Thursday, Oct 01, 2009

War, Police and Prisons: Cross-examining State-Sanctioned Violence

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Guest speaker: Wayne Northey

The Western state arrogated to itself sole prerogative to commit violence against its enemies. The state’s domestic enemies are criminals, its international enemies whomever the current government declares such. This presentation addresses morally, philosophically and theologically the state’s right to commit violence, especially lethal violence. It will argue that issues of societal violence from schoolyard bullying to murder perpetuate ultimately due to state modelling in training and duties legitimated for its police, prisons and military. It will suggest an alternative.

Wayne Northey is Director of Man-to-Man/Woman-to-Woman – Restorative Christian Ministries (M2/W2) in British Columbia, Canada (www.m2w2.com). He has been active in the criminal justice arena and a keen promoter of Restorative Justice since 1974. He has published a number of articles on non-violence and restorative justice within a theological framework (some posted at http://www.clarionjournal.typepad.com/), and recently published a novel on Western Christianity and violence and non-violence: Chrysalis Crucible (Abbotsford: Fresh Wind Press, 2007). Like all people of faith, he is on an uncertain journey of discovery.

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