Conservative ideals for social workers

Dr. Helen points out "Conservative principles are completely congruent with the value of social justice" in a great article by Bruce Thyer called: Social justice: a conservative perspective which "describes a conservative perspective on the topic of social justice and illustrates how this view actually promotes a more socially just practice than a liberal orientation to practice and policy. Specific attention is given to the conservative perspective on the provision of social welfare programs, the use of the income tax as a means to redistribute wealth, on affirmative action, on the death penalty, and on abortion rights."

So what is "social justice"?

In this article, it is defined as "An ideal condition in which all members of a society have the same basic rights, protection, opportunities, obligations, and social benefits. Implicit in this concept is the notion that historical inequities should be acknowledged and remedied, through specific measures. A key social work value, social justice entails advocacy to confront discrimination, oppression, and institutional inequities."

Thyer then describes Conservatism in the following general definition:

"A political philosophy based on tradition and social stability, stressing established institutions, and preferring gradual development to abrupt change; specifically: such a philosophy calling for lower taxes, limited government regulation of business and investing, a strong national defense, and individual responsibility for personal needs (as retirement income or health-care coverage)."
Thyer states "there is nothing within this definition that could be construed as antithetical to social justice" especially because "Conservatives strongly promote human rights, especially those enumerated in the US Constitution, rights such as the freedom of the press, of religion, assembly, and to petition the government, the right to bear arms, freedom from cruel and unusual punishment, and the right of people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures; and the right to a trial by jury, to a speedy trial, to confront witness, and to legal counsel. Note that all of these rights are essentially negative rights, limits on what the federal government can do for its citizens. There are no positive rights, goods or services to be proactively provided by the national government, enumerated in the Constitution, except one - the right to have legal counsel appointed if a defendant cannot afford a lawyer. Our constitutional right to freedom of the press does not mean that the government provides newspapers or printing presses to the citizens. This right means that the government cannot (generally) prohibit someone from publishing books, newspapers or pamphlets, even materials antagonistic to the government. Freedom of religion does not the mean the government has an obligation to provide places to worship or an official priesthood, only that it cannot interfere (generally) from people practicing their religious beliefs. The right to bear arms does not mean the government must provide citizens with weapons, only that it cannot (generally) interfere with citizens owning guns.

Constitutionally, and hence from a conservative perspective, there are no constitutionally-mandated federal rights to goods and services such as food, housing, healthcare, or retirement income. These positive “rights” are seen as best secured by the individual citizens for themselves and their families, not by the federal government. Constitutionally the individual states may pass laws providing for positive rights (e.g. some states have passed laws providing for near-universal healthcare), but the conservative is more concerned with limiting the role of the federal government in this regard, than with the individual states, or lesser levels of government (e.g. cities that provide homeless shelters)."

Read the full article - Mr. Thyer is spot on and concludes, in part "Conservative principles are completely congruent with the value of social justice, as maintained by the profession of social work, as well as by society at large. By adhering to certain core principles - the value of human life and liberty, the right to own and retain one's property, the equal treatment of all persons under the law, conservatives can present a nuanced and justifiable argument relating to selected social justice issues of keen interest to social workers. Among the these issues are the morality of social welfare programs, the use of the income tax system to promote the redistribution of wealth, affirmative action, the death penalty, and abortion. Conservative social workers believe that adhering to their principles results in a more socially just world via the creation of more socially just programs and policies, than the practices espoused by their more liberal colleagues."

And to the liberals in this field: "It is both ironic and socially unjust that conservative political ideology is both largely ignored and demonized by mainstream social work. The profession needs both a greater appreciation and acceptance of the legitimacy of the conservative political ideology held by so many of its members."