What exactly is restorative justice?
Restorative justice is an alternative to our current methods of punishment, which frequently reinforce violent tendencies and fail to prepare offenders to reenter and adjust to conventional society. Restorative justice seeks to hold offenders accountable for their behavior and to impose meaningful sanctions on them. These sanctions should allow offenders to repair the harm they have done, restore their ties to conventional others and address the causes of their crime. In essence, restorative justice seeks to reconcile offenders with their victims and the larger community. Who will be participating in the conversation? The symposium session involves three presenters. First, Arthur Kellermann, professor in the School of Public Health and chair of emergency medicine, will describe the extent of violence in America and our current approach to controlling violence. Second, Thee Smith, associate professor of religion, will describe the arguments for the restorative justice approach. Third, L
