Bryana Nichelson
January 24, 2024
Title: St Louis Area Council on Restorative Justice
Author: Howard Zehr
Source Date: 2019
Source Type: Website
Summary:
Formally the St. Louis Area Restorative Justice Collaboration and Community conflict Services of metro St. Louis, joined in 2019 to encourage restorative justice practices in the area. The source expresses that doing wrong to others is a violation and it is up to the wrongdoer to make the wrongs right. The purpose of the source is to provide networking opportunities for all professionals and community organizations to share knowledge and resources in order to spread information to others about restorative justice in St. Louis. The source prioritizes addressing the needs of crime victims while also educating offenders on how their actions were a violation and what they can do to make the wrong right. The source explains their mission, the background of the organization, and how they have joined forces with others causing the mission to expand over time. The source also defines “Restorative Justice” for people who don’t know and expresses how victims are affected, how offenders can be held accountable, and the role the community plays in this process.
Analysis:
This source is applicable to our research because it focuses on restorative justice in St. Louis. The promotion of restorative justice in the St. Louis area is related to the reparative justice we want to promote with the Missouri Botanical Garden. One specific aspect that the source included that is tied to our research is reaching youth through the education system. The source also mentioned networking, which we intend to do in order to share our knowledge with others while also learning from them. The source also addressed developing programs to further the progress of their mission. Our research team plan is to develop programs with the Botanical Garden to promote educating youth on slavery in the areas, the negative history of the Botanical Garden, how that history is being turned into a more positive future, and community outreach programs to get the people who live in the area acquainted with the garden and all they have to offer. While educating of the past we also want to promote awareness to the public to prevent future ignorance that can be avoided. Another valuable piece of information we can take from this source is their perspective on victims and offenders. We should be looking at how we can assist everyone that has been affected and holding offenders accountable for their actions. The Missouri Botanical Garden has gone too long without appropriately teaching the garden’s history which has resulted in generations not partaking in the beauty of the garden and the many amenities they have to offer.