How did Albert’s ethnicity and background help or hinder his work in this case?

Question

Albert Mendoza was a baccalaureate social work intern at Crime Victims Center, an agency serving crime victims. His client, Carlos Hernandez, was a Mexican immigrant who sought both financial assistance for medical care and counseling for his family after they were assaulted in their home. Carlos was unable to communicate in English, and Albert had difficulty with his limited Spanish language proficiency. Albert began to suspect that Carlos was in the country illegally. He worried that he didn’t know the law about services available to illegal immigrants, specifically the Crime Victim’s Compensation funds. The agency did not have another Spanish-speaking worker, and Albert, a new social work intern, had primary responsibility for the case.

Answer 1

Albert’s father was Hispanic and Spanish speaking, and his mother was Euro-American. Albert grew up with his mother’s culture being the predominant influence in the family. His Spanish language skills were limited, and, although initially he was excited about using Spanish at the agency, he was frustrated in his efforts to work with Spanish- speaking clients such as Carlos. Even so, Albert was the only person at the agency who was able to speak Spanish. The agency relied on Albert, a baccalaureate intern, to work with Spanish speaking clients.
Albert had experienced some personal pain over not being 100% Euroamerican or 100% Mexican American. He wondered whether Carlos and his family would be critical of his poor Spanish skills in light of his last name and Hispanic appearance. He had also experienced family violence. His experience as a victim of violence was different than Carlos’s but could result in countertransference.