05.01.07 What is "Restorative Justice"? (and why don't Illinois offenders get it?)
By Ra Chaka and Bryan W. Brickner
May 2007
"Tell it so someone may take heed!" she proclaimed at the end of an "Overcomers' Support Group" meeting at the Westside Health Authority (WHA) in Chicago's Austin neighborhood. Offering youth, employment, health and economic programs to Chicago's Far West Side, the WHA serves an area that suffers widespread crime, economic blight and social disintegration.
Austin is one of the sustained fronts in a domestic war being waged in our cities and communities, namely the United States "War on Drugs." A recent high-profile crime and justice report ranked Austin as one of the communities with the highest rates of prisoner reentry in the state. It is also where crime cuts deepest - and in fatal ways - as the city's first homicide victim in 2007, Mario Allen, was from the Austin neighborhood.
The hidden devastation of Austin lies in the hearts and minds of the residents, such as those at the weekly "Overcomers" meeting, who gather to talk about the problems they face, especially incarceration, which has decimated the community, forever altering so many lives. About 70 people attended this meeting of the Overcomers group, and beyond sharing stories they were also "consciousness-raising," determined to do so for themselves and anyone else willing to listen.
The gut-wrenching stories are numerous: felonies, addictions, abusers and abused. Reverend James Coleman leads the discussion. After serving seven years in prison, Coleman now focuses on the healing power of the spirit. He believes healing can begin when people share their stories.
"In sharing their stories they share their thinking, and that allows the healing to begin - I see individuals begin to celebrate life again," says Coleman.
One woman is facing two years in prison. She confesses she is "no longer dirty" and "ready for whatever happens." The next: "I want to make it right with my family and myself." The next: "I was left for dead, frozen with a smashed face in an alley for hours, but here I am." The next: "The only man with no problems is a dead man." On it went, until all who wanted had shared.
Citizens in communities such as Austin are paying dearly for a criminal justice system that many believe is broken. As more residents come forward to share their stories, and as the weight of the costs continue to bog down Illinois taxpayers, the cause of penal reform is being heard and increasingly adopted by those in the position to help. Several influential groups (The Illinois Consortium on Drug Policy; Developing Justice Coalition; Chicago Metropolis 2020; The Chicago Council of Lawyers; Chicago Appleseed Fund for Justice; and the CLEAR Initiative, to name a few) are starting to acknowledge and address the crushing problems in the Illinois criminal justice system.