Justice as Lived Experience: Restorative Justice Workshop
20th May 2015, St Aidan's College
Reflexive blog post by Natasha Jones (final year Criminology undergraduate student, School of Applied Social Sciences, Durham University)
The term ‘Restorative Justice’ is a phrase often used but probably less often understood. Even as a criminology student, I knew relatively little about its principles, and in the media it is often implied that such an approach to criminal justice is too ‘soft’, and inappropriate for dealing with serious offences. Upon hearing that the Durham School of Applied Social Sciences was looking for a student volunteer to attend a restorative justice workshop (led by Margot Van Sluytman, a teacher of therapeutic writing and restorative justice advocate) and write about their experience afterward, I was intrigued. The opportunity to engage in discussion about a practice I felt I knew little about was both inviting and a little intimidating.
Within the criminal justice system, restorative justice is an approach that enables victims of crimes to meet or communicate with their offender in order to empower them by giving them a voice. Margot befriended Glen, the man who murdered her father in an armed robbery. In her workshop, Margot spoke about the principles of ‘Sawbonna’, a Zulu greeting meaning ‘I see you’. Her philosophy is not necessarily about forgiveness, but what informs and situates us as humans. She identified three principles of restorative justice-respect, responsibility and relationship-adding a fourth, wonder (at the human world and experience). Margot engaged in what she termed ‘informal’ restorative justice, in that she and Glen did not communicate through a pre-established programme but arranged meetings themselves. She explained that this had caused some conflict with others who believed this meant she had not done restorative justice ‘properly’, but has no regrets about this, identifying that for some people, formal restorative justice programmes are too rigid, trying to fit diverse human experiences into a few small boxes. Margot also suggested that outside of the criminal justice system, restorative actions could be as simple as not berating ourselves or others for small mistakes but allowing for the fact that we are all human.
During her talk, Margot emphasised that the punitive actions of the legal system are not the same as justice. She argued that being a victim of crime is almost a crime in itself, as it changes the ways others interact with you. She highlighted the importance of recognising that human beings are complex and nuanced, commenting that upon discovering she had forgiven the man who killed her father, people treated her as if she were a saint, rather than a fallible human being who still makes mistakes. Margot rejected the idea that you must be a certain, special type of ‘good’ person in order to engage in restorative justice or offer someone forgiveness. Margot also spoke about her belief that nothing happens before its time. It took 29 and a half years for Glen to contact her, after reading about her work teaching therapeutic poetry classes, and she was adamant that this was not too late.
In the second part of her workshop, Margot gave a short taster of how she uses poetry and therapeutic writing, both in public classes and in homeless shelters and prisons. She read us one of her own poems, and then invited us to write or draw a response reflecting on its themes. Participants were then invited to read out their work if they wished. She explained the power of sharing the written word in creating a sense of ‘withnessing’, of our own and each other’s humanity being witnessed and acknowledged. Margot’s workshop, and the poetry and writing shared within it, was deeply moving. In our information and technology driven world, where for many jobs and activities, face-to-face interaction is often unnecessary, it is easy to feel that shared human connections have become obsolete or lost. The writing and sharing of poetry, for me at least, was welcome in that it filled me with a sense that we are not alone with our individual struggles; both inside and outside the context of restorative justice other people, even strangers, can offer you support and are willing to simply listen.
Beyond emphasising the importance of restorative justice, Margot’s talk was valuable in that it reminded me, and the others in the room, that human beings are complex, fallible, and cannot be squashed into a single box or template. She suggested engaging in restorative justice sprang from a place of beauty and love for humanity. Her talk was reassuring in the suggestion that, even for those like myself who feel they know little about restorative approaches, simply being a part of the conversation and recognising that the binaries of ‘good’ and ‘evil’ are arbitrary is a step forward for truly providing justice for ourselves and others.
BIOGRAPHY
Margot Van Sluytman is an award-winning writer, speaker, justice advocate, and workshop facilitator. Her talks and workshops are presented in universities, colleges, jails, healing centres, and homeless shelters around the globe. Her Master’s Thesis, Sawbonna: Justice as Lived-Experience, addresses her strong belief in restorative justice and how it can empower victim, offender, our communities, and society. She believes that the personal and the political are symbiotic siblings.
Her books include: Sawbonna: I See You a Real Life Restorative Justice Story and The Other Inmate: Mediating Justice-Mediating Hope, which is available in both English and French, Correctional Services Canada, funded the French translation.
Please see Margot's website for more information.
Margot Van Sluytman is an award-winning writer, speaker, justice advocate, and workshop facilitator. Her talks and workshops are presented in universities, colleges, jails, healing centres, and homeless shelters around the globe. Her Master’s Thesis, Sawbonna: Justice as Lived-Experience, addresses her strong belief in restorative justice and how it can empower victim, offender, our communities, and society. She believes that the personal and the political are symbiotic siblings.
Her books include: Sawbonna: I See You a Real Life Restorative Justice Story and The Other Inmate: Mediating Justice-Mediating Hope, which is available in both English and French, Correctional Services Canada, funded the French translation.
Please see Margot's website for more information.
This event was organised in partnership with Durham University, St. Aidan's College 'Restorative Justice Project', School of Applied Social Science 'Crime Deviance and Control' Research Group and the North East Crime Research Network.
You can listen to a recording of Margot's talk here.
You can listen to a recording of Margot's talk here.