justice

Could a Truth Commission Unite America?

How Fractured Nations and Communities Reckon with History and Move Toward Repair

Could a Truth Commission Unite America? | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

Can democracy stand the test of time? Many factors have triggered the deep schism in American politics today. But a root cause of our faltering democracy may be our failure to grapple with the truth about the nation’s history of discrimination and institutionalized racism. Because Americans can’t even agree on basic truths about our history of exclusion, slavery, and Jim Crow segregation, we have become mired in contentious debates about what role, if any, the government should play in addressing past injustices and their present-day legacies. To forge a path …

by Gloria Y.A. Ayee |

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Can We Reimagine Juvenile Justice for Gen Z? | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

Can We Reimagine Juvenile Justice for Gen Z?

Emerging Into Adulthood Is Hard for Everyone. Prison Makes It Nearly Impossible

by Lael E.H. Chester |

“Emerging adult” is a new phrase for many of us, and a useful term for understanding a stage of human development that is too often overlooked. People between the ages …

California, Where Whatever You Do, You Will Be Wrong | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

California, Where Whatever You Do, You Will Be Wrong

We’re All in This Together—But Please, Keep Your Distance

by Joe Mathews |

Our politics may be paranoid, our society may be paralyzed, our police may be irredeemable, and our skies may be on fire, but don’t fear! At least we Californians can …

Why Do Americans Put Pets, Not Their Owners, on Trial?

The Bizarre History Behind Our Current Canine Legal System Is Full of Rats, Pigs, and Moles

By David Grimm |

When a Japanese Akita named Taro bit the lip of a 10-year-old New Jersey girl in 1991, police seized the dog and a judge ordered him destroyed. Taro’s owners appealed …

A Mass Murderer Is Testing the Limits of Scandinavian Goodwill

Norway’s Most Dangerous Man Is Back in the Spotlight, Leading Many to Wonder How Much Compassion He Deserves

By Bruno Kaufmann |

For four days in March, I watched Norway’s national devil return to public view, in another installment of the courtroom drama familiarly titled Breivik v. State. Andres Behring Breivik, now …

The Freeway Is the Perfect Place to Protest Ferguson

Blocking Traffic Is an Inconvenience to Commuters. It's Also a Reminder of How Highway Construction Has Segregated Our Cities.

by Eric Avila |

After grand juries in New York and Missouri failed to indict police officers who killed unarmed black men, protestors across the nation vented their outrage by shutting down roads. In …


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