Faculty Author Type

Current Faculty [Yuvraj Joshi]

Document Type

Working Paper

Publication Date

2023

Subjects

transitional justice, racial justice, democracy, truth commissions, reparations, reconciliation, constitutional law, comparative law, Supreme Court, American exceptionalism

Abstract

For years, the United States government has endorsed transitional justice approaches abroad while ignoring the need for transitional justice at home. Recently, racial justice uprisings have shifted U.S.-based discussions of transitional justice, from gazing outward toward the international community to attending to the legacies of slavery, segregation, and white supremacy at home. This chapter demonstrates that the centuries-long oppression of Black Americans is precisely the kind of massive human rights violation that necessitates a systematic transitional justice response. Using historical, legal, and comparative analyses, it reveals that the United States has employed its own versions of transitional justice mechanisms and debates without recognizing them as such. The author argues that Americans should not uncritically adopt transitional approaches from elsewhere, but that they should reckon with systemic racism, recognize that the United States is still ‘developing’ in this respect, and consider how transitional justice could be implemented in the American context.

Share

COinS
 
 

To view the content in your browser, please download Adobe Reader or, alternately,
you may Download the file to your hard drive.

NOTE: The latest versions of Adobe Reader do not support viewing PDF files within Firefox on Mac OS and if you are using a modern (Intel) Mac, there is no official plugin for viewing PDF files within the browser window.