INDIGENOUS PEOPLES, CRIME AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE

This paper was written March 17, 2008, for my UFV Crim 211 (Indigenous Peoples, Crime and Criminal Justice) course, taught by Wenona Victor.

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ENTRY ONE

According to lecture material there are two types of justice systems. Western justice ways and Indigenous justice ways. In this journal entry I will compare the Western ways of justice to the Indigenous ways of justice.

WESTERN WORLDVIEW

According to the Western worldviews, Western ways of justice includes the philosophy of crime control. The philosophy of crime control, according to Bell (2003) consists of protection of society, law and order, State responsibility for maintaining order, crime and punishment, responsibility and accountability, retribution and deterrence and maintenance of social order (p. 53).

An example of how the Western justice system works: John Smith commits a violent crime such as assault causing bodily harm. Mr. Smith is apprehended by the local police, and upon completion of a criminal investigation, charged under section 267(b) of the Criminal Code of Canada (ccc). A trial is then set. At trial Mr. Smith appears before a judge with a defense counsel.

A Crown prosecutor will present the case. This is done in an adversarial manner. If Mr. Smith is found guilty he will be convicted and sentenced to a jail term in accordance with the minimum to maximum sentence allowed for this charge. The end result is punishment and deterrence as well as protection of society.

INDIGENOUS WORLDVIEW

The Indigenous worldview of justice includes the philosophy of restorative justice. This philosophy addresses the harm caused by the crime, repairing harm done to victims, peacemaking, reconciliation between victims, offenders, and communities (Bell, 2003).

The Indigenous worldview also includes balance and harmony, is multiple reality, cyclical, collective, equality, depends upon spirituality, and is heart thinking, that is to say, speaking from the heart.

An example of how the Indigenous justice system works: Black Cloud robs a store. When he is caught, he is brought before the Elders and a healing circle for his offence is organized by the Elders. The healing circle includes the elders, the offender and the offender’s family, the victim and the victim’s family and members of the community where the offense took place.

In the healing circle everyone has the opportunity to share how the offense has affected them. The purpose of the healing circle I to bring balance and harmony to all those affected, including the offender. The healing circle is a process. A process of balance, harmony, reconciliation and restoration of the relationship between the offender and the victim, their families and the community.

In this worldview jail is not an option. I disagree with the worldview of Indigenous, or Aboriginal justice because punishment does not exist and as there is no jail term, society is not protected. The perspective of this worldview as I understand it, allows the offender to “get off easy.”

ENTRY TWO

In this entry, according to lecture material, I will discuss the differences between Eurocentrism and Indigenous values.

EUROCENTRISM

Eurocentrism is the practice of viewing the world from a European perspective, with an implied belief, either consciously or subconsciously, in the preeminence of European (and, more generally, of Western) culture, concerns and values at the expense of non- Europeans Early Eurocentrism can be traced to the European Renaissance, in which the revival of learning based on classical sources were focused on the ancient Greek and Roman civilizations, due to their being a significant source of contemporary European civilization. The colonizing period involved the widespread settlement of parts of the Americas and Australasia with European people, and the establishment of outposts and colonial administrations in parts of Asia and Africa. As a result, the majority populations of the Americas, Australia and New Zealand typically trace their ancestry to Europe. A Eurocentric history is taught in such countries, despite geographic isolation from Europe, with many European cultural traditions (Wikipedia – Eurocentrism).

According to Sakej (2002) Eurocentrism is known as the twin of the trickster or imitator, or “anti-trickster” and that the “anti-trickster” represents a cognitive force of European thought. Sakej goes on to say that Eurocentrism is dominant intellectual, and apart of the educational movement that gives Europeans a sense of superiority over non-Europeans.

ABORIGINAL VALUES

Aboriginals rely on oral traditions, whether it is for teaching their young or to establish their history and land claims, functional ownership, spirituality using animal symbols, the study of knowledge, perceptions and multiple reality.

Other Aboriginal values include maternal or female based society, good and evil, pleasant after life, honesty in words and actions, maintenance (husbanding), freedom of words and actions, sharing, accommodating, women are the foundation of life, tolerance, mobility, naturalist and child love (EUROPEAN HISTORY OF BELIEFS AND VALUES).

I agree with some of these values as they relate to my Christian background, such as the study of knowledge, good and evil, freedom of words and actions, mobility, sharing and child love. These are values that are Biblically based. For example, in the Bible God states that his people (believers) are destroyed for lack of knowledge (Hosea 4:6 KJV). In Genesis chapter 3 of the Bible scripture reveals the difference between good and evil.

Biblical scripture in Romans 4:17 instructs the believer to call things that don’t exist as though they do. And although Biblical scripture warns the believer to be careful of what they say, it gives them the freedom to choose what they say. The Bible also teaches that the believer is free to come and go as they choose. Sharing is a deep foundation of Biblical principles as is child love. Jesus himself said to love as a child and to love children. He said this because children are society’s future.

However, I disagree with spirituality using animal symbols, perception, multiple reality, tolerance and that woman are the foundation of life. Biblical scripture teaches that worshiping animals is wrong. Biblical principles teach that there is only one way which leaves no room for perception and multiple realities. As for tolerance, the Bible teaches the believer to be tolerant towards their enemies, however not when it comes to sin. The Biblical principle is zero tolerance against all that is immoral and all that is evil.

ENTRY THREE

In this entry I will discuss the Gladue case and conclude with my position.

R. v. GLADUE (1999)

Gladue is an Aboriginal woman who was found guilty of manslaughter and sentenced to three years imprisonment with a ten year weapons prohibition. The victim and Gladue were in a common-law relationship. They shared one daughter together and the accused was five months pregnant with their second child at the time of the offence.

On the evening of the incident, the accused was celebrating her 19th birthday and was drinking beer with some friends and family members, including the victim. Later in the evening, at the couple’s townhouse, an argument ensued when the accused confronted the victim about his infidelity.

During the argument the victim allegedly insulted the accused by calling her “fat and ugly and not as good as the others.” Evidence introduced during the trial indicated that the accused stabbed the victim once in the arm in their townhouse. The victim then fled the residence, at which time the accused ran after him and stabbed him once in the chest killing the victim.

At sentencing, the judge took into account several mitigating factors such as the accused being a young mother and that apart from an impaired driving conviction, she had no criminal record. Her family was supportive and while on bail, she had attended alcohol abuse counseling and upgraded her education.

The accused was provoked by the victim’s insulting behavior and remarks. At the time of the offence, the accused had a hyperthyroid condition, which caused her to overreact to emotional situations. She showed some signs of remorse and entered a plea of guilty.

The sentencing judge also identified several aggravating circumstances. The accused stabbed the victim twice, the second time after he had fled in an attempt to escape. The accused clearly intended to harm the victim, based on the remarks she had made before and after the stabbing. The accused was not afraid of the victim, she was the aggressor (Commentary: R v. Gladue [1999]).

I disagree with the charge, the majority of the mitigating factors, and the light jail term. First I will address why I disagree with the charge. The accused showed intent to harm the victim, therefore the charge should have been amended to 1st degree homicide.

The mitigating factors I disagree with are her being a mother, the one criminal conviction for impaired driving and her medical condition. Being a mother is no excuse for a light sentence, neither is the medical condition she had at the time of the offence. And as for the impaired conviction, having a criminal record should have been an aggravating factor. I also have issues with her so-called remorse and enter of guilty plea.

I have issues with these because all too often those that are facing criminal offences only show remorse to play the system. It is of my position that the accused should have been charged and convicted in accordance with section 229(b) of the Criminal Code of Canada and given a life sentence with no parole. The protection of society should and must come first over the rights of the accused no matter what race the accused is.

ENTRY FOUR

According to lecture material, are at least four types of racism. These four types of racism are, 1) Blatant and Overt, 2) Covert, 3) Polite, and 4) Internalized. According to lecture material, racism is socially created and a category of perception. Both definitions can be maintained by laws, sin, offence, tradition, norms and values. In this fourth and final entry I will discuss these four types of racism and how they could be addressed.

BLATANT AND OVERT

This type of racism refers to in your face, out there, not hidden. An example of this would be the Ku Klux Klan burning a cross on an African American’s yard. Another example would be where restaurants refuse to serve African Americans or any other non-whites. These examples would be on the spectrum of the extreme which were more prevalent in the 1950’s and 1960’s and were abolished once segregation was vacated.

COVERT

This type of racism refers to the thought is there, but the action isn’t necessarily there. An example of this type of racism could be when a Caucasian student and an Aboriginal student make a class presentation in a class taught by a Caucasian professor. The professor gives the Caucasian student an A grade but would give the Aboriginal a C grade.

POLITE

This type of racism refers to the person dishing out the racism doesn’t think the other person feels it, but they do and they realize how things are really going. An example of this type of racism could be when a Caucasian is talking to an Aboriginal and comes across as caring and understanding and almost condescending, yet not realizing that they are rude and racist.

INTERNALIZED

This type of racism refers to Feeling racist towards your own racial group. An example of this type of racism could be when a person shows hatred towards their own kind, such as when a leader of the band suggests that the band consider re-establishing their Aboriginal traditions and receives a deeply negative response laced with deep-seated hatred. In my opinion the way to successfully address racism is through both education and healing circles.

REFERENCES

Bell, S. J. (2003). Young Offenders and Juvenile Justice, second edition. Scarborough, On: Thomson Nelson.

Commentary: Aboriginal Initiatives Branch SCC decision of R v. Gladue.

EUROCENTRISM (n.d.). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eurocentrism. Retrieved March 10, 2008 from the World Wide Web.

EUROPEAN HISTORY OF BELIEFS AND VALUES (n. d.) http://www.telusplanet.net/public/dgarneau/euro.htm. Retrieved March 10, 2008 from the World Wide Web.

Henderson, J. H. (Sakej). (2002). Postcolonial Ghost Dancing: Diagnosing European Colonialism. Reclaiming Indigenous Voice and Vision, 4.

Holy Bible – King James Version.