Welcome to Washington State
Society for Clinical Social Work

Acknowledgments

Language- Four Indo-European languages ​​(Spanish, English, French, and Portuguese) are politically dominant in each country in the Americas. Native languages ​​have been denied to indigenous people through punitive actions by colonizers, the settler culture stripping the value and prestige of native tongues, limiting their use and forcing foreign names on their bodies.
For our events, training, and programming we will use English as the central language. However, we would like to acknowledge and bring awareness that this is a settler language imposed upon those indigenous to the land.
We would also like to honor the linguistic diversity of the American continent through recognition and making visible the various indigenous languages as well as the languages ​​of Afro-descendant communities in Latin America. These include, and are not limited to, Garifuna, Patua, Creole, and Palenquero.

Labor- We recognize that many enslaved, indentured and incarcerated peoples were forced to dedicate their work to the construction of cities throughout Washington state, such as Seattle. For these peoples and their descendants, we recognize their indelible mark in the space in which we gather for our events. Finally, in recognizing that this land is colonized indigenous territory that has been designed through forced labor, it is our collective responsibility to critically interrogate the stories and later lives of these events, and to honor, protect, and sustain this land.

Native Land- We ask that those who are members and who engage with the Society reflect on the lands in which we reside and acknowledge all the ancestral homelands and traditional territories of indigenous people who have been here since time immemorial. 
We want to acknowledge that many of our events, trainings, and programming occurs in the territories and along the waters of the Salish Coastal people. As uninvited guests, we are operating on lands in Washington state belonging to the:

Chinook Nation, Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis Reservation, Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation, Cowlitz Indian Tribe, Duwamish Tribe, Hoh Indian Tribe, Jamestown S'Klallam Tribe, Kalispel Tribe of Indians, Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe, Lummi Nation, Makah Tribe, Muckleshoot Indian Tribe, Nisqually Indian Tribe, Nooksack Indian Tribe, Port Gamble S'Klallam Tribe, Puyallup Tribe of Indians, Quileute Tribe, Quinault Indian Nation, Samish Indian Nation, Sauk-Suiattle Indian Tribe, Shoalwater Bay Tribe, Skokomish Indian Tribe, Snohomish Tribe of Indians, Snoqualmie Tribe, Snoqualmoo Nation, Spokane Tribe of Indians, Squaxin Island Tribe, Steilacoom Tribe, Stillaguamish Tribe of Indians, Suquamish Tribe, Swinomish Indian Tribal Community, Tulalip Tribes, Upper Skagit Tribe.

I am Jamie Weber, MSW, LICSW. I earned my MSW from the University of Washington School of Social Work in 2013. As the Social Justice and Equity Chair I want to address both the profound impact of the recent presidential election and our collective acknowledgment of Native American Heritage Month, which takes place every November.

As a descendant of the Yakama Nation, it is not lost on me that a presidential election takes place during a month designed to honor the Native and Indigenous people of these lands – Turtle Island. In the US, Native people are amongst the people most heavily targeted by oppressive voting restriction laws, colonialism is not history for us, we continue to survive despite its targeted oppression every day. These interconnected issues remind us of our responsibility to honor and protect the rights, dignity, and contributions of all people, especially those most at risk under systems of colonial oppression.

First, regarding the election: the threats to democracy, education, immigrant rights, reproductive autonomy, free speech, the right to collective action, constrained judicial power, and the safety of trans and queer individuals are real and urgent. It is important to note this list is limited in nature as it does not address the millions of Americans that face their daily lives without the basic human rights of housing, healthcare and access to adequate nutrition. Some continue to survive these realities, some do not.

Naming the lived experiences and environmental conditions of the people most oppressed in the US is an essential clinical social work skill. The state of our collective well-being directly connected to our larger interdependent, collective experiences. Chronic dissociation is known to trauma therapists as a trauma response – so we must ask ourselves, in what ways are we subconsciously and consciously coping in a state of chronic disassociation to protect our nervous systems from the horrors of a country built on the premise and practice of supremacy - i.e. enslavement of Africans and the genocide of millions of Native Tribes and people via forced dispossession. 

The election critically sharpens our commitment to fight for policies and practices that uphold justice, equity, and human rights. As social workers, we must continue to educate ourselves and our communities about the harms of supremacy, stand against oppression, and take concrete steps to protect those most vulnerable to harm and fear cultivating practices of violence.

These commitments and practices are connected to our recognition of Native American Heritage Month. Native peoples have long been at the forefront of struggles for sovereignty, cultural preservation, environmental justice, and resistance against colonialism—issues that are inseparable from the social justice work we champion. We acknowledge the enduring resilience and contributions of Native American communities, even in the face of systemic injustice and erasure. Quote about how the world has ended

As a clinical society, we aim to commit to uplifting Native voices and advocating for the needs of Native communities year-round, not just during this month. This includes addressing the ongoing inequities in healthcare, mental health access, education, and housing that disproportionately affect Indigenous peoples, while amplifying the richness and diversity of Native cultures and traditions. We encourage all members to engage with local Native-led organizations and initiatives, to deepen their understanding of historical and ongoing injustices, and to incorporate culturally responsive practices into their work.

As a board we invite you during this time to be relationally responsive in your acts of reparations for Native People and move beyond land acknowledgements to movements of Land Back. We can do that by supporting Native businesses and lending our advocacy and organizing support to Land Back movements near and far. If the Land Back movement is new to you, please learn more here: https://ndncollective.org/landback/

In this moment, as we confront both immediate threats and the legacies of systemic oppression, let us be guided by a vision of justice that honors the sovereignty, humanity, and contributions of all people and is built on the truth of our collective abundance, not the lies of supremacist scarcity.

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