On Being and Calling Oneself a Feminist Social Worker

Abstract

This article examines the nature of identity as a feminist social worker in an era when feminism is no longer the driving force for social work that it was from the 1970s to the 1990s. What does it mean to be a feminist practitioner in a period of conservatism? How can identity be fostered? What are the implications for social work education and practice? When social work students and social workers are mostly hesitant to call themselves feminist social workers, perhaps, it would be wiser to focus on the application of feminist principles. What is lost and what may be gained by giving up on identity and pursuing feminist principles in education, research, practice, and administration?