 2000). This requires the third eye advocated by earlier theorists concerned about countertransference, and a critical analysis of how systems of power and social contexts influence our micro and macro situations. Based on the work of Paolo Freire (1993), and expanded through the work of feminist standpoint, critical social work, and cultural theories (Baber & Allen, 1992; Fook, 2002; Hartsock, 2003; Hooks, 1994; Love, 2000), critical consciousness is a complex, dynamic process. We define critical consciousness as a continuous self-reflexive process involving critical thinking in tandem with action whereby we challenge domination on three levels: personally, interpersonally, and structurally (Fook, 2002; Reed et al., 1997). Through this process, we become aware of our oppression and privilege recognizing how our multiple social positions shape our lives and our relationships and how these, in turn, have been shaped by societal systemsand we also act

to challenge and change patterns of oppression (Reed et al.). According to Fook (2002), Critical reflection on our own practice involves a type of deconstruction of our stories or accounts of our practice in which we work towards identifying our assumptions (theories or constructions) about power, and changing these along more empowering lines (p. 98). Figure 1 depicts major components of conscientization/critical consciousness, with praxis in the center, surrounded by other key processes. Next, we describe key concepts and processesincluding conscientization, positionality, praxis, engagement, and standpointas central to understanding and developing critical consciousness (Reed et al., 1997). Conscientization We develop critical consciousness through a continuous process of consciousness-raising that Freire calls conscientization. Conscientization involves learning to perceive social, political and economic contradictions and to take action against the oppressive elements of reality (Freire, 1993, p. 17). Conscientization is reminiscent of the first stage of Fooks (2002) critical reflective process, critical deconstruction, whereby we question dominant discourses by searching for and identifying contradictions, different perspectives and interpretations (p. 92). Engaging in this process helps us to become aware of areas of privilege in our lives and the dynamics of oppression within us and outside of us, as well as how to begin to change them. Through the act of deconstruction, according to Fook (2002), we resist or refuse to accept disempowering dominant discourses. Although resistance is the second stage of Fooks model, deconstruction, the preceding stage, is itself an act of resistance. Positionalities, Intersectionality, and Standpoints The constructs of positionality and intersectionality are vital tools used in deconstructing, resisting, challenging, and reconstructing discourses and, ultimately, in developing critical consciousness (Collins, 1998; Fook, 2002; Reed et al., 1997; Spencer et al., 2000). In addition to internal conceptions of identity, our identities are shaped and influenced by external influences (Fook, 2002). Positionality refers to our location along the various axes of social group identities, which are interrelated, interconnected, and intersecting. Further, both our internal and external identities interact and influence each other and vary according to changing contexts (Fook, 2002). The intersections of identities may be external and visible, or internal and invisible, selectively carrying intrinsic privileges of which we may be unaware while others may simultaneously limit our choices in life. Under this conception, since peoples identities are so influenced by

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Figure 1. Key components of conscientization and praxis.

Figure 1. Key components of conscientization and praxis.

Explore Intersectionalities: Explore the influence of multi-level contexts

Identify multiple
positionalities*

Consider how these intersect

Theorize: deconstruct knowledge & theories

Act: assess, plan, address power, implement

Examine Standpoints: Privileged Subjugated

PRAXIS
Reflect: identify questions & learnings; modify theories & actions

Dialogue: With ourselves With others

Engagement: Involvement Commitment

Note. *Positionalities include such societal status categories as race, gender, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, disability status, age, economic class, status, age, economic class, gender expression, nationality and immigration status . gender expression, nationality and immigration status.

Note. *Positionalities include such societal status categories as race, gender, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, disability

context, we do not have one identity, but multiple identities that may be contradictory and changeable. Therefore, a gay White male may be privileged within mainstream society by his race and sex but may be oppressed because of his sexual orientation. In sum, identities are multiple, mutable, and subjective, so one identity (e.g., culture) cannot be stressed over others (e.g., class, race, sexual orientation) because these operate in tandem (Collins, 2000; Crenshaw, 1995; Sengupta, 2006). Through an interactive process of self-examination, or deconstruction, and locating our positions within the

larger social context, we can understand and challenge how our historical and social identities have shaped our experiences and values. Challenge, the third phase of Fooks (2002) model, involves the identification or labeling of both the existence and operation of discourses and that which is hidden, glossed over, or assumed (p. 95). Failure to investigate how our multiple identities intersect and influence our worldview, and how they privilege and oppress us, may render us accomplices in the perpetuation of oppression and not allow us to recognize connections with and differences from others.

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Standpoint, another important element in the development of critical consciousness, is closely related to the previously mentioned constructs. Feminist standpoint theory challenges the notion of an objective truth, asserting that what we know and how we know it is determined by our positionalities in the social hierarchy (Baber & Allen, 1992; Collins, 2000; Swigonski, 1994). For example, people who are subjugated have a double vision, or more expansive understanding of their social experience than those in positions of power, because to survive they must learn to simultaneously live within their own cultures and the dominant society (Collins, 2000; Hooks, 1994; Reed et al., 1997). Praxis and Engagement We explore our postionalities and standpoints through a dialogue between thinking and action and between knowledge and experience (Reed et al., 1997). Critical reflection joined with action to transform our environment is known as praxis, a process whereby one applies theory to practice, attempting to change a concrete situation based on that learning, and recreating theory based on that activity (Schniedewing, 1993, p. 18). This process is similar to the fourth stage of Fooks (2002) model, reconstruction, whereby after identifying and analyzing disempowering situations, we create new, more socially just discourses and structures to replace the old ones. We depict praxis in the center of Figure 1, with other key elements surrounding it: intersectionality exploration at the top, and dialogue, engagement, and standpoints in other sectors. Reflections on intersectionalities include identifying our multiple positionalities, how they are influenced by different environmental contexts, and how they interact with one another. Engaging seriously with theory and theorizing, which includes the frameworks we use in guiding interventions, is an important component of praxis. Since a critical consciousness, or critical social work approach assumes that we challenge dominant discourses we are obliged to interrogate and deconstruct the theories we use and their underlying assumptions behind them (Fook, 2002). Instead of making clients fit reductionist theories, through praxis, we inductively discover and create theories that are relevant to our clients idiosyncratic situations and multiple social identities, and that are informed by our practice. Within the action components of critical consciousness it is especially important to be vigilant about how power is exercised, to avoid disempowering situations and discourses, and to collaborate with clients in empowering ways. An important component of this is to resist and challenge stereotype threats. According to Steele and Aronson, prominent social psychologists, when a persons social identity is negatively stereotyped he or

she is at risk of confirming the stereotype out of fear of being judged negatively (Croizet & Claire, 1998; Steele & Aronson, 1995). moreover, constant exposure to negative attributions of ones social identities can lead to the internalization of the social and personal characteristics of these images. Social workers can deconstruct personal stereotypes about self and others, help clients to do the same, and reconstruct more empowering narratives for themselves and their clients. dialogue with others is an important tool to facilitate and consolidate the development of critical consciousness. Accountability circles are one way to do this. For professionals, these circles can consist of supervisors, peers, or friends of different social identities. For clients, Hernndez and her colleagues (2005) suggest the formation of small cultural circles. Families attending their agency are assigned to a circle composed of family members and a sponsor (mentor) to assist them in developing critical consciousness through socioeducation about their multiple identities and power relationships. After eight weeks, family members are separated by gender into larger gatherings of men and women, creating a context for interrogating dominant patriarchal and racist discourses. Engagement, an active process of involvement and commitment that enjoins emotion and cognition, is central to praxis (Reed et al., 1997). It is both a cognitive and emotional endeavora commitment to critically assessing our positionalities, our personal or established theories, and to enacting the principles of critical consciousness within our daily social relations. This requires transcending the belief that our views, values, and ideologies are central while the views of our clients are marginal, and it requires a willingness to relinquish some of the control born of that belief. When we are engaged, developing critical consciousness is not an occasional pursuit but a way of life. Engagement may be particularly challenging and rewarding in a clinical context.

Case Analysis
This case illustrates the process of conscientization that Zulema E. Surez (ZES) underwent in developing her critical consciousness while negotiating complex intersectional and environmental contexts. This new understanding enabled her to develop empathy that facilitated her work with a refugee Pakistani Ahmadi muslim family. All names, including that of the agency, have been changed to protect confidentiality. The family included a teenage girl (Suraya, age 14) and boy (muhammad, age 16), two younger children (maha, a 7-year-old girl, and mirza, a 4-year-old boy), and two parents, mr. and mrs. Salam, who were awaiting entry into Canada. The details of the case are presented as they unfolded to highlight the

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Figure 2. Critical consciousness in application to a complex family case.

SOCIO-CULTURAL-HISTORICAL-POLITICAL CONTExTS
Muslim traditions and beliefs History of violence towards male family members in Pakistan Continuing violence in Pakistan Gendered structures and attitudes in Pakistan Lack of knowledge across religions U.S. and Canadian immigration laws Western child abuse and neglect laws Western gender norms and concern about domestic violence

SAFE HAVEN SOCIAL SERVICE AGENCY/SHELTER Linkages with Canadian counterparts Language barriers Social work consultants Supervision 16 yo Muhammed

SALAM FAMILY
Father Mother

14 yo Suraya

7 yo Maha

COMMUNITY RESOURCES, NORMS, ATTITUDES Attitudes about domestic violence, Muslims in U.S. Homelessness resources Norms about gender Muslim community 4 yo Mirza

Media messages and attitudes about Muslims in the U.S. Deportation practices

WORKER POSITIONALITIES AND CRITICAL CONSCIOUSNESS: Pre-contact reflections (through ongoing engagement) Identify own strengths, fears, assumptions in relation to positionalities Analyze worker/agency knowledge, values, and assumptions re: Salam family Consider power and privilege in the family, agency, and environments Assess resources and limitations in agency and larger environments Conduct initial self-education re: family, environmental factors Early contacts and assessments Make safety and empowerment of all family members a priority (in all phases) Conduct assessments using intersectional criteria (e.g., cultural norms, language, gender alliances) Educate self through information from family members and research Exchange education about environmental factors (e.g., relevant laws, customs, history) Identify resources, barriers, potential collaborators Question (interrogate/deconstruct) knowledge and theories Interventions Engage with collaborators to implement interventions Empower all members through education, reframing histories in larger contexts; articulate choices Use supervision and consultation to support critical consciousness development Attend to dynamics related to power and privilege in all interactions Guard against triggering stereotype threats Monitor and reflect at every stage, engaging in praxis Ongoing reflections about self and social contexts Review personal challenges related to own histories and positionalities Identify educational gaps and seek relevant knowledge Create collaborations with others that support ongoing deconstruction, critical awareness, and struggling with personal resistances

struggles the worker underwent from the time she received the referral through subsequent events. We use the firstperson pronoun to highlight the reflective voice of the practitioner (ZES). Figure 2 depicts and summarizes key elements of the situation as well as steps in critical consciousness at different phases. The family is depicted with a genogram in the center of the diagram, surrounded by the multiple environmental contexts they must negotiate: the Safe Haven Shelter (organizational), the immediate local community,

and the larger sociocultural-historical-political contexts, in both the United States and Pakistan. The arrows indicate that workers need to reflect on themselves, on issues for particular family members and the family as a whole, and on larger agency, community, and societal contexts. The authors discuss these, with examples of reflections and steps the worker(s) pursue throughout, summarized in the bottom box in the diagram. Safe Haven, a social service agency and shelter that served refugees awaiting entry into Canada, asked me to

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assist with the Salam family, one of their resident families. Reportedly, Suraya, the 14-year-old, told a school counselor that her father was beating her. When Safe Haven called protective services, they asked that the father be removed from the premises. Since Safe Haven immediately complied, a case was never opened. Safe Haven consulted with me about this family crisis because they did not have a staff social worker, and I was supervising a graduate student placed there as part of my work as a social work faculty member at a nearby university. Upon receiving the call, I became fearful that I, a multicultural expert, did not know how to work with a muslim family, and, personally, I was afraid of an abusive muslim man. Clearly, I had to work on my own feelings in order to be effective. Precontact Phase Constructivist theory posits that there is no unmediated truth, and, according to feminist theory, what I know is determined by my standpoint and positionality. Placing myself in the picture eliminated the pretense that I was an objective practitioner and highlighted the importance of my being fair. I began the process of deconstruction by examining how social identities of family members and myself interacted and intersected, and how they impacted on one another. According to the dominant discourse, both the Salams and I were considered minorities in the United States. However, by reflecting on my positionality, I saw that my minority status intersected with my identity as a university professor, and although my family, like the Salams, fled a repressive regime (Cuba) in 1961, we were warmly received as refugees by the U.S. government. The Salam family was homeless and, presently, staying in a country hostile to muslims. Locating myself on my different social axes showed me that I was concurrently a minority and privileged vis--vis my clients. Next, I reflected on my feelings and assumptions about religion and muslims. I viewed religion in general, and muslims specifically, as dogmatic and oppressive. my unchallenged negative views of Islam, complicated by my gender analysis, were fueled by images of veiled women oppressed by tyrannical men. I was frightened and angered because the case touched on my own experiences with a controlling, machista father, creating a potentially loaded countertransference situation. deconstructing my stereotypes reminded me that my views of muslims had been largely constructed from the medias depiction of us as virtuous and them as barbaric terrorists. Acknowledging my identification with us helped me to see that my fear and helplessness were common responses (Pitner & Sakamoto, 2005). Conscientization grows through praxis, a dynamic interaction in which thought and action, theory and

practice, inform one another. As I examined my beliefs, I became aware of how biased and limited my knowledge and understanding of the Salams social identities were. To better reformulate a new discourse, I sought input from sources knowledgeable about Islam (Fook, 2002; Waldegrave, 2000). At the same time, I needed to consciously resist substituting expert knowledge for knowledge acquired through interacting with the family. According to standpoint theory, my deepest understanding of the family would come from them. Through dialogue with family members, I would check and adapt any newfound insights I acquired from outside sources. After engaging in this process of self-examination and reflection, I was emotionally and professionally better prepared to meet with the clients. Intervention Prior to our meeting, I met with agency staff and a White male university colleague named Brian, who also served as a consultant to the agency, to discuss their knowledge and insights about the family. Brians understanding and my own understanding, albeit limited, of mens relationships with women in this culture, our knowledge of violence against women, and concerns about maintaining safety led us to interview mrs. Salam and Suraya separately from mr. Salam, and to assign same-sex interviewers. Brian would inform mr. Salam of the allegations against him while two female staff members and I would meet with mrs. Salam and her four children. Note here, again, how gender, culture, and religion are relevant. Given the immediate crisis, and our inability to find an Urdu-speaking interpreter, Suraya interpreted for her mother. These assessments yielded a picture of a family plagued by violence, both inside and outside the home. In Pakistan, the male members of the family had been beaten and persecuted because of their religious sect. Here and in Pakistan, mr. Salam had physically abused his wife throughout their 17 years of marriage; Suraya, a female and the least favorite child, was also a target of her fathers rage and frustration. Reflecting on their positionalities, I considered how their social identity as females from a patriarchal culture was affecting them: neither mrs. Salam nor her daughter could see that they were being oppressed. Instead, they felt remorseful and responsible for potentially breaking up the family by standing up for themselves. despite leaving their country to seek freedom, their choices were limited by their gender, nationality, and religious social identities. By pressing charges, they risked losing mr. Salam, who was both their oppressor and provider; if they moved to Canada, they faced continued abuse; if mrs. Salam divorced him, she faced the loss of support from her parents, who had arranged her marriage, and from the Islamic community.

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In this situation, multiple forms of oppression were operating, and I was faced with the dilemma of developing interventions that took all of these into account. By challenging dominant perspectives, I was mindful of the themes of power and dominance in interpersonal and institutional relationships. To begin to establish feelings of trust and safety, Suraya and her mother needed reassurance of their safety within the shelter and the United States. They also needed to know that the agency and I, as the agencys representative, would not abuse our power. mrs. Salam and Suraya were assured that they would be included in the decision-making process, that their separation from other family members was only temporary, and that Canadian immigration authorities would not be notified of the situation unless they were in danger. These assurances were especially important given the Salams persecution by authority figures in their native Pakistan. my reconstruction of their story, from one of betrayal to one of courageous resistance to subjugation, and hearing that, although he neither admitted nor denied the abuse, mr. Salam had been cooperative, seemed to lessen their distress. Since it was evident that mrs. Salam was devoutly religious, I encouraged her to pray to Allah for a positive resolution to their situation. Both to relieve suspicion from his wife and daughter and to empower mr. Salam, Brian, the male social worker, reviewed child protective laws with him, stressing that anyone could have filed the report with protective services. Reflection About Self and Others After meeting at length with Suraya and her mother, and briefly meeting mr. Salam, I again reflected on the differences between the Salam family and my own, actively considering how differences in our positionalities might affect our values, goals, histories, and worldviews. Because mr. Salam presented the greatest empathic challenge for me, reflecting on his multiple social identities gave me insights about his feelings of powerlessness. Although, in this case, mr. Salam was acting as an oppressor, he was also a victim of oppression. He had ruled his household in Pakistan, a privilege of his gender, but membership in a persecuted religious minority rendered him powerless outside his home. His escape to a Western and primarily White continent rendered him vulnerable to racism, xenophobia, and further religious persecution. Now, Western professionals were telling him how to relate to his wife and daughter, further stripping him of his power. As part of my reconstruction of mr. Salams story, I wondered whether his abusive behavior, once supported by an oppressive patriarchal system, was a defensive maneuver to regain a sense of power. Next, I again reflected on the similarities and differences between mrs. Salam and myself by virtue of our

gender and other social identities, as differing cultural and economic realities shaped our gender values and assumptions. my education, income, and citizenship status would better enable me to leave an abusive relationship, whereas mrs. Salams uncertain immigration status and inability to speak English increased her dependency on her husband. I could not expect that she would simply leave her husband. Years of internalized oppression and her economic reality might prevent her, at least initially, from even seeing that she did not deserve to be abused, much less from considering choices about her marriage and future. my experiences as a woman and, in childhood, as a political refugee potentially gave me insights about what it was like to feel displaced, vulnerable, and stripped of everything dear and familiar. Concurrently, standpoint theory reminded me not to assume that my former refugee status and minority group membership could fully inform my understanding of the Salams experiences of oppression and loss because, even within my minority social identities, I was also privileged by citizenship. my developing awareness of my positionality helped me to better empathize with my clients, including mr. Salam. Seeking Knowledge According to standpoint theory, people who are oppressed have a more complex, multilayered understanding of identities and society than those who are not. As part of the deconstruction stage, I sought contextual and historical information about Pakistani Ahmadi muslims from muslim scholars, voices otherwise silenced in dominant circles, to look for contradictions and different perspectives (Fook, 2002). my search yielded information that contradicted mrs. Salams and Surayas understandings of their situation. I learned that Islamic women gained moral and economic rights, such as owning property, thousands of years before women in the West did (Azim, n.d.; Bassiouni, 1988; Lamya al-Faruqi, n.d.). At the same time, some Quranic verses indicated support of male supremacy, with men appointed guardians over women because of a womans physical weakness and vulnerability (Christian debater, 2006; Green, n.d; Rafiqul-Haqq & Newton, 1996). Indeed, both views are reflected in the following passage from the Quran: And they (women) have rights similar to those (of men) over them, and men are a degree above them (Quran 2:228, as cited in Badawi, 1971). divorce, while allowed, also favors men. Although a muslim male can unilaterally divorce his wife, a muslim woman can divorce her husband only through a judges determination (Bassiouni, 1988). Also, a woman who asks for divorce without extreme reasons is forbidden the smell of Paradise, but a man can divorce his wife if, for example, he finds his wifes old age unpleasant

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(Ibn-i-Majah, vol. 3, no. 2055, p. 237, as cited in Christian debater, 2006). I also found that mrs. Salams account of religious persecution was more frightening than I could have imagined. Ahmadi muslims in Pakistan face beatings, fines, punishment, and imprisonment of up to three years for simply identifying themselves as muslims (Parker, 1993). This information gave me a better sense of mrs. Salams and Surayas turmoil over their covert defiance of mr. Salam. Yet my research, while informative, was cursory and interpreted through my particular sociocultural lenses. I needed to exercise caution against assuming a superior attitude about the status of women in the United States relative to that of women in Pakistan and against devaluing this familys culture and way of life. I also needed to resist demonizing mr. Salam and rescuing mrs. Salam and Suraya. According to Freire (1993, p. 47), attempting to liberate the oppressed without their reflective participation in the act of liberation is to treat them as objects which must be saved from a burning building. Outcome Although I did not continue to meet with the Salams beyond my initial meeting, I shared my insights with Natasha, the social work intern, who continued daily contact with the family under my supervision. Supervision allowed for perspective sharing and accountability in the interns emergent development of critical consciousness (Love, 2000). Natasha, mrs. Salam, and Suraya engaged in critical dialogue and reflection about their situation and developed a safety plan. mrs. Salam decided that moving to Canada with ongoing supervision from a Canadian agency would be best for her family, feeling that with this monitoring her husband would stop abusing them, if only out of fear of deportation. It was hoped that engaging with mrs. Salam in developing a safety plan helped to increase her sense of power. With the cooperation of a Canadian family service agency, the Salam family moved to Canada. The agency agreed to provide counseling and to monitor the children for signs of abuse. Noncompliance by the family would result in a report to child protective services that could jeopardize their stay in Canada. The intern continued to monitor the Salams progress through letters and telephone calls to the agency. Future work with mrs. Salam and Suraya might focus on using the Quran to affirm their quest for liberation from abuse by critically examining and reflecting on passages promoting liberation and the equality of men and women (Hassan, n.d.). According to Rafitt Hassan, a muslim feminist theologian and activist, liberation is at the heart of the Quran: Indeed, a large part of the Qurans concern is to free human beings from the

chains that bind themabove all, authoritarianism and the blind following of tradition (Hassan, Islam seeks liberation, para. 3). The Quran also might be used to work with mr. Salam within his own belief system. Reminding him that because Islamic law appoints males as guardians over women and the family, placing the welfare of his wife and children in his hands, he had the power to keep his family in Canada by refraining from beating his wife and daughter (Badawi, 1971). Appealing to his sense of responsibility and identity as the protector might inspire mr. Salam to find alternative ways to protect his family, while potentially restoring some of the power he lost through migration. Finally, through a process of conscientization, he could be helped to reflect on how his abuse of the females in his family mirrored the violence and oppression he experienced in Pakistan.

Discussion and Conclusions

As illustrated by this case, practitioners must continuously work to understand the multiple contexts and processes of their practice and how these contexts are shaped by patterns of difference and oppression (mcGoldrick, 1998; Reed et al., 1997). Without engaging in a process of conscientization, whereby ZES reflected on her multiple identities, interrogated and challenged her stereotypes, and examined power and status differentials through positionality and standpoint, she may have been deluded by her education and the false confidence of years of practice and teaching experience. Consequently, she might have moved forward less reflectively and, conceivably, further heightening the Salams feelings of powerlessness. It is important to note that conscientization requires many components that go considerably beyond what is often described as therapist self-reflection. A critical consciousness paradigm offers a means for working across multiple cultural and status boundaries without proscribing rigid strategies for ethnic-sensitive practice that may pigeonhole and stereotype people. Rather, critical consciousness highlights the complexities of both social workers and clients varied and intersecting social identities, as well as environmental and social contexts and how systems of power operate within them. These have significant practice implications. Applying a critical consciousness or critical social work perspective contextualizes analysis and practice by considering the intersections and interrelationships between people and their social contexts. This reduces tendencies to pathologize individual and family situations, and it is consistent with the personenvironment perspective in social work, narrative therapys problem externalizing (White & Epston, 1990), and principles of just therapy

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(Waldegrave, 2005). For example, through the process of deconstruction or conscientization, the worker was able to reconstruct a different narrative about mr. Salam that could be used to help him change his oppressive behavior; although mr. Salam started out as the villain, his story was expanded to include his own oppression and, finally, his role as protector of his family. Although developing critical consciousness in multicultural social work practice is vital, self-examination is difficult due to many factors. These include the workers resistance, regardless of race or ethnicity, to his or her own history of oppression and privilege, and a lack of understanding of the process of conscientization (Gay &

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Kirtland, 2003; Pitner & Sakamoto, 2005). Accountability circles and other ways of engaging family members in a larger dialogue with others were not feasible in the Salam case because their stay in the United States was temporary, but it might have been a valuable direction to take in working with this family. According to Freire (1993), every human being, no matter how ignorant or oppressed, is capable of critically reflecting on and better understanding his or her circumstances and environment through dialogue with others. With the constructs presented here for developing critical consciousness, clients and workers can move further to delve into their personal and social realities, and to identify contradictions, discrepancies, and shared perspectives in their worldviews. By constantly reflecting on our multiple identities and positions in society we develop a new and heightened awareness of who we are and how we exist in the world. The case analysis presented here provides an example of what this process looks like. But willingness to embark on a reflective journey requires engagementa commitment to confronting our pain, our guilt, and our fears for the sake of becoming more just practitioners. By engaging in this lifelong process of self-reflection we can transform ourselves and our world, and we can ultimately become more fully human (Freire, 1993).

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