Past the Hurt: Retributive vs. Restorative Justice –using schools as a template

Ta-Nehisi Coates (no relation) recently reiterated what we have understood for decades, why Whites cannot use the n-word, even as many popular rap songs feature it. So when Puerto Rican Rapper (Big Pun) elucidates “Ni**a Shit we should understand that this “reclamation” by blacks is a tool utilized to reassert voice and defang this vicious word. However, let us understand that this process of reclamation and empowerment does not stop with blacks, nor does the potential for misuse and abuse by others. Unfortunately, when male hip-hop artists use the b word in such songs as A B**th iz a B**th (NWA) many  might feel they have been granted license as they hum or sing extremely problematical lyrics. It only gets more confusing with songs like Fine China (Chris Brown) when we add misogynistic lyrics to racially offensive stereotypes. Alternatively, consider how we might respond to artists like Tyler Far where he blames his partner for driving him “redneck crazy”.  The road becomes even more treacherous as we consider, Rick Ross, in U.E.N.O. as he talks about “putting Molly all in her Champaign”.  What this produces is more than mixed messages but also demonstrates how blurred the lines have become between who say what and what can can be said. Who has license, and at what point can even with “license” one steps over a line. Is it any wonder that people, young and old, are finding themselves trapped in an endless maze where few direct routes are available. Even worse are the traffic cops, those (self) appointed arbitrators of both fashion and bigotry who eagerly await to punish and humiliate.  The process has produced an extremely tense environment, where everyone seems to be waiting, much like piranhas, for first blood. Repeatedly, we have seen the feeding frenzies as yet another is named, blamed, and shamed for violating the ever-contentious bigotry maze. What we do not produce in these acts is anything close to reconciliation or restoration. 

How can we produce, what Martin Luther King referred to as the “beloved community”? Short answer, we cannot if we are determined to get our ounce of blood. As Gandhi concluded, if our responses to slants and bigotry is “an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth” then we will be left “blind and toothless”. This is called retributive justice and it does not work. Calling people out, shaming them, then forcing them to make some sign of contrition does little to transform the individual or repair the damage. For example, we are all familiar with the infamous Don Imus scandal, as the popular radio commentator referred to a group of Rutgers Female Basketball players as “Nappy Headed Hoes”. The outcry was deafening, and he was forced ultimately to both apologize on air and resign. But the story did not stop there, Imus, not only took his estimated 3 million listeners from WSNBC to                                                   local radios stations in all 50 states, but a court also ruled that his termination violated his contract, which stipulated that his program would be both “irreverent” and “controversial”. Consequently, MSNBC was forced to settle with Imus for $40 million. Clearly, naming, blaming and shaming did not work. Rather, the offending party was actually rewarded, while those offended, the young women who were slandered, libeled, and defamed received no legal or other damages. This is often the case when we go for retributive justice. So the question is, is there a better way?

Restorative justice starts with the assumption that all of us are flawed individuals. As such, all of us have violated and are likely in the future to violate some norm, say something stupid, and will need to seek forgiveness.  It recognizes that forgiveness is at the core of reestablishing or repairing the damage caused by insensitivity, ignorance, or just plain stupidity. (By the way, I am not talking about intentional acts of bigotry where individuals or groups are being targeted. This is clearly the domain of the courts and should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. What I am talking about are those clearly unintentional acts.) Forgiveness works on both the parties, the victim and the victimizer. It requires the victimizer to be not only contrite but also honest in their acknowledgement and acceptance of responsibility. It allows the victim to express their hurt feelings. In addition, while retributive justice seeks public humiliation, restorative justice seeks public reconciliation. I am reminded of South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu who remarked, “forgiveness is not only personally rewarding but it is politically necessary” to reestablish community. Only through this was Post-Apartheid South Africa able to move from the cycle of retribution and violence to reconciliation and restoration. Restorative justice allows both victims and victimizers to heal, embrace each other, in a humane, enduring and honest process. As we move forward, the real question is do we want to continue the cycle of violence and retribution, or do we want to provide opportunities for reconciliation and restoration. Neither will be easy, but only one will produce “the beloved community”.

What does the Restorative Justice look like in the School

Last year Miami University was rocked with several racially charged incidents. One involved a young first year student, let’s call him Ted. Ted, on social media, bragged about how what stand-up guy he was and that he found it disappointing that his white colleagues would dare cross over and date a “N####”. He seemed more critical of the “N####’s” that flaunted themselves in such relationships. Needless to say when his whole social media transcript circulated it went immediately viral. And the proverbial “stuff” hit the fan. Students (black, white, Hispanic, transgendered, etc.), rightly upset, called for his immediate dismissal from the University. Protests were launched, the Institution went into crisis mode, and we once again participated in what has become an all too familiar ritual –as many called for retribution, for punishment, for this student to be kicked out of the University. It did not happen! Why, outside of the fact that social media is not governed by University policies, and outside of the reality that the issue was not this particular incident but the underlying processes, practices, and behaviors that created, sustains, and perpetuates a microassaultive environment. So instead of punishment and retributive justice we attempted restoration. In this section I shall outline the parameters of this restorative justice process. 

Restorative justice practices in the schools is based on the use of restorative justice principles rather than punishment. It aims to create educational environments that utilizes a clear set of values and mission statements to establish authentic communication, and proposes specific sets of tools to engage issues and conflict so as to move forward in a positive way. 

More to come