What Is Restorative Justice?

A Working Definition by Mashaun Ali Hendricks

 

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When RJ is only understood but not embodied, its true gift remains unopened. Its power is unfelt. Attempts to implement it are shallow, even when done with good intentions.

Restorative Justice is not a gimmick or an initiative. It is a paradigm shift for the practitioner and the participating community.

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Post Harm:

 

It is a proactive practice that builds and strengthens the bonds between people as a standard before seeking to share space productively. As space is shared, if and when harm happens, we know how to move towards healing together, not apart. It is a process that, to the extent necessary, brings together everyone impacted by harm or conflict, to name the truth, to meet the needs, and to repair the harm so that healing is realized and relationships are restored and strengthened. 

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As the value of those we share space with increases, the “extent possible” becomes the “extent necessary”—because their wholeness becomes essential to our own.

RJ is a values-based way of being. It recognizes and honors the full humanity of every person in the room—including those who have caused harm, those who have been harmed, and everyone who is impacted by the ripple.

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It challenges us to act from the truth of oneness, not the myth of separation. It replaces individualism, competition, and scarcity with Indigenous cultural values of abundance, interdependence, and collective care.

 

RJ builds strong relationships first—and heals them if and when they are hurt.

It offers us a way to address harm without causing more harm. It allows us to be held, hold others with care, while still holding all accountable. It proves that the strongest asset and protection a community can have is powerful communal bonds.

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When practiced with depth and purpose, RJ shifts how we define safety and justice. No longer about punishment, removal, or control—it becomes about healing. It transforms how we view people: not as “criminals” to be punished, but as humans who have caused harm and need support to be whole again.

 

Restorative Justice rehumanizes those society has deemed unworthy of care. It has the potential to heal the historical harms that still shape our nation.

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It invites us to ask:

• What happened?

• Who was impacted, and how?

• How was the person who caused the harm impacted?

• Who is responsible for healing the harm?

• What ideas and commitments can we all bring to support that healing?

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Restorative Justice teaches that learning about those we share space with is not optional; it is a required skill. A necessary competency. Because the more we know each other, the harder it becomes to cause harm—and the easier it becomes to properly care for one another.

 

Final Thought

Restorative Justice is not something we do for others. It is something we become. It transforms how we see people, how we value them, and how we show up in community. And the more we heal, the safer we all become.

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What is the Peace Circle Process?