NASW Ohio's Statement of support for current and former Equitas Health employees addressing systemic

NASW Ohio's Statement of support for current and former Equitas Health employees addressing systemic racism within organization

On Tuesday, the Columbus Dispatch published an article that chronicles patterns of systemic racism within Equitas Health, a large healthcare organization predominately serving people living with HIV/AIDS and the LGBTQIA+ community  that employs many social workers. None of us should be surprised when presented with evidence of systemic racism within our institutions, but it can feel particularly disheartening when coming from an institution that focuses on health equity. The former employees profiled in the article demonstrate the ways that Equitas Health’s equity initiatives for LGBTIA+ people and people living with HIV/AIDS faltered without intersectional frameworks that adequately addressed race and racism.

NASW Ohio wants to foremost express solidarity with current and former Black, Indigenous, and other people of color (BIPOC) staff of Equitas Health, many of whom are social workers and our members. Thank you for your vulnerability and work to bring these internal issues to light. 

Equitas Health leadership has an opportunity to embrace accountability, repair harm and build an anti-racist organizational culture - we are hopeful that they will rise to the occasion. Leadership (particularly white leadership) in other social work organizations (including NASW) should resist the tendency to scapegoat and instead, reflect on whose voices have not been heard in our organizations. BIPOC social workers and advocates have been sounding the alarm of racism within our institutions since the inception of our institutions. Since the racial justice uprisings in 2020, these voices have only gotten louder - and still many are not listening. If you are looking to understand the pervasiveness of racism within social work practice, you might start by watching the recording of a panel and discussion that we hosted with the Columbus and Ohio Chapters of the National Association of Black Social Workers in July 2020, during which many BIPOC social workers shared their experiences. That recording is available here: www.naswoh.org/BLM .

NASW Ohio rejects the idea that our license and education somehow immunize against the impact of systemic racism. Social workers perpetuate racism. Social workers suffer from racism. And our ethical responsibilities for self-care are only achievable in work settings that understand this and actively work to identify and oppose racist structures. We all have a part to play - and we will know we are successful when those most impacted say that we are.

Link to Dispatch Article: https://www.dispatch.com/story/business/2021/10/05/equitas-health-nonprofit-faces-allegations-discrimination/6003736001/