Amitava Kumar's Argument For Restorative Justice

Improved Essays
In the United States legal system, people see justice in terms of punishment. A criminal can receive countless years in prison or even be assigned the death penalty. In the article, “The Restoration of faith,” Amitava Kumar shows how forgiveness and understanding can be a better solution than punishment when it comes to criminals. Kumar uses solid evidence and reasoning in his article to show the benefits of Restorative justice. Therefore, Kumar achieved his goal in writing a convincing argument for restorative justice in his article “Restoration of faith.”
First, Kumar achieves his goal by showing restorative justice is a beneficial system for the criminal. He does this by giving the reader solid evidence. He uses a real life example, In March
…show more content…
Kumar read a piece by New York Times Reporter Tullis, which sparked questions for him. “I asked Baliga about the recent gang rape of the young woman in a moving bus in Delhi... In such circumstances, would Baliga still want to advocate restorative justice” (Kumar 74)? Her answer was clearly no. It is only used through a voluntary process, making it a more dependable system. It was not used in the Delhi rape case because the community demanded justice, and the family demanded the perpetrators to be hanged. Kumar points out, “Restorative justice cases have usually involved burglaries or property disputes- not violent crimes, and certainly not homicides”(Kumar 73). However, it could be used in Conor’s case because of Ann’s deathbed request and her parent’s willingness to participate in restorative justice. Kumar’s questions are able to be answered clearly, making them solid evidence for showing restorative justice is a beneficial …show more content…
This can be seen in the example of Conor Mcbride. Conor stated “with the Grosmaires’ forgiveness, I could accept the responsibility and not be condemned” (Kumar 74). Through restorative justice he received a second chance on life. On the other hand, Kumar also achieved his goal through the victim's family. Ann’s mother notes, “Forgiveness for me was self-preservation” (Kumar 74). Restorative justice makes it possible for the victims family to have closure. In addition, Kumar achieved his goal in writing a convincing argument by asking questions in his article. The questions he had about restorative justice were able to be answered clearly. Showing that restorative justice is a beneficial

Related Documents

  • Great Essays

    Although punitive approaches to criminal justice are still dominant today, the public acceptance of restorative justice programs is gradually increasing in the United States. Current restorative justice programs have made significant changes in communities all over the country, such as the Longmont Community Justice Partnership in Colorado. The main goal of this organization is to guide victims and offenders into strengthening their relationships while repairing the harm done by the crime. This restorative program has demonstrated to law enforcement administrators and the community in general how effective an approach to justice without punishment can be.…

    • 1601 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    For example, Jacquie’s mother was murdered by first time offenders who were convicted and imprisoned. However, Jacquie was emotionally devastated due to continuous court proceedings in which she had to express her victim impact statements. The restorative justice model incorporates personal values, so it was a valuable opportunity for the offenders and Jacquie to gain insight regarding the reasons for the murder and the sharing of compassion and emotions that was not possible in the state-based justice process. According to Jacquie, the experience with the restorative justice model was accommodating because it allowed the offenders to show empathy, mutual understanding, and accountability for the crimes that they have committed. Jacquie was extremely fearful and suffered from anxiety before engaging in a collaborative interaction with one of the offenders, but she noticed that the offender demonstrated great remorse and shame for his horrendous involvement.…

    • 947 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The meetings help them learn the means by which to exercise more self-control, as well as problem-solving and communication skills. Finally, restorative justice is a balanced approach compared to punitive measures in schools because it takes into consideration the needs of the victim, as opposed to only weighing what punishment is appropriate for the…

    • 959 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    On November 7, 2014, Thomas MacMillan wrote an article of why Restorative Justice Can Bring About the Healing Process. Restorative Justice is, “ Participants gather in circles to try to resolve problems through discussion, rather retribution.” So why would Restorative Justice not work if it helps people heal. Three good reasons why Restorative Justice does work is because it stops student violence, reduces suspensions, and helps troubled teens to open up to the problem.…

    • 385 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Can Justice and Forgiveness go Hand in Hand? Justice and forgiveness can go hand in hand. Forgiveness can mean many things, but true forgiveness is releasing the feelings of vengeance and resentment towards a person. Justice can also have multiple meanings, but true justice means when an offender repents on their wrongdoings and reconciles with their victims. When an immoral person receives retributive justice, it causes them to reflect on their wrongdoings, letting them become a better person when they are forgiven.…

    • 791 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Archbishop Desmond Tutu expresses in the following simple yet elegant phrase the philosophies inherent in restorative justice, “…true reconciliation exposes the awfulness, the abuse, the hurt, and the truth…”. The frank exposure of emotional, physical and psychological injury may, however, adversely impact the victim(s) or alleged perpetrator in the short term. While restorative justice can be a risky undertaking, “only an honest confrontation with reality can bring real healing”. In the criminal justice system today in the United States, “real healing” seems to be a secondary principle; priority is given to proving the innocence or guilt of the accused in a trial conducted by a judge with the services of lawyers and the jury. The main stakeholders,…

    • 1340 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Superior Essays

    A brief review of the book “The Little Book of Restorative Justice,” by Howard Zehr, is based upon one idea, how should this society respond to wrong doings and what should be done with the victims and offenders? The book begins by telling us that the criminal justice system is not meeting the needs of the people with in that system, ultimately the system is failing however there still may be some good qualities. Zehr expresses that, “restorative justice is an attempt to address some of the needs and limitations,” (3) and by doing this he first tells his audience what restorative justice is not, to give us, his readers a better understanding of what it really is. Also to you could say that he does this so we can have a stronger foundation while learning what, The Little Book of Restorative Justice,” is and not being completely biased…

    • 1224 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    1. What is the mission of corrections? The mission of the corrections has traditionally been to implement court-prescribed sentences for criminal violators or to carry out the sentence of the court. 2.…

    • 569 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    that they once trusted. In a an law article titled I Just Wanted Him to Hear Me': Sexual Violence and the Possibilities of Restorative Justice, restorative justice is said to be ‘contentious’ as it may trivialize violence against women, re-victimize the vulnerable, and endanger the safety of victim-survivors (McGlynn, Westmarland, & Godden, 2012). In fact, Angela Cameron, author of `Stopping the Violence' a theoretical criminology book claims that, “To introduce restorative justice is to `gamble' with women's lives” (Cameron, 2006). Similarly, Ruth Lewis et al. suggest that, “Restorative conferencing is just another attempt to `divert' violence against women `away from the justice system and into the hands of others” (Lewis et al.,2001).…

    • 370 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    According to Kent Greenwalt (1983), both retributive, as well as the utilitarian perspective in relation to justification of societal punishments were prevailing methodologies. First, the main justifications for punishment using the retributive perspective were that punishment was in place due to the offender deserving to be punished for a specific wrongdoing. Greenwalt states that there is a simple justification for using this perspective, if there is an offender who has violated the law that others have to follow, then the offender is worthy of punishment to reestablish the moral order that has been damaged by the committing of a crime. In this particular perspective, there is a justification in place that the community, society, etc.…

    • 1218 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Restorative justice is an approach to criminal justice that puts emphasis on reconciliation, responsibility and healing while…

    • 1016 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Restorative Justice Case Study

    • 1522 Words
    • 7 Pages
    • 18 Works Cited

    Introduction: Restorative justice is the idea that harm caused by a crime can be repaired (Wallis, 2007) and that the victim and community can be restored to how it was previously, rather than resorting to punishing the offender…

    • 1522 Words
    • 7 Pages
    • 18 Works Cited
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Despite the rising popularity of adaptation of restorative justice, it is critical to question whether it is a really successful criminal approach, or is it really a suitable for our society. There has been many social debates and research…

    • 1164 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Restorative justice provides a platform to the victim and the offender to communicate and decide on the solution together. Restorative justice allows the victims to communicate with the offender, to voice out their feelings, their side of the story and the real impact of the crime, and come to an agreement about the hurt the offence has caused, the offender’s responsibility, and solution. Third, to transform. Upon receiving the answer or apology from the offender, the victim might feel more relief and starts to forgive the offender. In that sense, the victim no longer needs to live in anger, hatred or fear.…

    • 805 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    (1) Using at least 250 words, explain each of the guiding principles of restorative justice. Restorative justice is a process in which the offender repairs wrongdoings that were done to the victim and to the community. Instead of a traditional trial, the offenders are encouraged to take responsibility for their actions by expressing remorse and even apologizing to the victim. The restorative justice process gives the victim the opportunity to meet with the offender so the victim can explain the impact of the crime to the offender, while also giving the victim the opportunity to forgive the offender.…

    • 1198 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays