Hate Crime and Restorative Justice

Abstract

Abstract This monograph presents new findings from an innovative empirical study into the use of restorative justice for hate crime. The book provides original data on the contextual variables that are frequently intrinsic to both the causes and consequences of hate-motivated offences. Complex socio-cultural and socio-economic factors are revealed as being fundamental both to our understanding of hate crime and, in turn, how such incidents are best resolved. At the same time the book provides new information on how restorative processes can be used in order to repair the harms of hate while simultaneously challenging the prejudices that give rise to inter-personal conflicts. Differences between participants’ cultural and ethnic identities are explored in order to assess whether dialogical barriers to reconciliation limit the success of restorative processes. In particular, the notion of ‘community’, a fundamental concept of restorative justice theory and practice, is reconceptualized by exploring both its healing and harming features. The book asserts that the risks of community posed by pervasive cultures of prejudice can be countered by inclusive processes focusing on dialogue that explores both identity ‘difference’ and experiences of harm. It is by drawing together theoretical assumptions about restorative philosophy with empirical evidence of its use for hate crime that the book is able to offer a more holistic understanding of how restorative justice can be utilized to help repair the harms caused by the processes of hate that continue to pervade our multicultural communities.

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