Chapter 7: "Ain't Gonna Study War No More"
Wayne Northey2024, Justice That Transforms: Restorative Justice — “Not Enough!”
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Abstract
This was published in the Mennonite Brethren Herald, January 1, 2009. Advocates of Restorative Justice seek to reclaim the nonviolence of Jesus. Their cry echoes the refrain of a wonderful Negro spiritual: Ain’t gonna study war no more! Restorative justice offers an alternative to war — including war on crime. Its goal is to see offenders like Bobby Oatway return peacefully to their communities and become productive citizens. It embraces, rather than excludes, the victim, offender, and impacted community. It’s a peacemaking, rather than war-making, response to crime. According to Henk Smidstra, chaplain at the Alouette Correctional Centre for Women in B.C.: . . . Restorative Justice can be regarded as a cluster of values, beliefs, and attitudes that determine how the viewer defines the situation and determines its solution. . . Call it the lens of the heart and mind that can see conflict as either bad, or as an opportunity to grow and heal; as an event that breaks the law, or as an event that has harmed people. [Restorative justice] puts emphasis on restoration, and on healing the harm of all those affected by conflict or crime. In fact, offenders and victims all become collaborators in looking for solutions that will creatively address the obligations created by the hurtful incident. . . Restorative justice focuses on relationships, not on controlling or punishing others, but empowering others to flourish and be active participants in restoring and maintaining community well-being.
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