Transitional Justice in 21C

Catalog description

Transitional Justice in the Twenty-First Century (3) This course introduces the theory and practice of transitional/transformative justice (TJ). Students examine contemporary theoretical and policy debates, and efforts to reckon with past political violence as part of the transformative process within TJ, which has been pursued through justice-seeking processes that redress legacies from longstanding historic violations. The course examines the basic question of why political communities, legitimized by democratic intentions, need to reckon with historic injustice and mass atrocity. The course investigates case studies, including Germany, South Africa, former Yugoslavia, Canada, the United States, New Zealand, international war crimes tribunals, reparation programs, truth commissions, memorialization, as well as official (political) apologies.