“First-Aid Squad in the Class Struggle”

Rethinking social work supervision: is a ‘radical supervision’ model possible?

“…Part of this tradition had been shaped by social workers supporting refugees, initially during the Spanish Civil War and then, not that long after that conflict, during the Second World War. During this politically turbulent period, thousands of social workers across Europe and North America engaged in the struggle against fascism and Nazism (Schilde, 2003). In doing so, they used their professional knowledge, perseverance, creativity and commitment to a socially just war.…”

“…Following the same political tradition, the Red Aid -a vast anti-fascist networkmobilised thousands of social workers and social welfare practitioners globally in order to develop services caring for refugees, political activists and orphaned children (Schilde, 2003). Developed in the interwar period, the Red Aid was the first comprehensive effort to internationalise a politically engaged social work, but it has been wiped from social work history textbooks (Ferguson et al, 2018).…”

Beyond the dichotomies of cultural and political relativism: arguing the case for a social justice based ‘global social work’ definition

“…Further to the left, one of the most extensive networks of grassroots, politically committed social work organisations of the mid-20th century was Red Aid, an umbrella organisation that originated in Germany in 1919 and by the Second World War covered many European countries, including Austria, France, Greece, Poland, Sweden and the UK. Red Aid not only emphasised the class divisions and inequalities prevalent in the capitalist world, but also adopted a militant stance towards alleviating the structural causes of inequality and poverty (Schilde, 2003). Most importantly, it provided support to groups and individuals who suffered from the criminalisation of political activism and were excluded from state-controlled welfare organisations.…”

Making Sense of Social Work’s Troubled Past: Professional Identity, Collective Memory and the Quest for Historical Justice

“…This legacy deserves more recognition and celebration as it captures social work's long-standing commitment to social justice values. One would very rarely read in mainstream social work textbooks about the numerous social workers who in the eve and during the Second World War, paid their dues in the global fight against Fascism and Nazism (Schilde, K, 2003). Likewise, the Spanish civil war, this terrible prelude of the horrors of Nazism, saw the first organized mobilization of social workers against fascism.…”

“…The "Statement to American social workers on their stake in the civil war in Spain" published by the Social Workers Committee to Aid Spanish Democracy is another, relatively unacknowledged yet powerful, example of social work internationalism and commitment to social justice; a powerful internationalist manifesto formed during a fierce ideological and military conflict (McMillen,1937). As the war engulfed most of Europe and Northern Africa, the Red Aid, a vast anti-fascist network, mobilized thousands of social workers and social welfare practitioners globally in order to develop services caring for refugees, political activists and orphan children (Schilde, 2003). The Reid Aid was the first comprehensive effort to internationalise a politically engaged social work, but it has been wiped off social work history textbooks.…”