In the aftermath of being victimized by sexualized violence (SV), survivors have historically been steered away from pursuing any kind of restorative justice (RJ). The gender-based violence community has been at least skeptical and, at most, openly hostile to the idea that survivors and their offenders could have beneficial, honest, and safe communication. Such has been the level of skepticism and hostility that, in Canada, gender-based violence workers were successful in establishing a country-wide moratorium on the use of RJ in sexualized and domestic violence cases; this moratorium is now in its third decade. This leaves survivors and perpetrators alike without any opportunity to have facilitated support for difficult conversations about harm, accountability, and reparation.
The overwhelming majority of SV survivors do not engage with the criminal legal system as a way of pursuing justice in their case. So, given the highly limited options available to survivors who are seeking meaningful justice (as survivors themselves define justice), there recently has been renewed curiosity about how RJ might meet this need.
This pre-conference training will introduce the risks and benefits of RJ responding to SV cases, provide current research on SV victimization and perpetration, interrogate the current criminal legal system's response to SV, and suggest possible ways forward for restorative justice.
Topics that will be covered include:
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What makes sexualized violence a different kind of harm?
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How effective are existing justice options in SV cases?
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What do we know and what don't we know about SV perpetration and victimization?
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How might RJ respond to the intricacies of SV cases?
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