ABSTRACT
I suppose that in some part, I owe my desire to become a social worker to my strong Jewish Canadian upbringing, in particular to my mother, and to some of the experiences I encountered in Hebrew school. At both home and school, I was taught to value social justice not just for Jews, but for anyone having to deal with any form of oppression and I have continued this journey throughout the years. It has only been recently that I have been able to see how growing up Jewish has in some way influenced my desire to engage in a form of social work that works towards social change in marginalised communities, and I now feel the need to think more deeply about how my cultural heritage plays a role in my professional life. I am still on this personal journey and as yet not entirely able to articulate how my culture has impacted on my first steps towards a career in social work. Nevertheless, I do remember the first time that I felt the desire to work with young people who, to my mind, were in need of some kind of support.
