Marginalized populations are individuals who are excluded from full participation in the American dream. An example of this would be home buyer opportunities. The Fair Housing Act of 1968 is a prime example. "The 1968 Act expanded on previous acts and prohibited discrimination concerning the sale, rental, and financing of housing based on race, religion, national origin, sex, (and as amended) handicap and family status". (HUD.GOV, 2017) This arguably is only one of the most egregious acts portrayed against minorities such as African Americans and Hispanics. This is also true for individuals who are handicapped. The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, is also a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on disability. (www.ada.gov, 2020)
Oppression on the other hand is a system set up to dehumanize non-dominant groups. This includes individuals, institutional, and societal. It is mostly identified as the inequity of patterns of mistreatment. Several examples exist such as sexism heterosexism, ageism, classism, just to name a few, and are implemented on various levels. There are institutions that either advocate against it or reinforce it such as government, educational platforms, or culture. One group that has been categorized in overlapping as an oppressed sector is African American women. Their social identity is continually diminished due to their race and gender. Another example is ageism. This can be seen oftentimes in the workplace. (Toseland & Rivas, 2017)
In my personal experience lately, I am finding myself in some situation where there is no hierarchy of oppression. I have the education, experience, and professionalism however, I believe because of my age, gender, and ethnic background I am passed upon for employment opportunities. Although I have experienced this myself, and I am aware that it does exist. My position is to be cognizant that this does not compromise my own value-free neutrality but allows me to advocate for populations that face varying inequalities as well. This will be important that I recognize, respond, redress, create and sustain bias-free, equitable, and inequities that exist. It will be an imperative factor as a social worker that I can identify and acknowledge my own values and overcome any personal biases and take a stance objectively when conducting research on how to assist oppressed and marginalized populations.