includes index.

Notes on contributors
Acknowledgments
Preface
Making amends with the past
Learning from the past to shape the future: uncovering social work's histories of complicity and resistance
Legacies of colonialism and racism in social work
Canadian social work and the sixties scoop: reflections on the past, lessons for today
Reconciling systemic abuse of children and young women with social work's commitment to a human rights, transformative practice
The oppressive history of 'child welfare' systems and the need for abolition
Colonial and apartheid South Africa: social work complicity and resistance
Social work's contested ideologies
Social services in Nazi Germany and the role of social workers between complicity and rare resistance
Social assistance in Franco's fascist Spain (1939-75): a history of social control, family segregation and stolen babies
Social work in times of political violence: dictatorships and acts of resistance from the Southern Cone
Trade union mobilisation, resistance and political action of social workers in Portugal
The radical roots of popular social work in Palestine
Social work's complicity with institutionalisation and detention
Institutionalisation and oppression within the mental health system in England: social work complicity and resistance
A refugee crisis or a crisis of anti-immigrant politics? Hostile refugee reception, the pandemic and new solidarities in Cyprus
Institutionalisation of certain children and mothers in Ireland: reflections on the 'troubled history' of child welfare social work
Survivor perspectives and contemporary reflections
Facing the legacy of social work: coming to terms with complicity in systemic inequality and social injustice
'We want social workers to hear our story': learning from parents whose children were taken away
Decolonisation and critical social work pedagogies
Adoption social work practice in Ireland: critical reflections on present-day injustices
Index

Social work is often presented as a benevolent and politically neutral profession, avoiding discussion about its sometimes troubling political histories. This book rethinks social work's legacy and history of both political resistance and complicity with oppressive and punitive practices. Using a comparative approach with international case studies, the book uncovers the role of social workers in politically tense episodes of recent history including the anti-racist struggle in the US and the impact of colonialism in Australia, New Zealand and Canada. As the de-colonisation of curricula and Black Lives Matter movement gain momentum, the fascinating book skilfully navigates social work's collective political past while considering its future