I’m at a conference, so I’m on and off the grid this weekend. While traveling, I had a short, but productive bout of writing-as-thinking. I decided not to push myself to finish either of the two pieces I started, but they are definitely seeds, firmly planted.
One of the pieces was a follow-up to my post on a caring community. Even now, I’m still thinking about it. It all goes back to love, methinks. I sometimes wonder why love is such a revolutionary act. But why wouldn’t it be? We are submerged in a world of violence. We see violent images on our televisions. We use violent language with people we love. Sing songs with violent lyrics. Think violent thoughts. Send violent energy with looks and gestures.
And then we are surprised when violence appears in more tangible forms. We demonize the perpetrators for choosing violence. For succumbing to violence. For mirroring it.
My statement is not meant to absolve aggressors of their responsibility. I simply would like us, as a community, to acknowledge our complicity.
I believe much begins with a theory and practice of love. I wonder if we can ponder such a thing, rather than dismiss it out of hand. After all, where have hardened hearts and an appetite for revenge gotten us?
That brings us again to the caring community. How to we go about creating it? Or how do we enlarge the caring spaces that exist? Mikhail posed a question this afternoon:
Do abolitionists have an alternative vision for how to respond to harmful behavior? That’s what restorative justice does.
As a newbie, I cannot speak for the community of abolitionists. I’m still investigating at this point. But the idea of restorative justice holds promise:
The
#restorative justice movement is morally parallel to civil rights movement. Both respond to violence and harm with nonviolent engagement— Mikhail Lyubansky (@mikhaill) August 16, 2012
Punitive justice = absence of love. When you begin to introduce love, you have to give up punitive elements.~Sylvia Clute
#restorative— Mikhail Lyubansky (@mikhaill) August 16, 2012
I will continue to share as I continue to learn.