Crimes against Humanity in the Land of the Free

Can a Truth and Reconciliation Process Heal Racial Conflict in America?

Imani Michelle Scott

• Publisher: Praeger
• Year: 2014
• Print ISBN:
  9781440830433
• eBook ISBN:
  9798216067986
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Politique et relations internationales
• Subtopic: Droits de l'homme

This vital book considers the compelling and addictive hold that racism has had on centuries of Americans, explores historical and contemporary norms complicit in the problem, and appeals to the U.S. government to improve race relations, rectify existent social imperfections, and guard against future race-based abuses.

Despite an assertion by the founding fathers that "all men are created equal" and the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution that guarantees "equal protection," the race-based oppression that has characterized most of America's history shows that in practice our society has rarely measured up to principle. Why has deep-seated racial conflict in America continued for so long? This unprecedented examination into the topic explores the evidence and consequences of what seems to be an "addiction" to racism in the United States, analyzing the related disconnect between our nation's stated moral principles and social realities, and assessing how U.S. citizens of all races can take individual action to start the long-needed healing process.

The contributors to this work present interdisciplinary perspectives and discussions on American history, politics, philosophy, and 21st-century psycho-social conditions as they relate to the oppression, social injustice, and racism that have occurred—and continue to occur—in the United States. The discussions allow readers to grasp the serious challenges at hand and direct them towards recognizing the potential for conflict transformation and reconciliation through a non-conventional co-created Truth, Reconciliation, and Peace Process (TRPP) to begin resolving America's dysfunction. This is essential reading for anyone who seeks to understand the sources of perpetual racially based conflict, disparity, and hatred in the United States; identify the social injuries of exposure to centuries of racism; move America towards harmonious interracial relationships; and improve its international standing as a peace-building nation that is truly committed to human rights throughout the world.

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Halftitle
• Title
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• Acknowledgments
• Foreword by Sean Byrne
• Introduction
• 1 A Searching and Moral Inventory: Considerations on a Truth, Reconciliation, and Peace Process in the United States
• 2 Collective Neuroticism: Consequences and Manifestations of Communal Trauma
• 3 Imposing Morality: Cultural Perspectives on Truth, Apologies, and Forgiveness in the United States (A Critical Analysis of American Political Philosophy)
• 4 Ideal Culture vs. Real Culture: Reflections on the Links between America’s Core Values and the Values of Truth and Reconciliation Initiatives
• 5 Assessing “Effectiveness” and Contemplating “Justice”: Employing Case Studies to Inform an African American Truth and Reconciliation Process
• 6 Revisiting History: Examining Post-Slavery and Post-Holocaust Events for Considerations on Advancing Atonement in the United States
• 7 An Ethical Imperative: The Pursuit of Truth, Forgiveness, and Reconciliation in Greensboro
• 8 Reconfiguring Traditional Prescriptive Approaches to Truth and Reconciliation Processes: Adapting the Elicitive-Centered Insight Approach for the United States
• 9 The Policing of the Black American Male: Transforming Humiliation into Humility in Pursuit of Truth and Reconciliation
• 10 African American Millennials in the Age of Trayvon: Keepin’ It Real
• 11 Moving Forward to Liberty and Justice for All
• Suggested Readings
• About the Editor and Contributors
• Index