Client AdvocacyInside & Outside the

Office

Cristelle Audet, University of Ottawa

Linda Wheeldon, Acadia University

Andria Hill-Lehr, Nova Scotia Community College

Kiraz Johannsen, SyMetric Sciences Inc.

May 15, 2013CCPA Conference (Halifax, NS)

Overview

Welcome and introductionsWarm up: “Trivial” pursuit? Advocacy self-awareness 6 advocacy competency domainsApplying advocacy: Meet “Evangeline”

Purpose: To learn about and apply advocacy skills when addressing systemic oppression that impedes client wellbeing.

“Trivial” Pursuit?

Need 6 teams of 5 or so people per table

Each team will get the same questions

One question at a time, select an answer, write it down

Each team holds up their answer

Next question!

TRUE OR FALSE?

Close to 50% of adults with low-level literacy live in low-income households.

TRUE Only 8% of those with high-level literacy

skills live in low-income households

What portion of Canada’s homeless population consists of youth?

A) one fifthB) one thirdC) halfD) three quarters

B) Almost 1/3 of Canada’s “true” homeless population (not just those living in

emergency shelters) are youth aged 16 to 24

TRUE OR FALSE?Average tuition for international undergraduate students is twice as high than for Canadian students.

FALSE: Annual tuition for international students is 3.5 times higher, that is $18,641

What percentage of LGBTTSQQ youth are homeless?A) 0 – 10%B) 10 – 25%C) 25 – 40%D) 40 – 55%

C) 25 to 40% of LGBTTSQQ youth are homeless

TRUE OR FALSE?

There are emergency shelters in Toronto for

the city's LBGTTSQQ youth who find themselves in need.

FALSE: 25 to 40% of homeless youth identify as LGBT, but in Toronto—which promotes

itself as Canada's gay capital— there are no emergency shelters or crisis services

specifically designed for them

Aboriginal persons make up what percent of Canada’s federal prison inmate population?

A) 18%B) 23%C) 32%D) 41%

B) While just 4% of the population, Aboriginal persons make up 23% of the federal prison inmate population

TRUE OR FALSE?

Canada has an official government- supported poverty measure.

FALSE: At present, the government has yet to agree on a definition of poverty. . .

TRUE OR FALSE?

‘Wage Gap’ is related to education: There is less disparity in income between men and women who have less education.

FALSE: Men at lowest literacy and income level are more likely to earn twice what

women earn

In 2006, compared to the national average of 6.3%, unemployment was highest for which active group in the labour force?

A) lone parents B) persons with disabilities C) recent immigrants D) Aboriginal persons

D) Unemployment was highest among Aboriginal persons at 14.8%

TRUE OR FALSE?

Immigrants to Canada work primarily in low-skill, low-paid jobs with little job security because they do not have enough education.

FALSE: 1 in 10 Canadian-born university graduates work in low-skill jobs compared to 1 in 4 recent immigrant university graduates

work in low-skill jobs

According to the UN, in terms of child poverty among 35 industrialized nations, Canada ranks:

A) 3rdB) 5thC) 19th D) 24th

D) With a child poverty rate of 13%, Canada ranks 24th

TRUE OR FALSE?

Heart health is best addressed by focusing on societal factors such as low income, hunger, poor housing/shelter, and lack of social support.

TRUE: Research has increasingly identified societal factors—compared to lifestyle issues of tobacco use, diet, and physical activity—as

major causes of heart disease

In 2011, unemployment was highest for which age group active in the labour force?

A) 15-24 yearsB) 25-54 yearsC) 55-65 yearsD) 65+ years

A) Unemployment was highest for youth at 14.2%

Advocacy

“Act or process of advocating or supporting a cause or proposal, one that pleads the cause of another, and one

that supports or promotes the interests of another”.

“The belief that individual and collective actions are necessary to fight injustices that lead toward improving

conditions for the benefit of both individuals and groups”

(House & Martin, 1998)

Self-awareness

6 Advocacy Competency Domains

Actingwith

Acting on behalf

Micro level Macro level

Client/Student School/Community

Public Arena

Client/Student Empowerment

“laying groundwork for self-advocacy”

Client/Student Advocacy

“responding to external barriers”

Community Collaboration

“developing alliances”

Systems Advocacy

“altering the status quo”

Public Information

“awakening the general public”

Social/Political Advocacy

“influencing public policy”

Advocacy with Clients

Meet “Evangeline”. . .In small groups, select a facilitator to report main

points to larger group debriefDiscuss Evangeline’s circumstances:

What form of systemic oppression did you observe?

Which advocacy competency domain(s) would you call upon?

What kind of advocacy interventions did you come up with?

Wrap Up

We hope you walk away with . . .

Some new advocacy literacy

A sense of community in social justice action

Greater comfort with speaking about complexity of ‘being the change’

Social Justice Chapter of the CCPA

www.counsellorsforsocialjustice.ca

contact@counsellorsforsocialjustice.ca

ReferencesChi-Ying Chung, R. & Bemak, F. P. (2012). Advocacy and Social Justice (pp. 169-185). Social Justice Counseling: The next steps beyond multiculturalism. Sage Publications: Thousand Oaks, CA.

House, R. & Martin, P. (1998). Advocating for better futures for all students: A new vision for school counselors. Education, 119, 284-291.

Ratts, M. J., Toporek, R. L., & Lewis, J. A. (2010). ACA Advocacy Competencies: A Social Justice Framework for Counselors. ACA: Alexendria, VA.