@inproceedings{AfeworkiAbayKleiblXypolytas, author = {Afeworki Abay, Robel and Kleibl, Tanja and Xypolytas, Nikos}, title = {Anti-Colonial Perspectives in Social Work, Social Policy and Beyond}, series = {Decoloniality, Social Policy and Social Work}, booktitle = {Decoloniality, Social Policy and Social Work}, abstract = {The history of social work and the modern Western university paradoxically represents both the high point and low point of human progress. Conceived in an epoch of immense human discovery, it is important to understand this period as characterised by white Western Imperialist and Colonial projects and the rise of capitalist accumulation. In combination, these processes, not confined to the geo-political points of origin, continue to have devastating impacts across the world, characterised by the exploitation, displacement, and destruction of human beings as well as natural ecosystems. Hegemonic colonial structures and practices created and reproduced global racialised hierarchies with the dominance of the Global North and the 'Othering' of knowledge forms and ways of life emerging from the Global South. Struggles for decolonisation and anti-racism come from an ongoing refusal by the victims of capitalism and imperialism to accept defeat and to continue to struggle for life, liberty and dignity. In the current moment, especially following the brutal public execution of George Floyd in the US and the Black Lives Matter movement, especially amongst youth, we have witnessed a global response, incorporating gestures of solidarity, through the 'taking of the knee' through to direct action to remove statues and monuments celebrating various characters associated with Empire, slavery and colonial exploitation. Decolonial perspectives are often neglected in the Global North. At the same time, activist intellectuals such as Freire, Fanon, and also Gandhi remain important sources for social work practice otherwise. Decolnialism refers both to a specific global conjuncture and to a broad range of theoretical analyses and political dispositions, borne out of the struggle of countries in the Global South to escape from colonial rule and from neo-colonial global power relations. In parallel, post-colonial thought critiques the Northern and Western-centrism of what passes for global knowledge, distrusting particularistic knowledge forms that pretend to a universal understanding and reach and, instead, seek to bring back pluriversal thinking. Crucially, an anti-colonialist paradigm focuses on dismantling global structures of domination - in thought, language, action, suggesting that political and conceptual work is needed, constantly, to challenge the powerful legacies of the colonial past. This bias is as present in social work as it is in other disciplines and practices, eroding the memory and relevance of alternative traditions and practices. Alongside geo-political colonisation there were parallel processes of the colonisation of madness, childhood, sexuality, poverty, gender, disability and old age. In all of these examples, the dominant powers use the same, or similar, patterns of subordinating, even erasing, 'The Other', through disciplines of care and control that involve oppression and exploitation. Crucially, the planet, and its finite resources, are being colonised for profit through unfettered extractivist productivism. Social work's emergence as a profession was deeply implicated in social Darwinism and eugenics, trends that have re-emerged in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Understanding global inequality as a phenomenon deriving from colonialism, imperialism and capitalism, this course seeks to address the prosepcts for a decolnial social work, a social work otherise, a social work of the South and the ways these can and should be reflected in social work education, training and rpactice. How can international documents (conventions, treaties etc.) be used to combat the colonialist paradigm? What kinds of alternative understandings of the relationship between people and nature exist and how can these be used as part of the anti-colonial struggle? What are some of the colonising and de-colonising effects of international efforts in social work? How can indigenous wisdom, local and hidden intelligence and skills, be preserved and built upon? How can patriarchal values be turned off and around, providing the openings for values of care, solidarity and kindness? Can minor subversions of social work contribute to major changes?}, language = {en} } @inproceedings{AfeworkiAbayKleiblNeureitheretal., author = {Afeworki Abay, Robel and Kleibl, Tanja and Neureither, Franziska and Klages, Anna-Lisa and Lutz, Ronald and Daňkov{\´a}, Petra}, title = {Projekte und Lehrformate Sozialer Arbeit im Kontext postkolonialer Perspektiven}, series = {Projekte und Lehrformate Sozialer Arbeit im Kontext postkolonialer Perspektiven}, booktitle = {Projekte und Lehrformate Sozialer Arbeit im Kontext postkolonialer Perspektiven}, abstract = {Curricula der Sozialen Arbeit besitzen in vielen Bereichen eine eurozentrische Ausrichtung, welche historisch-kolonial gewachsene Strukturen der Ungleichheit und Machtgef{\"a}lle zwischen und innerhalb Regionen verdecken. Daraus entwickeln sich Dynamiken zwischen sozialen Gruppen und diversen Identit{\"a}ten und damit verbunden, gesellschaftliche Inklusions-und Exklusionsprozesse, welche in der Forschung, Lehre und Praxis der Sozialen Arbeit nicht ausreichend ber{\"u}cksichtigt bzw. reflektiert werden. Die postkoloniale Situation beeinflusst weiterhin tiefgreifend die Wissensproduktion innerhalb der Profession sowie den Transfer von Wissen innerhalb der Lehre und Praxis im Globalen S{\"u}den und Norden. Da postkoloniale Theorien und Praxisans{\"a}tze globale Machtverh{\"a}ltnisse und soziale Ungleichheiten, Rassismen, Diskriminierungs- und Stigmatisierungsprozesse in den Blick nehmen, sind sie von besonderer Bedeutung f{\"u}r die Internationale Soziale Arbeit. Am 12. November 2021 werden die Fachgruppen Internationale Soziale Arbeit (ISA) und Flucht, Migration, Rassismus- und Antisemitismuskritik (Migraas) der DGSA eine gemeinsame Fachtagung, falls m{\"o}glich in Pr{\"a}senzform, an der Hochschule f{\"u}r Angewandte Wissenschaften W{\"u}rzburg-Schweinfurt (FHWS) abhalten. Im Rahmen der Veranstaltung sollen fokussiert Projekte und Lehrformate im Kontext postkolonialer Sozialen Arbeit vorgestellt, in Workshops ausprobiert, diskutiert und gemeinsam weiterentwickelt werden. Die Tagung wird deshalb partizipativ folgende Fragestellungen ins Zentrum r{\"u}cken: Wie k{\"o}nnen postkoloniale Perspektiven in der Lehre und Praxis Sozialer Arbeit verankert werden? Welche Formate sind daf{\"u}r besonders geeignet? Welche kreativen M{\"o}glichkeiten gibt es, Studierenden Aspekte postkolonialer Sozialer Arbeit partizipativ zu vermitteln? Welche Herausforderungen lassen sich dabei erkennen? Diesen Fragen wollen wir uns im Rahmen der Tagung stellen. Dabei geht es auch darum von bereits bestehenden Ans{\"a}tzen zu lernen, vorhandene Ideen aufzugreifen, sie weiter zu entwickeln und uns dabei zu vernetzen. Die Tagung ist interdisziplin{\"a}r ausgerichtet und offen f{\"u}r Akteur*innen aus Wissenschaft und Praxis, welche unterschiedliche, f{\"u}r die Soziale Arbeit relevante, postkoloniale Perspektiven einbringen wollen (z.B. Soziologie, Ethnologie, {\"O}konomie, Politikwissenschaft, Theologie, Literatur-und Geschichtswissenschaften, etc…). Das Ziel ist gemeinsam auf den Weg zu gehen, um postkoloniale Perspektiven und dekoloniale Ans{\"a}tze innerhalb der Theorie und der Praxis Sozialer Arbeit zu st{\"a}rken.}, language = {de} } @inproceedings{AfeworkiAbayKleiblNeureitheretal., author = {Afeworki Abay, Robel and Kleibl, Tanja and Neureither, Franziska and Daňkov{\´a}, Petra and Klages, Anna-Lisa and Lutz, Ronald}, title = {Ethical Considerations for Social Work Education and Research in Africa: COVID-19, White Privilege, Structural Inequalities and its Implications for European Social Work}, series = {Innovation and Resilience: Preparedness of Social Work Education in Uncertain Times}, booktitle = {Innovation and Resilience: Preparedness of Social Work Education in Uncertain Times}, abstract = {The current pandemic forces parts of Social Work practice, research and education to reinvent itself. Alongside new online formats and blended-learning models, new ethical questions and dilemmas arise. These include issues of resources, control and power, access, accessibility, mobility and rising inequalities, positionality of researchers, data protection and the duty of care in social scientific research and education with migrants and other ,vulnerable' populations. While individual-oriented models which have arguably been a hallmark of the European Social Work practice, come to its limits during the pandemic, communal practices and local self-organized support systems come to the forefront. How can the Global North learn from approaches of the Global South? The symposium draws on this notion of joint learning and raises important questions about the (im)possibility of equal research partnership during times of worsening structural inequalities. This symposium draws on Social Work related research projects in cooperation with partners in Uganda, Ghana, Nigeria and Ethiopia. The situatedness of the research projects has implicit and explicit ethical implications that pointed out the need for postcolonial reflections. The first perspective focuses on critical whiteness in research practice and pandemic-related challenges regarding field access and exchange opportunities. The second part of the discussion calls for situated ethics based in transnational multi-site research with migrating persons. Drawing on the theory of Social Work as a human rights profession in a global context, the final part of the discussion then moves to emphasize the mandate of Social Work researchers, practitioners and education to consider the perspectives of those unheard and unseen in the current discourse. The range of papers point towards the dilemma of a predominantly white Northern perspectives of Social Work profession that is only slowly reflecting upon and researching its own role in upholding and reproducing the colonial matrix of power. This symposium concludes by making some suggestions how to work towards an ethical space of engagement in which power imbalances are recognized and an in-between space, in which one can in fact only stumble forward together, created.}, language = {en} } @inproceedings{AfeworkiAbayKleiblDaňkovaetal., author = {Afeworki Abay, Robel and Kleibl, Tanja and Daňkov{\´a}, Petra and Klages, Anna-Lisa}, title = {Beyond the Single Story of "Migration Management": Creating Space for "Epistemic Disobedience" in Engaging with Migration in Social Work}, series = {The 21st International Conference of Migration "Border Thinking"}, booktitle = {The 21st International Conference of Migration "Border Thinking"}, abstract = {In recent years, Mignolo's concept of "border thinking" became an increasingly relevant critical framework to analyze the complexity of migration processes to postcolonial Europe (Lutz, Sachau, \& Stauß, 2017; Zannou, \& Pfaffenstaller, 2020). It differentiates between external and internal borders; whereby the latter refers to the modern/colonial world system and its epistemological conceptualizations in the postcolonial era that continue to be dominated by the hegemonic order of Eurocentric discourses - here on migration (Mignolo, 2000). Within a reductionist approach to the complexity of migration processes (Mayblin, 2016), motives of migration are often analyzed within a single-story framework that considers solely the perspectives of European-destination countries - disregarding the external border that considers the perspectives of the subaltern (Zannou \& Pfaffenstaller, 2020). In addition, the applied framework constructs Europe as in need to protect its welfare systems from overload and exploitation, and its societies from infiltration (Mayblin, 2016). The so-called "root causes" for migration are sought in "underdevelopment" and inter- and intraregional conflicts for land/resources and power. Its close and complex relations to colonial legacies however, are often left unconsidered (Zannou, \& Pfaffenstaller, 2020; Lutz, Sachau, \& Stauß, 2017). Yet, the imprints of colonial rule on former colonized states continue to impact social, political and economic structures on both sides, thereby shaping knowledge production (Mignolo, 2013). In our presentation, we critically discuss the dominant Eurocentric discourse on "migration management" and its universality claims. Focusing specifically on social work, we sketch out how the production of research and the (self) understanding of the social work profession within the welfare state are often entangled in (re)producing hegemonic discourse. With Mignolo, we reflect on the possibilities of "epistemic disobedience" (Mignolo, 2009; 2013) and its demands for universality in social work education, research and practice.}, language = {en} } @inproceedings{AfeworkiAbayKleiblNeureitheretal., author = {Afeworki Abay, Robel and Kleibl, Tanja and Neureither, Franziska and Klages, Anna-Lisa and Lutz, Ronald and Daňkov{\´a}, Petra}, title = {Projects and Teaching Formats of Social Work in the context of Postcolonial Perspectives}, series = {Projects and Teaching Formats of Social Work in the context of Postcolonial Perspectives}, booktitle = {Projects and Teaching Formats of Social Work in the context of Postcolonial Perspectives}, abstract = {Social Work curricula in many areas have a Eurocentric orientation, which obscures historical-colonial structures of inequality and power imbalances between and within regions. This leads to the development of dynamics between social groups and diverse identities and, connected to this, social inclusion and exclusion processes, which are often not sufficiently taken into account or reflected in the research, teaching and practice of Social Work. The postcolonial situation continues to profoundly influence knowledge production within the profession as well as the transfer of knowledge within teaching and practice in the Global South and North. Since postcolonial theories and practice approaches focus on global power relations and social inequalities, different forms of racism, discrimination and stigmatization processes, they are of particular importance for International Social Work. On November 12, 2021, the Expert Groups "International Social Work" and "Flight, Migration, Racism and Anti-Semitism Criticism" of the German Association of Social Work (DGSA) will hold a joint symposium-if possible in attendance at the University of Applied Sciences W{\"u}rzburg-Schweinfurt (FHWS). Within the framework of the event, focused projects and teaching formats in the context of postcolonial Social Work will be presented, tried out in workshops, discussed and jointly developed further. The conference will therefore focus on the following questions: How can postcolonial perspectives be anchored in the teaching and practice of Social Work? Which formats are particularly suitable for this? What creative possibilities are there for communicating aspects of postcolonial Social Work to students in a reflective and participatory way? What challenges can be identified? These are the questions we want to address during the conference. The aim is to learn from existing approaches, to take up new ideas, to develop them further and to network. The conference is interdisciplinary and open for actors from science and practice who want to bring in different postcolonial perspectives relevant for Social Work (e.g. sociology, ethnology, economics, political science, theology, literature and history, etc...). The goal is to set out together in order to strengthen postcolonial perspectives and decolonial approaches within Social Work theory and practice.}, language = {en} } @inproceedings{KleiblAfeworkiAbay, author = {Kleibl, Tanja and Afeworki Abay, Robel}, title = {Migration and social transformation: from theory to engaged practice}, series = {Migration and social transformation: southern perspectives}, booktitle = {Migration and social transformation: southern perspectives}, abstract = {Globalisation has made geo-politics not an isolated issue but it must be seen as part of wider transformative processes. New emerging forms of global governance, in particular migration governance, although still discussed as a central national policy instrument in the wider normative political dialogues, have been further developed as forms of control over people which, through externalization processes, go far beyond national borders or continental patterns. Its divisive dynamics have strengthened new forms of unilateralism, stronger nationalism, populism and xenophobia, especially in Europe and North America, affecting countries in the Global South through so called "containment politics". At the same time, economic mega-projects, extractive industries and land grabbing, as well as increasingly internal - often resource related - postcolonial conflicts, have led to more and more forced displaced people on the African continent. Examples thereof would be the new conflict in Northern Mozambique, which led to about 800.000 internally displaced people (IDPs) since 2017 or the so-called Anglophone Crises in Cameroon, which resulted so far in about half a million IDPs. Extractivism and exploitation of environmental resources without considering its environmental impact has also contributed to the worsening of the self-sustainability conditions of entire communities, forcing them to migrate. Xenophobia, resulting from continued racism as well as from the negative consequences of neoliberal policies for large parts of the populations, has taken on dangerous proportions in what has come to be known as xenophobic violent attacks in South Africa. These violent attacks, perpetrated by South Africans, against fellow Africans from other parts of Africa, have resulted in deaths, injuries and destruction of property. Unfortunately, at the receiving end of such attacks are mostly poor, vulnerable and marginalised groups such as refugees, asylum seekers and immigrants from the continent. Violent xenophobic attacks have contributed to the further displacement of sub-Saharan Africans in South Africa. What is worrying is that these attacks are becoming more and more frequent. Despite these narrowing and inward-looking tendencies, globalisation and related social, economic and cultural transformations are accelerating at a fast pace, making the world even more embedded and interconnected, a process in which digitalization plays a key part. In all these global upheavals, human development and social work should remain at the centre, given their mandate of advocating with and on behalf of the most marginalised ("option for the poor"). Thus, social justice, human rights and social inclusion across the world remain social work's main mission and a very important task for the profession in terms of education, research and practice. Given this backdrop, it is imperative that social workers not only take critical note of the major shifts taking place momentarily and the various challenges and social ills that have global implications. Rather, they need to insert themselves into this global discourse by offering their unique social justice orientated paradigm and frameworks. This international winter/summer school, taking place in South Africa, aims to support and enhance North-South as well as South-South exchanges of academics, students and organizations working in the field of social work and (forced) migration. Of critical importance, young people, especially social work students, from both the Global South and North, need to be equipped with appropriate and relevant analytical skills to be able to navigate these turbulent times and be better prepared for the numerous complex challenges faced by social work and community practitioners, migrants and refugees in the field. In addition, they need to be exposed to progressive worldviews as well as new innovative research and practices. Academics from the fields of social work and migration need to invest in arriving at context relevant curricula and decolonizing teaching and research methodologies that tackle the issues mentioned above while practitioners need to make themselves familiar with current research trends and innovative practice approaches by learning from other parts of the "interconnected" world.}, language = {en} } @inproceedings{AfeworkiAbayKleiblStubbsetal., author = {Afeworki Abay, Robel and Kleibl, Tanja and Stubbs, Paul and Noyoo, Ndangwa}, title = {Challenging colonial continuities and racism within contemporary EU migration regimes: postcolonial perspectives in social work}, series = {Social work - a hinge of practical utopia}, booktitle = {Social work - a hinge of practical utopia}, abstract = {The history of Social Work and the modern Western university paradoxically represents both the high point and low point of human progress. Conceived in an epoch of immense human discovery, it is important to understand this period as characterised by white Western Imperialist and Colonial projects and the rise of capitalist accumulation. In combination, these processes, not confined to the geo-political points of origin, continue to have devastating impacts across the world, characterised by the exploitation, displacement, and destruction of human beings as well as natural ecosystems. Hegemonic colonial structures and practices created and reproduced global racialised hierarchies with the dominance of the Global North and the 'Othering' of knowledge forms and ways of life emerging from the Global South. Struggles for decolonisation and anti-racism come from an ongoing refusal by the victims of capitalism and imperialism to accept defeat and to continue to struggle for life, liberty and dignity. In the current moment, especially following the brutal public execution of George Floyd in the US and the Black Lives Matter movement, especially amongst youth, we have witnessed a global response, incorporating gestures of solidarity, through the 'taking of the knee' through to direct action to remove statues and monuments celebrating various characters associated with Empire, slavery and colonial exploitation. Again, the current discriminatory practices against non-European and non-White refugees from Ukraine highlights the coloniality of human rights. As Social Work scientific community and practitioners, we stand united with all people of good will working for peace and justice across national borders. In times where many forces try to divide and polarize this world, as Social Workers we seek to overcome "Oppression Olympics" (Walby et al., 2012: 234) and to foster solidarity as a collective strategy of resistance. In this regard, this panel contribution focusses specifically on the relevance of postcolonial perspectives to challenge contemporary EU migration regimes and developing anticolonial approaches in Social Work. In trying to sketch out how Social Work research, education and practice are often entangled in (re)producing hegemonic discourse, the panel will critically discuss the inherent ambivalences and ambiguities of decolonisation processes in the face of a vast range of epistemic violence, which is also referred to as Epistemicide (de Sousa-Santos, 2014; Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2018). Some concluding remarks will be made by highlighting the relevance of epistemic disobedience in challenging coloniality of knowledge in Social Work.}, language = {en} } @incollection{AfeworkiAbayKasayeKleibl, author = {Afeworki Abay, Robel and Kasaye, Demelash and Kleibl, Tanja}, title = {Overcoming the socio-economic impacts of the coronavirus pandemic: social work perspectives and postcolonial reflections from Ethiopia}, series = {The coronavirus crisis and challenges to social development: global perspectives}, booktitle = {The coronavirus crisis and challenges to social development: global perspectives}, publisher = {Springer International Publishing}, doi = {10.1007/978-3-030-84678-7_37}, pages = {431 -- 442}, abstract = {The coronavirus pandemic is the most challenging health emergency in generations, as it has already impacted on the capacities of health infrastructures and is dramatically affecting the local and global economy. Since the global spread of the pandemic, the importance of social distancing as well as the hygiene measures for self-protection and protection of other persons has been enforced, to reduce the rapid spread of the coronavirus. However, these ever-more restrictive protection measures are often not feasible for many, especially marginalized and subaltern groups in the Global South, as state-funded social security systems are very limited there. Therefore, it is not surprising that these developments pose a huge socioeconomic threat as well as potential for social and political unrest, especially to those communities living in already politically fragile and precarious situations in countries such as Ethiopia. Developing Santos's understanding of social work epistemologies of the South' and based on a small-scale explorative qualitative study in cooperation with Addis Ababa University, this chapter highlights the impact of historical postcolonial inequalities as well as contemporary political conflicts on the agency of Ethiopian Social and Community Workers as well as their perspectives regarding the multiple crises they confront.}, language = {en} } @inproceedings{AfeworkiAbayKleiblRitteretal., author = {Afeworki Abay, Robel and Kleibl, Tanja and Ritter, Monique and Ihring, Isabelle and Mouissi, Jasmin}, title = {Dekolonialisierung des Wissens in Forschung, Lehre und Praxis Sozialer Arbeit}, series = {Geteiltes Wissen - Wissensentwicklung in Disziplin und Profession Sozialer Arbeit}, booktitle = {Geteiltes Wissen - Wissensentwicklung in Disziplin und Profession Sozialer Arbeit}, abstract = {Das geplante Panel besch{\"a}ftigt sich mit der Frage, wie durch die hegemoniale Wissensproduktion der Sozialen Arbeit koloniale Deutungs- und Handlungsmuster und kulturalisierende Zuschreibenden sowie damit einhergehende subtilere Mechanismen des Othering (re-)produziert werden (Said, 1978). Eine dekoloniale Forschungspraxis kann sich hier als besonders geeignet erweisen, um solchen diskursiven und wissenschaftlichen Praktiken entgegenzuwirken und danach zu fragen: ,,Who and when, why and where is knowledge generated?" (Mignolo, 2009, S. 2). Mit diesem Panel m{\"o}chten wir zudem kritische Anregungen f{\"u}r den weiteren Forschungsbedarf zur Dekolonialisierung der Forschung Sozialer Arbeit im Sinne des ,,epistemic disobedience'' (Mignolo, 2009, S. 8) anstoßen.}, language = {de} } @book{DaňkovaAfeworkiAbayXypolytasetal., author = {Daňkov{\´a}, Petra and Afeworki Abay, Robel and Xypolytas, Nikos and Kleibl, Tanja}, title = {Transnational Mobility and Externalization of EU Borders}, publisher = {Lexington Books}, abstract = {The dramatic pictures of violence on the Polish - Belorussian border are just the latest manifestation of the dehumanization, securitization and externalization of the EU migration management policies. A trend that can be traced to early 2000s has achieved a new level in recent years after a brief opening of EU borders in 2015. The COVID-19 pandemic has amplified these dynamics in different ways and deepened inequalities of the transnational mobility (Lee 2020; Sumba 2021; Afeworki Abay, Kassaye \& Kleibl 2022; Matela \& Maaza 2022). In addition to physical violence by state and non-state actors along the EU external border, EU migration management employs strategies that condone prolonged exposure of mobile people to death and to a host of human rights violations (Mbembe 2003, 2019; Mayblin \& Turner 2020; Mayblin 2016, 2019; Abuya, Krause \& Mayblin 2021; Sadeghi 2019). At the same time, civil society members, media representatives and those who attempt to assist mobile people are also increasingly criminalized, exposed to right-extremist violence and targeted by excessive legal, financial and bureaucratic burdens that make their work difficult, if not impossible. Externalization as a central characteristic of EU border management refers to the propounding mechanisms of moving the border forward (Andrews 2021; Getachew 2019; Guti{\´e}rrez Rodr{\´i}guez 2018a, 2018b; Mayblin, 2017; Mayblin, Wake \& Kazemi 2019). Outside of the EU, externalization policies construct EU border controls in so-called countries of origin and transit. In this process, EU migration management is fused with foreign policy, international development and international trade mechanisms. These incursions disrupt socioeconomic dynamics and local mobility patterns as far as Iran-Turkey borderlands, West African ECOWAS region or the border between Ethiopia and the Sudan. The internal and external EU migration management developments are inseparable and materialized legacies of colonialism, enduring gender inequalities, politics of citizenship and racialized economies (Andrews 2021; Getachew 2019). This book therefore aims to critically analyze how Social Work and EU migration management regimes co-constitute each other. The here presented book will offer theoretical discussions and practical experiences around the following questions: In which way is Social Work complicit in the EU migration management regime? Where do Social Workers find opportunities to build solidarities, become subversive of the hegemonic structures and work for empowerment? How do Social Workers deal with the increasingly restrictive political, legal and economic environment, in which they engage with mobile people? How can Social Work become more apt to working with people who are at times highly mobile and at times immobilized in remote camps, forests or desert outposts? Moreover, this book espouses the broadest definition of Social Work as a human rights profession and an academic discipline but also as an indigenous way of social assistance and social change (Staub-Bernasconi 2012, 2016; Healy \& Link 2011; Kleibl, Lutz \& Noyoo 2020). By paying attention to the temporal and spatial aspects of Social Work with mobile people, we explicitly refuse the apolitical, decontextualized view of Social Work as neutral „helping", instead we plea for critical reflection on the entanglements of Social Work in complex, intersecting power dynamics. Hence, this book seeks to critically analyze how Social Work becomes entangled in categorization of people to make them „legible" and „visible" to EU migration management and how Social Work itself is categorized in order to be disciplined as a „helping" profession and an instrument of the state/EU migration management. We ask how Social Work could be transformed to work in a multiscalar, transnational scale, truly living up to the ambition to employ „glocal" approach.}, language = {en} } @incollection{KlagesRodriguezLugoAfeworkiAbayetal., author = {Klages, Anna-Lisa and Rodr{\´i}guez Lugo, Sara and Afeworki Abay, Robel and Kleibl, Tanja}, title = {The Relevance of Decolonizing Social Work: Critical Reflections on Colonial Pasts, Post-Colonial Presents and Decolonial Futures}, series = {Decolonizing Social Work: From Theory to Transformative Practice}, booktitle = {Decolonizing Social Work: From Theory to Transformative Practice}, publisher = {Bloomsbury Publishing}, abstract = {The multiple and simultaneous realities of Social Work practice have always been more complex than its theories suggested. The knowledges, desires and perspectives of its addressees are much more nuanced than standardized empirical qualitative and quantitative research methodologies (that inform theorization) could possibly grasp. In consequence, many assumingly universal and evidence-based methods and instruments in Social Work do not lead towards anticipated outcomes that aim to support the social, political, ecological and economic needs of the addressees. Social Work theories in turn often lack the consideration of, under others, race, class and gender subordination and domination effects, which form integral parts of power dynamics between the oppressed and the oppressors at play in the 21st century. This leads to downplaying the need to theorize and support solidarity from below, as well as to strengthen relational accountability between those that want to advance social justice. In addition, structural elements "from above" such as political and welfare systems and development economies do not receive significant attention either. In consequence, many theories do not lead to concepts, approaches and praxis that sufficiently grasp the historical and contemporary situatedness in which Social Work operates.}, language = {en} } @incollection{AfeworkiAbayKleiblRodriguezLugoetal., author = {Afeworki Abay, Robel and Kleibl, Tanja and Rodr{\´i}guez Lugo, Sara and Klages, Anna-Lisa}, title = {Implications of Decolonizing Social Work: Critical Reflections on Colonial Pasts, Post-Colonial Presents and Decolonial Futures}, series = {Decolonizing Social Work: From Theory to Transformative Practice}, booktitle = {Decolonizing Social Work: From Theory to Transformative Practice}, publisher = {Bloomsbury Publishing}, abstract = {While there is an evident need for establishing thorough processes of decolonizing Social Work in education, research and practice, there is only a limited number of literature available on the complex decolonization project. It includes the co-edited volume Decolonizing Social Work by Mel Gray, John Coates, Michael Yellow Bird and Tiani Hetherington (2013), Trabajo Social y Descolonialidad, by Mar{\´i}a Eugenia Hermida and Paula Meschini (2017) or the Routledge Handbook of Postcolonial Social Work, by Tanja Kleibl, Ronald Lutz, Ndangwa Noyoo, Benjamin Bunk, Annika Dittmann and Boitumelo Seepamore (2020). These foundational works contribute immensely to the much-needed discussion on the diversification of Social Work theories and methods, yet their foci cannot possibly attempt to address a full scope to the decolonization of all Social Work dimensions in greater detail. Furthermore, most publications (e.g., Tasc{\´o}n and Ife, 2020; Fortier and Hon-Sing Wong, 2018) focus on theoretical reflections, leaving the important gap regarding the necessary knowledge transfer into practice, research and education still broadly opened.}, language = {en} } @incollection{DaňkovaAfeworkiAbayXypolytasetal., author = {Daňkov{\´a}, Petra and Afeworki Abay, Robel and Xypolytas, Nikos and Kleibl, Tanja}, title = {Introduction to externalization of EU borders}, series = {Transnational mobility and externalization of EU borders: social work, migration management and resistance}, booktitle = {Transnational mobility and externalization of EU borders: social work, migration management and resistance}, publisher = {Lexington Books}, abstract = {The dramatic pictures of violence on the Polish - Belorussian border, preventable shipwrecks off the coast of Italy and Greece or the killing of people attempting to cross the border into the Spanish exclave of Melilla are just the latest manifestation of the dehumanization, securitization and externalization of the EU migration management policies. A trend that can be traced to early 2000s has achieved a new level in recent years after a brief opening of EU borders around 2015. The Covid-19 pandemic has amplified these dynamics in important ways and deepened inequalities of transnational mobility (Lee 2020; Sumba 2021; Afeworki Abay, Kassaye and Kleibl 2022; Matela and Maaza 2022). The flight of people from Ukraine into the EU after the Russian invasion has highlighted the differential treatment of refugees based on intersecting hierarchies of racialization, gender and citizenship.}, language = {en} } @incollection{KlagesKleiblRodriguezLugoetal., author = {Klages, Anna-Lisa and Kleibl, Tanja and Rodr{\´i}guez Lugo, Sara and Afeworki Abay, Robel}, title = {Introduction to Decolonial Methodologies in Social Work: Transcending Eurocentrism and Foregrounding Pluriversalism}, series = {Decolonial Methodologies in Social Work: Foregrounding Pluriversalism in Teaching and Research}, booktitle = {Decolonial Methodologies in Social Work: Foregrounding Pluriversalism in Teaching and Research}, publisher = {Bloomsbury Publishing}, abstract = {Since the publication of Linda Tuhiwai Smith's book (1999), Decolonizing Methodologies: Research and Indigenous Peoples, researchers in various disciplines in social and health sciences have increasingly become aware of the importance of adopting decolonial research methodologies. However, the transnational project of decolonization might be challenging and complex to implement in research projects and teaching formats in Social Work. The chapter contributions in this co-edited volume give insight from a broader geopolitical perspective into how established Eurocentric concepts, perceptions, practices, and paradigms in Social Work have been continuously re-assessed and re-nuanced within the last two decades (Tamburro, 2013; Noyoo, 2020; Kleibl et al., 2020; Castro Varela and Mohamed, 2021; Gray et al., 2023; Harms-Smith and Rasool, 2020). Within the broader project of Western academia, one effect of decolonization is challenging the allegedly objective "scientific knowledge, in view of its rigor and instrumental potential, [as] radically different from other ways of knowing, be they lay, popular, practical, commonsensical, intuitive, or religious" (de Sousa Santos, 2018b: 5). Moreover, decolonial concepts such as "epistemic de-linking" (Mignolo, 2007: 450) and "epistemic disobedience" (Mignolo, 2009: 8) are indispensable in unpacking the colonial roots of epistemic violence and foregrounding 'Epistemologies of the South' (de Sousa Santos, 2014) in Social Work research in order to establish "a time of epistemological imagination aimed at refounding the political imagination (…) to strengthen the social struggles against domination" (de Sousa Santos, 2018a: 126-127). The continuous problematization of Eurocentric knowledge production (e.g., methodological nationalism, culturalization, westernization) is therefore important for establishing critical dialogues in Social Work. Most importantly, decolonizing university education (Rodr{\´i}guez, 2018; Mbembe, 2016; Mignolo, 2013; de Sousa Santos, 2017) in general is the first step in order to disrupt the colonial continuity of knowledge production that "operates as an invisible power matrix that is shaping and sustaining asymmetrical power relations between the Global North and the Global South" (Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2014: 181). In moving beyond theoretical discussions and reflections, this co-edited volume addresses the essential questions regarding the implementation of decolonial approaches in research methodologies and teaching formats in Social Work. This co-edited volume is therefore an important contribution for critically minded Social Work educators and students who seek to understand the complex structures of the colonial past, the contemporary postcolonial moment as well as to decolonize their teaching, researching, and visions of decolonialized Social Work.}, language = {en} } @incollection{AfeworkiAbayRodriguezLugoKleibletal., author = {Afeworki Abay, Robel and Rodr{\´i}guez Lugo, Sara and Kleibl, Tanja and Klages, Anna-Lisa}, title = {Methodological and Pedagogical Implications of Decolonizing Social Work}, series = {Decolonial Methodologies in Social Work: Foregrounding Pluriversalism in Teaching and Research}, booktitle = {Decolonial Methodologies in Social Work: Foregrounding Pluriversalism in Teaching and Research}, publisher = {Bloomsbury Publishing}, abstract = {The fact that the coloniality of power and knowledge (Quijano; 2000; Mignolo, 2007, 2011; Grosfoguel, 2013) has only been addressed poorly in Social Work contributes to what Paulo Freire (1970: 12) referred to as "a culture of silence". A culture of silence exists where those who are oppressed are not heard in society, and where a lack of knowledge about their contexts creates a high risk for the perpetuation of racism, discrimination, and the violent process of 'blaming the victim'. Research methodologies and teaching formats in Social Work have always been embedded in the colonial archives of Eurocentric knowledge (Quijano; 2000; Mbembe, 2016; Grosfoguel, 2013). As Freire (1970: 5) argues that "The social worker, as much as the educator, is not a neutral agent, either in practice or in action". In the last decade, Social Work education and research methodologies have been continuously criticized for being complicit in downplaying and silencing the brutality of the colonial project (Harms-Smith and Rasool, 2020; Kleibl et al., 2020; Tamburro, 2013). This includes but not only limited to the ignorance of the social, political, ecological and economic implications of colonial legacies as well as post and neocolonial continuities in the 21st century. In addition, the development of Western political and welfare systems 'from above' do not result in significant social change and transformative justice. In consequence, many theories do not lead to concepts, approaches and praxis that sufficiently grasp the historical and contemporary situatedness of coloniality of knowledge and power in which Social Work keeps operating (Afeworki Abay, 2023; Daňkov{\´a} et al., 2024; Kleibl et al., 2024). In response to the continuities of colonial epistemologies and methodologies in Social Work, the chapter contributions in this co-edited volume show the relevance of Pluriversality as one of the various decolonial strategies to unsettle the coloniality of Eurocentric knowledge production (Quijano; 2000; Mignolo, 2007, 2017; Grosfoguel, 2013). One of strategies of decolonizing research methodologies and teaching formats is to universalize and normalize ways of knowing and knowledge production that Eurocentric systems of knowledge portray as 'not valuable' or 'not objective enough' (Tuck and Yang, 2012; Tlostanova and Mignolo. 2012; Afeworki Abay, 2023). Likewise, an important analytic strategy for decolonizing research methodologies is to draw upon marginalized and Indigenous knowledge systems (Smith, 1999; Tamburro, 2013; Zavala, 2016) that have been to taken-for-granted in the social, political, economic, and environmental discourses in Social Work.}, language = {en} } @book{KleiblAfeworkiAbayKlagesetal., author = {Kleibl, Tanja and Afeworki Abay, Robel and Klages, Anna-Lisa and Rodr{\´i}guez Lugo, Sara}, title = {Decolonizing Social Work}, publisher = {Bloomsbury Publishing}, abstract = {Over the last three decades, "decolonization" has become an increasingly emergent framework in tracing and addressing the complex mechanisms of coloniality of knowledge and power (Mignolo, 2011; Quijano, 2000). Surprisingly enough, decolonial perspectives have hardly been considered in Social Work education, research and practice (e.g. Harms-Smith \& Rasool, 2020; Kleibl et al., 2020; Gray et al., 2016; Tamburro, 2013; Lutz, Sachau, \& Stauß, 2017). Even though, there is a growing body of literature that addresses the need for decolonization of Social Work with indigenous people (e.g. Tanemura et al., 2016; Ives \& Thaweiakenrat Loft, 2016) or individuals and communities in and from the Global South (e.g. Noyoo, 2020; Kreitzer, 2016; Freire, 1970), many Social Workers in the Global North (both in academia and practice) argue that the need for decolonization does not apply to their work. This is particularly true in countries of the Global North that claim to have had little engagement with colonialism (e.g. Ranta-Tyrkk{\"o}, 2011). Historically, much of Social Work theory and practice was developed in the Global North and exported across the globe as a byproduct of colonization and - in the postcolonial era - in form of development aid (Schirilla, 2018). Within the hegemonic discourses, knowledges produced at the peripheries and in the context of social struggles has been delegitimized and rendered invisible. Therefore, Social Work remains dominated by Euro-American perspectives, which oftentimes reproduce epistemic violence (Spivak, 1988). This acknowledgment, then, calls for a critical analysis of Social Work education, research and practice as well. Recent emerging discussions on implementing decolonial approaches in Social Work (Harms-Smith \& Rasool, 2020; Tamburro, 2013; Lutz, Kleibl \& Neureither, 2021) have drawn the attention to the possibilities of "epistemic disobedience" (Mignolo, 2009: 8). They brought forward Afrocentric approaches to pedagogy (van Wyk 2014; Watson-Vandiver \& Wiggan, 2021), pedagogies that centralize the oppressed (Freire, 1970; Kohan, 2021), non-extractivist research approaches and methods that focus on embodied knowledge and corporeal emancipation (de Sousa-Santos, 2018), as well as creating South-South links (Rivera, 2012).}, language = {en} } @book{AfeworkiAbayKlagesRodriguezLugoetal., author = {Afeworki Abay, Robel and Klages, Anna-Lisa and Rodr{\´i}guez Lugo, Sara and Kleibl, Tanja}, title = {Decolonial Methodologies in Social Work: Foregrounding Pluriversalism in Teaching and Research}, publisher = {Bloomsbury Publishing}, abstract = {While decolonial perspectives have continuously been discussed in contemporary academic discourse in Social Work in the last two decades, yet, the complex legacies of colonialism are often left unreflected within methodological and pedagogical conceptualizations in Social Work (Harms-Smith and Rasool, 2020; Tamburro, 2013; Kleibl et al., 2020; Harms-Smith and Afeworki Abay, 2024). With this understanding in mind, it is imperative to critically engage with the growing interest of mainstream discourse on decolonizing research and education in Social Work and as well as to understand the broader project of decolonization as a way of "epistemic de-linking" (Mignolo, 2007: 450) from colonial thoughts and practices. Decolonial perspectives in Social Work's knowledge production require a deep look into the core concept of Pluriversality in foregrounding theories, epistemologies and methodologies of the South. According to Boaventura de Sousa Santos (2018), decolonizing theories, epistemologies and methodologies is an asymmetrical and long-term process that requires deep analysis and reflection both in formerly colonized and colonizing regions. As there are only insufficient methodological reflections on these complex topics of "decolonization" in Social Work (see among others: Kleibl et al., 2024), the aim of this book is to go one-step further and put a spotlight on the increasing number of critical teaching formats as well as research projects in Social Work that aim to challenge the current status-quo of coloniality of power, knowledge and being (Quijano, 2007). This co-edited volume provides discussions and experiences with decolonial approaches in research and education of Social Work. It centres methodologies developed in the Global South (de Sousa Santos, 2014; Connell, 2014) in an attempt to decolonize Eurocentrism, as the knowledge produced by subaltern communities and scholars of the global South have been rendered invisible.}, language = {en} }