5 Critical and Radical Social Work • vol 9 • no 1 • 5–14 • © Policy Press 2021 Print ISSN 2049-8608 • Online ISSN 2049-8675 • https://doi.org/10.1332/204986021X16115145109789 Accepted for publication 24 January 2021 • First published online 17 March 2021 guest editorial Social work in Latin America: historical factors, memory and international connections Marilda Villela Iamamoto, mviamamoto@uol.com.br University of Rio De Janeiro, Brazil Cláudia Mônica dos Santos, cmonicasantos@gmail.com Lusophone University of Porto, Portugal Alexandra Aparecida Leite Toffanetto Seabra Eiras, alexandra.eiras@ufjf.edu.br Federal University of Juiz de Fora, Brazil To cite this article: Iamamoto, M., dos Santos, C., and Aparecida Leite Toffanetto Seabra Eiras, A. (2021) Social work in Latin America: historical factors, memory and international connections, Critical and Radical Social Work, vol 9, no 1, 5–14, DOI: 10.1332/204986021X16115145109789 Since 2009, the College of Social Work and the postgraduate programme in social work at the Federal University of Juiz de Fora (Minas Gerais, Brazil) has invested in international exchanges with several researchers and educational institutions in Latin America and Europe, especially in Portugal and Spain. As part of this internationalisation process, there have been regular international seminars with a focus on the relation between the social work profession and progressive social struggles within capitalist society. The sixth international seminar, which took place in 2019, was held as a partnership with the postgraduate programme in social work of the State University of Rio de Janeiro (UERJ). The theme was ‘Social struggles and the historical-critical perspective in social work: memory and contemporary debate’ and it brought together researchers from Latin America and Europe to look specifcally at ‘The Reconceptualization Movement of social work in Latin America: historical factors, international interlocutions, and memory (1960–1980)’. One of the keynote speakers at the conference was Professor Vasilios Ioakimidis, who spoke on the theme ‘Contestatory movements and radical perspective in social work in Europe’, with an emphasis on the UK. This participation resulted in the proposal for a special issue of the journal Critical and Radical Social Work, with articles linked to research on the Reconceptualisation Movement of social work in Latin America and its international interconnections. Today, with this special issue of the journal, we have accomplished our goal. We are glad and satisfed that this project has come through. The Federal University of Juiz de Fora’s (UFJF’s) College of Social Work is honoured to have participated in this endeavour. SPECIAL ISSUE • Latin America’s Radical Social Work Tradition Unauthenticated | Downloaded 06/18/22 01:57 PM UTC