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On June 9th approximately 110 participants from social service agencies and schools of social work from as far away as Illinois and New Jersey attended the Children in Armed Conflict Conference. This global crisis has local relevance for service providers working with an increasing immigrant and refugee population from war affected areas. The conference focused on children forced into armed conflict in Africa, specifically, Uganda, Rwanda, Angola, Mozambique, Sierra Leone and South Africa. The goal was to increase attendees’ awareness and knowledge of populations that have experienced extreme violence and disempowerment.
Plenary speeches were given by Ms. Jo Becker, children’s rights advocacy director for Human Rights Watch, and Dr. Michael Wessells, professor of Clinical Population and Family Health at Columbia University in the Program on Forced Migration and Health, professor of Psychology at Randolph-Macon College, and senior child protection specialist for the Christian Children’s Fund. Ms. Becker’s topic, Nature of Children’s Forced Involvement in Armed Conflict, addressed the ways and reasons children become child soldiers in places like Burma, Columbia and Uganda. She explained that children are easy targets for armed forces because they are immature, vulnerable, easily manipulated, and dispensable. Children are drawn into armed conflicts as both combatants and victims because the nature of modern warfare does not honor the division between soldiers and civilians.
Discussing the topic, Child Soldier Reintegration and Community Resilience Following Armed Conflicts, Dr. Wessells presented a holistic and culturally grounded approach to psychosocial recovery and reintegration of former child soldiers. The approach emphasizes collective and individual resilience and interventions in this context must balance western and local approaches to mental health and well-being. Community engagement, livelihood / economic development, health, and collective planning are integral aspects of the healing, recovery and reconciliation of all in war affected communities.
Concurrent presentation topics included the scope and nature of children’s involvment in armed conflicts, impact of the armed conflicts on individuals and communities, assessment of psychological truama, processes of recovery, healing and peace building, and practice implications for immigrant and refugee populations. The role and importance of culture and spirituality were key themes in assessement of and intervention with affected populations.
Session presenters included
- Theresa Stichick Betancourt, PhD, Harvard School of Public Health
- Karina Bogdanis, MSW, Jewish Family Service of Western MA
- Hanh Bui, MSW, Jewish Family Service of Western MA
- Joanne Corbin, PhD, Smith College School for Social Work
- Ay Ling Han, MSW, Smith College Counseling Center
- Khalilah Karim-Rushdan, MSW, Smith College Counseling Center
- Joan Lesser, PhD, Smith College School for Social Work
- Mohamed Mohamud, MPH, Jewish Family Service of Western MA
- Eugenie Mukeshima, B.A., Graduate Student West Chester University. Social services consultant in Rwanda
- Father Remigio Obol, Parish Priest, Gulu Archdiocese, Gulu, Uganda
- Stella Ojera, B.A., Regional Advisor Child Protection- North, Save the Children in Uganda.
- Adin Thayer, MSW, Karuna Center for Peacebuilding
The largest groups of conference attendees were social work students, clinicians (agencies, private practice, public schools, departments of health, hospitals) and social work professors. A quarter of the attendees were from areas outside of Massachusetts, such as, Bath, ME; Brattleboro, VT; Buffalo, NY; Chicago, Ill; Lebanon, NH; Providence, RI; West Hartford, CT; and West Long Branch, NJ.
Conference evaluations indicated strong agreement that the conference objectives were clearly articulated and addressed, speakers were knowledgeable about their topics, presentations were thought provoking and intellectually stimulating, and the content was applicable to participants’ practice. Participants agreed that they gained specific ideas to implement in their practice from several of the presentations.
This conference was supported by Smith College School for Social Work, Smith College, The Smith College Black Students Organization and the Diane Davis Memorial Lecture Fund. The conference is part of a larger program on children in armed conflict at SSW under the leadership of Associate Professor Joanne Corbin. The larger program includes research on resettlement of former child soldiers in Uganda and collaborative work with Ugandan social service programs providing psychosocial programs for children and families affected by armed conflict.
For more information about the conference or the larger program contact Associate Professor JoanneCorbin.
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contact Joanne Corbin
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