We are seeing an energetic scrutiny of the justice system emerge in Western countries, sparked by the publicised murders of George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery. The fuel for the fire, however, has long been laid by the systems for which deconstruction is now being called.

    Justice cannot be made complete without true restoration, and yet in the name of justice we have designed a system based on retribution. This fale justice is easy - as Angela Davis writes, “It relieves us of the responsibility of seriously engaging with the problems of our society, especially those produced by racism.” Something as warped as this is easily abused - what ought to be a shield we have reforged into a weapon and then turned on the defenseless. The consequence of allowing this to happen is what we have seen in recent weeks.

    Some of us are coming to a true understanding of this for the first time. We must acknowledge, however, that for far too many this has been the reality and fact of life for generations. For our blindness - our complicity - we can only repent and ask for forgiveness before committing to do better. There is a need for deeper listening to those who have been marginalised and subjugated by the machine of greed and hate we named justice. The indigenous, the unassimilated, the colonised, the enslaved, and the oppressed have been suffering under the Western evolution of retributive justice for far too long, and their voices go far enough back that we should be ashamed at the hour of our awakening.

    Justice is not just about a response to wrongdoing - justice is a righteousness in all things; justice is caring for the widow and the orphan. Justice is feeding the hungry and clothing the poor. Justice is speaking for the voiceless, and standing with those who, right now, stand against the systems set against them. Operation Foundation, as an organisation and individuals, has a heart for restorative justice - rehabilitation and renewal are at the core of our cooperation with the incarcerated. We are, however, as complicit as any in the fact that so much pain, grief, and trauma took place before the voice of the oppressed rose above the cacophony of our own privilege, and for this we ask forgiveness. We therefore ask that you join us in acknowledging and supporting the movement against our system of injustice, and listening to the voices of those it has maimed.

by Edward Schultz on behalf of Operation Foundation