Taking a Stand for a More Equitable Society

Professional Liability

Are you protected from legal action due to negligent acts, errors, and omissions, and frivolous lawsuits?

General Liability

Are you protected if someone is injured in your office or while leaving or entering your building?

Cyber Liability

Are you protected if confidential client data is copied, transmitted, stolen, or used by any individual unauthorized to handle the information?

Preamble

NASW Assurance Services (ASI), the NASW Insurance Company, and the National Association of Social Workers provide professional liability insurance, group life, and other insurance products for social workers and all behavioral and mental health professionals.

We stand against all acts of racism, injustice, and hatred.

Each of us is affected by the senseless deaths of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and countless other African Americans and people of color.

The protests, rallies, and riots have brought into stark relief the racial injustices, racism, and inequities that pervade our nation’s criminal justice system and other institutional structures in our society.

As a family of companies, we do not condone riots and property destruction; instead, we support peaceful protest. We understand that these actions reflect black people’s long-term catastrophic interactions with law enforcement officers, including police brutality and the persistent anti-black racism that has plagued institutions that are the foundation of our society.

Values

As behavioral and allied health professionals, social workers, business professionals, representatives of agencies, small practices, and corporations, we also believes that it is vital to bring attention to the needs of those who are vulnerable, oppressed, and living in poverty. We also believe in cultural and ethnic diversity and support efforts to end discrimination, oppression, poverty, and other forms of social injustice.

We have a professional and moral obligation to address and end racism.

Call-to-Action

Now is a time for action, inside and outside, across all communities in our country. We must join together with other organizations to leverage this unprecedented opportunity to flatten the racism curve.

We are committed to the following actions:

  • Join efforts to support police reform, including expanding culturally competent mental health and community-based approaches to public safety and conflict resolution.
  • Support policyholders through providing webinars and risk management workshops on understanding and eliminating bias in working with African Americans and people of color.
  • Initiate and support among board and staff critical dialogue about the systemic forces of race and racism that permeates our relationships with each other, our customers, and others in our community.
  • Be intentional about supporting actions that promote justice, safeguard human rights, and ensure fair and equitable treatment and respect for the human dignity of African Americans, other minorities, and all people.
  • Seek business partners who share our commitment to diversity and inclusion, as evidenced by hiring practices, staff development programs, and recruitment efforts.

Words of Inspiration

“Some of us have been carrying this pain for our whole lives. Others may just now be understanding the extent. Either way, the violence responsible for these tragedies is not new. Systemic racism permeates our society, creating massive institutional barriers and often fatal endings for many Black people in our country. The field of mental and behavioral healthcare is no exception. Though many works tirelessly to fight inequity and injustice, the racial disparities in our country are real. Although we are listening and learning, we know that is not enough.”

Gary Bailey

President of NASW Assurance Services, Inc.

“In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.”

Martin Luther King, Jr.

“Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.”

James Baldwin

Our Commitment to You

As always, NASW Assurance Services (ASI) and the NASW Insurance Company (NASWIC) remain committed to their essential role in providing insurance protection for NASW members, social workers, behavioral and mental health professionals, and policyholders.

We are here to work with you as we join efforts worldwide to create a more just and equitable society.

Published on June 19, 2020