Decolonising Restorative Justice
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Decolonising Restorative Justice
Author: Leanne Alexis Levers
language: en
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Release Date: 2023-09-01
This book critically examines the colonial dimensions of restorative justice through the lens of justice policy reform in Jamaica. Restorative justice is not new. Practices of restitution can be found throughout history, predominantly in non-Western traditions and religions. One of the key principles of restorative practices is contextualisation. That is, restorative practices are developed and embedded within the political, economic, and cultural context of the communities in which they are practised. Many of the countries that have gone on to develop restorative justice as part of their formal justice system have developed their policy on the model of their indigenous communities – for example, in Canada and in New Zealand. However, with the globalisation of restorative practices within the past decade, many countries have sought to ‘colonise’ restorative justice, by developing a standardised, best-practice approach. Instead of a practice that is developed and formed by its community, colonised restorative justice dictates that one size fits all. Examined through the lens of the development and implementation of restorative justice policies in Jamaica, this book argues that this Westernised approach diminishes the effectiveness of restorative justice in its capacity: to address the victim’s needs; to hold the offender accountable in a way that reintegrates them into society; and to empower the community by involving them in the provision of justice to victims. Restorative justice, then, must be decolonised –and local, indigenous practices acknowledged –if it is to achieve its aims. This book will be of interest to a range of scholars with interests in decolonisation, as well as alternative dispute resolution, especially those in sociolegal studies, criminology, human rights, social policy, political science, and Caribbean studies.
Decolonising Restorative Justice
"This book critically examines the colonial dimensions of restorative justice through the lens of justice policy reform in Jamaica. Restorative justice is not new. Practices of restitution can be found throughout history, predominantly in non-western traditions and religions. One of the key principles of restorative practices is that of contextualisation. That is, restorative practices are developed and embedded within the political, economic, and cultural context of the communities in which they are practiced. Many of the countries that have gone on to develop restorative justice as part of their formal justice system have developed their policy on the model of their indigenous communities - for example, in Canada and in New Zealand. However, with the globalisation of restorative practices within the past decade, many countries have sought to 'colonize' restorative justice, by developing a standardized, best practice approach. Instead of a practice that is developed and formed by its community, colonized restorative justice dictates that one-size-fits all. Examined through the lens of the development and implementation of restorative justice policies in Jamaica, this book argues that this westernised approach diminishes the effectiveness of restorative justice in its capacity: to address the victim's needs; to hold the offender accountable in a way that reintegrates them into society; and to empower the community by involving them in the provision of justice to victims. Restorative justice, then, must be decolonized - and local, indigenous, practices acknowledged - if it is to achieve its aims. This book will be of interest to a range of scholars with interests in decolonization, as well as alternative dispute resolution; and especially those in sociolegal studies, criminology, human rights, social policy, political science, and Caribbean studies"--
Decolonising Justice for Aboriginal youth with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders
This book reflects multidisciplinary and cross-jurisdictional analysis of issues surrounding Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) and the criminal justice system, and the impact on Aboriginal children, young people, and their families. This book provides the first comprehensive and multidisciplinary account of FASD and its implications for the criminal justice system – from prevalence and diagnosis to sentencing and culturally secure training for custodial officers. Situated within a ‘decolonising’ approach, the authors explore the potential for increased diversion into Aboriginal community-managed, on-country programmes, enabled through innovation at the point of first contact with the police, and non-adversarial, needs-focussed courts. Bringing together advanced thinking in criminology, Aboriginal justice issues, law, paediatrics, social work, and Indigenous mental health and well-being, the book is grounded in research undertaken in Australia, Canada, and New Zealand. The authors argue for the radical recalibration of both theory and practice around diversion, intervention, and the role of courts to significantly lower rates of incarceration; that Aboriginal communities and families are best placed to construct the social and cultural scaffolding around vulnerable youth that could prevent damaging contact with the mainstream justice system; and that early diagnosis and assessment of FASD may make a crucial difference to the life chances of Aboriginal youth and their families. Exploring how, far from providing solutions to FASD, the mainstream criminal justice system increases the likelihood of adverse outcomes for children with FASD and their families, this innovative book will be of great value to researchers and students worldwide interested in criminal and social justice, criminology, youth justice, social work, and education.