2026/01/13 by Fatima Mabrouk, Brittney D. Singletary, Khadija Israel +1 · 1 voice
Psychology · Social Sciences · #Child Abuse and Trauma #Critical Race Theory in Education #Social Work Education and Practice
paper · doi:10.1332/20498608y2025d000000117
openalex publication_date 2026/01/13 · openalex created_date 2026/01/14 · openalex updated_date 2026/06/26
This article interrogates the myth of neutrality in social work—a passive complicity that upholds white supremacy as an epistemological norm. Drawing on critical race theory and liberatory praxis, we examine how dominant discourses weaponize claims of objectivity to stymie anti-racist and social justice efforts. Through conceptual analysis and literature synthesis, we argue that social work must evolve through three phases: from documenting inequity to analyzing mechanisms; from identifying harm to transformative action; and from micro-responses to collective mobilization. We reconceptualize historical inequities as complex trauma, demanding structural trauma-informed praxis across research, education, and practice. Findings from the literature reveal neutrality as an ideological enforcement protecting power. We conclude that conflict and discomfort are necessary portals for transformation. The profession must center care, responsibility, and conflict resilience to achieve justice-oriented moral transformation.