The social work profession has begun to integrate principles of human rights into its policies and practices. Since the appearance of the first edition of this book in 2003, the International Federation of Social Workers has highlighted human rights as its core principles, and the U.S.-based National Association of Social Workers has integrated human rights principles into numerous policy statements. The U.S.-based Council on Social Work Education now requires the teaching of human rights as part of social work education, and schools of social work will need to reflect this requirement in their curricula.
These developments certainly should encourage those who view human rights as integral to social work. Nonetheless, human rights are no panacea or cure-all for social problems. Human rights principles continually raise questions concerning definitions, applications, and enforcement, and cultural relativism remains important to how to view human rights. Still, at the end of the day, human rights principles provide context and guidance to the social work profession.
Human rights offer many challenges to social work students, educators, and professionals, and I hope that this book makes at least some of those challenges more manageable.