The meeting held this Wednesday afternoon by the First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party and President of the Republic, Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, with young social workers who overflowed with passion and commitment, was shocking, stimulating, instructive and very useful. with the daily work they do in the communities.
Responsibilities, unique life stories, dedication and also misunderstandings were discussed for more than two hours in the emblematic Portocarrero room of the Palace of the Revolution. Every word shared there had the common purpose of rescuing the foundational essences of this Program, with a deep humanistic sense, created by Fidel 22 years ago.
The Cuban President had summoned them to exactly this in the first minutes of the exchange, because according to what he told them, in their experiences and proposals it is possible to find the answers on what “to do to perfect, to improve, to advance” in relation to work Social.
The entire process of transformation that we are carrying out today in the neighborhoods —he reflected— has social work as its central axis. Many times people see them only as physical, material or infrastructure transformations, and we are against that; here the fundamental thing is how we work spirituality, sentimentality, emotions, and at the same time advance in elements that have to do with economic and material life, she emphasized.
It is you, he recognized, who know the most about the neighborhood, because you have been working with families for years and close to their problems, that is why you are essential to accompany these actions. I am always advocating —she specified— that the base has to be social work and from there we do everything else.
Accompanying and educating were concepts that became the common thread of several ideas shared by young people, who insisted on the need to stop seeing the work they do as pure “assistance”. That was not the idea dreamed up by the Commander in Chief more than two decades ago.
There was a moment, starting in 2011 —considered Letsy Montalvo—, when “we began to lose a little bit the sense that social workers had, reaching this condition of “assistance”; People see us today and they see a mattress, they see a bed, they see a bottle of water, they see a monetary benefit… and it cannot be like that, because the first thing that is wrong is that “assistance”».
“The first thing we have to do is educate families, we have to educate them so that they are capable of solving their problems on their own,” he valued.
It is teaching people how to solve their problems, supported Merlys Gort. And for this, she considered, the work has to be continuous and systematic, it has to be seen from different angles, and those of us who do it have the challenge of constantly preparing ourselves.
Prevention, as a true instrument to influence the causes that cause many of the social problems that exist in the neighborhoods, was another action widely defended by the thirty young people, who in their words conveyed the feelings of the vast majority of their peers throughout length and width of the country.
Because the social worker is also a trainer, a counselor, who accompanies families and the community, supported Reynaldo Vera. The key is in daily action —considered Rafael Laguna—, because the essence of our work is not: I stop by your house because you have a problem; No; I stop by your house because it is a way of getting to know how families live on a day-to-day basis and truly accompany them.
President Díaz-Canel was accompanied at the meeting —very useful for perfecting ways of doing things in the way of training social workers— by Deputy Prime Minister Jorge Luis Perdomo Di-Lella; the member of the Secretariat of the Central Committee of the Communist Party and head of its Productive Economic Department, Joel Queipo Ruiz; the Minister of Labor and Social Security, Martha Elena Feitó Cabrera, as well as other representatives of that organization and professors.
The dialogue also touched on aspects such as how much further there is to go in order to increasingly prepare and train those who carry out these tasks; on study plans that must be reevaluated; about making better use, for the benefit of families, of the social research that is carried out, as well as other issues that also define the essence of what the Commander in Chief defined as “doctors of the soul.”
WORK ON SPIRITUALITY
“When we meet with you, we realize that what Fidel forged was not in vain,” acknowledged the Cuban president almost at the end of the meeting, who confirmed to the young people the usefulness of shared ideas.
That you defend it with passion, maturity, dedication and commitment —he valued— shows that it settled, that it was consolidated.
It is very comforting to see that what Fidel dreamed of has germinated, that there are people who have made this work the center of their lives and that there is also social recognition of you in the country, regardless of the stages we have gone through, he considered.
That gives the security that we can achieve what we propose now and there are issues that in a very short time we can restore, improve or bring to what these times need, he assured.
Socialism in particular, he asserted, is built in the neighborhood, with the participation of the people, and what we intend is for it to be with social, community and professional work. “You are fundamental in the current historical moment.”
Their contribution can be enormous, recognized the Head of State, who commented on a transcendental event such as the construction of the new Family Code in Cuba, a document that from the legislative point of view contains fundamental elements to support social work.
About solidarity and values, spirituality and tireless work, he spoke to the young Díaz-Canel, because the work they do in the communities is also a cornerstone to move feelings and emotions in the family, where the first foundations of the family are formed. society.
It is very comforting to see that Fidel’s dream has germinated