Where will we find justice for Trayvon Martin?

April 4th, 2012 – by Howard Zehr (category: Peacebuilding, Restorative Justice)

The following is an invited guest post by my friend, colleague and fellow Morehouse College grad, David Anderson Hooker. I have good news and bad news for the family and supporters of Trayvon Martin: The ‘justice’ you seek is not in the system from which you seek it!  If this sounds like a Jedi mind [...]

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Restorative justice, mediation and ADR

August 13th, 2010 – by Howard Zehr (category: Peacebuilding, Restorative Justice)

Restorative justice (RJ) is often associated with mediation and Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR).  I was reminded of this at the Conference of the European Forum for Restorative Justice in Bilbao, Spain, this spring.  Victim offender “mediation” was the practice most commonly mentioned and the lines between ADR and restorative justice often seemed unclear. Confusion about [...]

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Wrongdoing (and heroism) in context

December 31st, 2009 – by Howard Zehr (category: Peacebuilding, Restorative Justice)

Philip Zimbardo’s 2007 book, The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil, provides an in-depth description and evaluation of his 1971 Stanford Prison Experiment. To study the dynamics of prison, this famous experiment randomly assigned college student to be guards or inmates in a mock prison. Within a very short time the project had [...]

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10 ways to live restoratively

November 27th, 2009 – by Howard Zehr (category: Restorative Justice)

1.    Take relationships seriously, envisioning yourself in an interconnected web of people, institutions and the environment. 2.    Try to be aware of the impact – potential as well as actual – of your actions on others and the environment. 3.    When your actions negatively impact others, take responsibility by acknowledging and seeking [...]

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