What is Restorative Justice?
Restorative Justice Spiral Model from YWCA Madison *Adapted from Erin Dunlevy, Restorative Justice Circle Training & Balance in the Process from Jamie Williams and Oscar Reed of
the Restorative Way, Minneapolis, Minnesota.
"Restorative justice is an anti-racist movement rooted in indigenous knowledge that aims to interrupt and dismantle the cycle of harm through collective radical vulnerability and love.
Restorative Justice recognizes the need to heal and repair the historical and transgenerational harm from our society’s practices and systems of retributive and unjust law embedded in white supremacist culture.
Restorative justice is about nurturing relational, interconnected cultures and empowers communities to meet our needs and mend the relationships that make us whole."
-YWCA Madison
Restorative Justice is a philosophy grounded in the core beliefs that all people are interconnected and worthy. The philosophical framework is being applied within institutions, systems, communities, programs and initiatives as a way to build relationships and community, address conflict and harm, create accountability for individuals and communities, and to transform punitive and retributive cultures. Restorative Justice practitioners use the circle process, storytelling, and radical vulnerability to build empathy, trust, and compassion to understand the needs of a person who caused harm, the needs person(s) harmed, and the needs of the community in order to heal and restore.
From the "Little Book of Restorative Justice", there are 3 fundamental pillars or concepts of Restorative Justice philosophy:
Restorative Justice is a philosophical framework that can be implemented in a variety of contexts and systems that address issues of conflict and harm including the criminal and juvenile justice systems, education, and within communities.
Restorative Justice recognizes the need to heal and repair the historical and transgenerational harm from our society’s practices and systems of retributive and unjust law embedded in white supremacist culture.
Restorative justice is about nurturing relational, interconnected cultures and empowers communities to meet our needs and mend the relationships that make us whole."
-YWCA Madison
Restorative Justice is a philosophy grounded in the core beliefs that all people are interconnected and worthy. The philosophical framework is being applied within institutions, systems, communities, programs and initiatives as a way to build relationships and community, address conflict and harm, create accountability for individuals and communities, and to transform punitive and retributive cultures. Restorative Justice practitioners use the circle process, storytelling, and radical vulnerability to build empathy, trust, and compassion to understand the needs of a person who caused harm, the needs person(s) harmed, and the needs of the community in order to heal and restore.
From the "Little Book of Restorative Justice", there are 3 fundamental pillars or concepts of Restorative Justice philosophy:
- A focus on harm -- the person(s) harmed, the person(s) who caused the harm, and the community.
- Obligations -- comprehension and accountability to repair harm, concretely & symbolically.
- Engagement -- those who have been harmed, those who caused the harm, and members of the community have integral roles in the justice process.
Restorative Justice is a philosophical framework that can be implemented in a variety of contexts and systems that address issues of conflict and harm including the criminal and juvenile justice systems, education, and within communities.
Why do we need Restorative Justice in Dane County?
Dane County, Wisconsin has some of the worst racial disparities in the United States. In 2013, the "Race to Equity Baseline Report" released by the Wisconsin Council on Children and Families (now Kids Forward) acknowledged the pervasive disparities between the experiences of White and African American citizens throughout Dane County in the sectors of employment, income, wealth, education, criminal justice, health, and child welfare. In 2016, Race to Equity released "A Roadmap to Equity" which detailed specific strategic actions that need to be utilized and progress measures that need to be met in order to create significant and lasting progress in well being of African American youth, adults, and families.
In Dane County, African American citizens are disproportionately arrested, ticketed, and incarcerated. African American youth in Dane County are 6 times more likely to be arrested than white youth and 15 times more likely to be held in Juvenile Detention than a white youth. According to the Madison Metropolitan School District (MMSD)'s "2015-2016 Behavior Report", Dane County's largest school district suspends African-American students 8 times more often than white students. Nearly half of the students expelled from MMSD in 2015-2016 were African American.
Exclusionary practices in schools and involvement in the criminal justice system have an extreme negative impact on the well being and success of youth, young adults, families, and our community. In order to combat the disparities in ticketing, arrests, and exclusionary practices in schools, we are working to implement and sustain a number of programs and services that provide not only provide diversion from the Criminal and Juvenile Justices systems, but also provide opportunities for healing, reconciliation, and community transformation after harm and conflict arise.
In Dane County, African American citizens are disproportionately arrested, ticketed, and incarcerated. African American youth in Dane County are 6 times more likely to be arrested than white youth and 15 times more likely to be held in Juvenile Detention than a white youth. According to the Madison Metropolitan School District (MMSD)'s "2015-2016 Behavior Report", Dane County's largest school district suspends African-American students 8 times more often than white students. Nearly half of the students expelled from MMSD in 2015-2016 were African American.
Exclusionary practices in schools and involvement in the criminal justice system have an extreme negative impact on the well being and success of youth, young adults, families, and our community. In order to combat the disparities in ticketing, arrests, and exclusionary practices in schools, we are working to implement and sustain a number of programs and services that provide not only provide diversion from the Criminal and Juvenile Justices systems, but also provide opportunities for healing, reconciliation, and community transformation after harm and conflict arise.
**For specific information on programs, initiatives, and systems in Dane County that utilize the Restorative Justice framework including juvenile municipal diversion and community restorative court, please see pages on RJ in K-12 Education, RJ in Youth Justice, and RJ & Criminal Justice.
