*It’s been a 5.5 year hiatus for the ZI Blog with the most recent post On safe spaces having been published in July of 2016. In the coming months we are hoping to reinvigorate this ZI Blog space as another point of connection – to each other and to the broader fields of restorative justice....
On safe spaces
In the fall of 1963, as a relatively na茂ve 19-year-old, I left my largely white environment and entered my sophomore year at Morehouse College, an historically Black college. I had prepared the best I knew how by reading mostly African American writers, especially novelists, and through conversations with people such as Dr. Vincent Harding. These....
How do we encourage good restorative justice practice?
This guest blog, by Matthew Hartman and Fred Perloff, was聽first published in the RJCO Quarterly聽and then appeared on the Justice Outcomes website. 聽Matthew is a CJP graduate. In May 2015, the Zehr Institute for Restorative Justice organized and facilitated a 鈥淩estorative Justice Consultation鈥� in Harrisonburg, VA. This was a gathering of 35 restorative justice practitioners....
Kindred spirits: restorative justice and permaculture
Guest blog by Jonathan McRay A Liberation Ecology Peacebuilding and sustainability often treat one another with suspicion. Both fields obscure the unbreakable lifeline between them with oversimplified arguments like social justice versus the environment, jobs versus nature preserves. Artificial distinctions between people and planet are dangerously misleading because our lives and all their conflict and....
Violence as a theological problem
[Editor’s note: This is a guest post by Ted Grimsrud.聽More on Ted below.] We live in a world where all too many people purposefully contribute to the harm of other human beings either by action or inaction. Most violence emerges with some kind of rationale to legitimize its use. Based on his work with extremely....
The shock of forgiveness
Guest blog by Fabrice j. Guerrier Hell is not merely a fiery story of eternal damnation written in a book; hell is what civilians experience in times of war. It is a lived experience that brings deep psychological trauma. War disintegrates the very social fabric people live in – their sense of safety, hope, and....
Jails aren’t the problem
As is the case in many communities, our jail is full. 聽(“Overcrowded” is the usual term, but how can something be “over” crowded? It’s crowded, or it’s not). 聽Although a study is being conducted,聽the company聽doing the study is an architectural firm, so it seems inevitable that a new jail will be recommended. In this interview....
A case of mistaken identity
On the day before the conference began I was walking through the market in Victoria, Tamaulipas, Mexico with friends Katia聽Cecilia聽Ornelas-N煤帽ez and Nuri Nusrat. When we emerged from the church on the square, two men were staring at me. We ignored them and began to walk away but they approached us, identifying themselves as journalists. Someone....
Restorative justice in education – possibilities, but also concerns
The following is a guest blog post by our colleague in the 黑料正能量 Education Department, Kathy Evans. There is a great deal of momentum right now for implementing restorative justice in education. This makes me incredibly excited 鈥� and a bit nervous. Let鈥檚 start with the good news! RJ is gaining lots of attention in....
Reflections on reconciliation and forgiveness
The following is a guest blog post by CJP graduate Sanjay聽Pulipaka. 聽A short bio can be found at the end. Often Truth and Reconciliation Commissions have been initiated as a response to mass violence. It is interesting to note that the phrase 鈥渞econciliation commission鈥� is used in responses to mass violence but not 鈥榝orgiveness commission.鈥�....