October 12th is a big day in the Americas—Dia de la Raza (Race Day) in Mexico and many South American countries, Thanksgiving Day in Canada and, for at least 83 years, Columbus Day in the United States. Here in the US, since 1991 a movement has been growing to replace Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples Day.
Indigenous people form the bedrock of the current world-wide Restorative Justice Movement[1]. In North America, First Nations and American Indian people have experienced every form of horror as the Canadian and US governments pursued Manifest Destiny. This commitment to dominate and control the lands from sea to shining sea spawned policies used to justify genocide and cultural erasure of the people who lived on this continent for thousands of years before Europeans arrived.[2]
Despite these efforts to extinguish their existence, elders from numerous indigenous nations generously share their culture and practices which anchor the current restorative justice movement[3]. They teach and engage us in circles practice and guide us to more holistic, lasting resolutions of even the deepest harms humans can inflict. With dignity and grace, they open our eyes and hearts to the interconnectedness of all parts of our world and the truth that harm to one causes harm to all.
As I learn more about the central role that healing the harm plays in these indigenous cultures, my heart breaks over the waste and destruction our punishment-based school discipline and criminal justice systems cause. We need a new paradigm for addressing misconduct and conflict in our society. We cannot afford to lose another generation of youth to our prisons and poverty. We cannot flush away more billions of dollars to lock people up. We can no longer ignore the destruction of our natural world that threatens human health and long-term survival on Earth.
Our justice system can never adequately address the genocide, enslavement, domestic terror, and historical whitewashing our culture perpetrated. But with restorative justice, we can begin. Restorative justice, built on indigenous truths and practices, offers the paradigm we need. Punishment hasn’t solved, or ever adequately addressed, many of these problems.
We simply cannot punish our way out of the damage we’ve done. But we can begin the journey toward healing some of the harm. My journey has included:
- educating myself about the truths American history has too often omitted or whitewashed;
- following the example of my enlightened teachers who begin every circle by acknowledging the ancestral claim American Indian nations have on the lands where I work and live;
- striving to improve my practice and correct assumptions and harmful actions where I can;
- seeking to understand and honor the experiences of indigenous people[4]—their suffering and their strength, resilience and wisdom;
- resolving to look bravely at the truth and work sincerely to heal the harm as much as possible.
I hope you will join me in this effort. Feel free to contact me at schertzingcommunications@gmail.com for more ideas and check out the footnoted resources below.
[1] Fania E. Davis (2019) The Little Book of Race and Restorative Justice: Black Lives, Healing and US Social Transformation. New York: Good Books
[2] Wanda McCaslin, Editor (2005) Justice As Healing: Indigenous Ways. St. Paul, MN: Living Justice Press
[3] Kay Pranis (2005) The Little Book of Circles Processes, A New Approach to Peacemaking. Intercourse, PA: Good Books
Rupert Ross (2006) Returning to the Teachings: Exploring Aboriginal Justice. Penguin Canada
[4] Edward C Valandra and Wanbli Waphaha Hoksila (2020) Colorizing Restorative Justice: Voicing Our Realities. St. Paul, MN: Living Justice Press