WORK OF SERVICE A Conversation with Lana MacLean INTERVIEW BY SHALYSE SANGSTER, MSW, RSW
Ed. note: this interview has been edited for length and readability.
woman, I was passionate to work in African Nova Scotian communities and with women’s issues in employment and
SHALYSE SANGSTER: How did you get started as a social
intimate partner violence.
worker? What influenced this career path?
LANA MACLEAN: I grew up in a faith practice. Social justice and equity have always been a part of my faith journey. Since I was a kid, I’ve been raised to do “God’s work,” in terms of volunteering in marginalized communities. I pursued a BA in community studies at CBU to understand community resiliencies, building community capacity and supporting marginalized communities. Afrocentricity became popular and people began looking at issues from an antioppressive and anti-Black racism perspective. Being a Black
16 Connection | Fall 2020
I then went to DAL for my BSW. I learned from white women who were allies and feminists about advocacy and social justice work. When doing my MSW, I gained experience working with Black youth in a community setting and white youth in a healthcare setting. I noticed the impacts of racialized trauma and questioned how those social cultural influences impacted decisions. I didn’t see Black youth accessing the healthcare supports, even though I saw them struggle in the community.
