Cambodian American social services providers in pursuit of social justice for the well-being of the Cambodian American community members

Abstract

ABSTRACT Since the Khmer Rouge genocide in the late 1970s and the subsequent mass relocation of Cambodian refugees to the United States, the Cambodian community has struggled to achieve social justice and economic parity. Some challenges can be attributed to barriers of accessing care such as cultural and linguistic appropriateness of available services. Given these barriers, social services providers within the Cambodian American community have used various strategies to meet the needs in an effort to promote social justice. In this qualitative study, purposive sampling was used to conduct 20 semi-structured interviews with Cambodian American social services providers who work for ethnic agencies serving the Cambodian community. Data analysis followed the constant comparative method. Findings show that Cambodian providers foster social justice by: 1) promoting social responsibility to serve the community; 2) advancing cultural capital, cultivating Cambodian culture, and remembering history for future generations; and 3) creating social networks which serve as protective barriers from social isolation. Not all communities within the United States have the resources to develop ethnic specific services. Therefore, mainstream social workers must advocate and promote greater accessibility of culturally informed services that foster a level of care and understanding to work with Cambodian Americans.