ABSTRACT
Contemporary social work and social welfare emerged in the nineteenth century in response to poverty, disadvantage and other forms of social need. As then, social justice remains a significant goal. This chapter considers the way debates about social justice formed around the struggle between ideas expressed by writers such as Rawls and Nozick, in competing views of social need. The discussion then turns to social power and how this provides a basis for challenging social injustice while potentially still creating social injustice. In conclusion: the pursuit of social justice continues to be necessary for social workers and others in social welfare.
