Table Of ContentA
R
E
S
T
O
R
A
T
I
V
E
A
P
P
R
O
A
C
H
T
O
F
A
M
I
L
Y
V
I
O Routledge Frontiers of Criminal Justice
L
E
N
C
E
A RESTORATIVE APPROACH
TO FAMILY VIOLENCE
FEMINIST KIN-MAKING
Joan Pennell
“This important and beautifully written book narrates a history of brave
innovation confronting family violence at its roots in Newfoundland
and Labrador. It empowered First Peoples and First Nations to innovate
in ways that allow us all to learn from their wisdom, and from histories
of our colonial suppression of that wisdom. Evocative theoretical themes
include feminist kin-making that moves patriarchal family structures
from taking to tending. Joan Pennell draws upon deep wells of feminist
activism in the shelter movement. She is an inspiring visionary, returning
social work to its Hull House origins of doing with, away from doing for,
from doing to.”
John Braithwaite, University of Maryland
and Australian National University; Distinguished
Professor Emeritus, School of Regulation
and Global Governance (RegNet)
“A Restorative Approach to Family Violence: Feminist Kin-Making pro-
vides strong evidence for how, among other things, resetting externally
imposed cultural narratives and re-centering the value of kinship ties
are necessary steps towards addressing family violence. These steps may
potentially change how child welfare systems engage with communities
in which solutions can most effectively be found within their cultural
roots.”
Kwesi Brookins, Professor of Psychology
and Africana Studies, North Carolina State University;
Director, Center for Family and Community Engagement
“In this fantastic book, Professor Joan Pennell offers an exciting theoret-
ical re-framing of the well-known Newfoundland and Labrador FGDM
project led by Professor Gale Burford and her in the 1990s. The passage
of time allows the author to reflect back and to add rich, multi-dimen-
sional and state-of-the-art layers of theory to the program, which was
ahead of its time when implemented. The book is a “Must read” for any-
one working in the field of family violence, child protection and restora-
tive justice: The “mother” of family group decision making re-organizes
the building blocks of the project’s long-lasting success, and constructs
a new framework that combines feminist, intergenerational, relational,
cultural-sensitive and regulatory theories together. With this new frame-
work, the strengths of the restorative justice approach become even more
apparent; the development of new programs becomes more structured;
and the evaluation of operating programs can be far more robust.”
Tali Gal, Head, School of Criminology,
University of Haifa, Israel
“In this valuable and timely book, Joan Pennell persuasively addresses
one of the dilemmas confronting the modern development and applica-
tion of restorative practices—family violence. Among RJ practitioners,
the application of restorative values, principles, and practices to family
violence has been thought to be very risky. It was feared that it might
result in revictimization by those responsible due to power imbalances,
subtle communication cues, and later retaliation. Based on an early
demonstration project by Gale Burford and Joan, this book demonstrates
that while careful preparation and coordination are necessary to decrease
the odds of additional harm, Family Group Decision Making rooted in
restorative practices may be uniquely suited to help families heal the
harms, change attitudes and behaviors, and allow respectful relationships
to be reestablished.”
Michael J. Gilbert, Professor Emeritus
of Criminology & Criminal Justice, University
of Texas at San Antonio; Executive Director, National
Association of Community and Restorative Justice
“This important book is written by one of the key developers of our
practice and thinking around restorative approaches to family violence.
It draws on both contemporary research and the author’s reflections on
the trail-blazing use of restorative approaches in Canada in the 1990s.
Characteristically, the book does not duck the challenges of family vio-
lence but is founded in a feminist kinship approach that carries hope and
belief in families’ and communities’ abilities to address it, with the right
support. The book also brings an important focus on the centrality of
narratives to this work—the importance of questioning narratives which
create stereotypes that disempower families and communities, and the
revolutionary power of personal narratives as a means of grasping agency
and making meaning from experience.”
Robin Sen, Lecturer, Social Work, University
of Edinburgh, Scotland; Editor, Practice:
Social Work in Action
A Restorative Approach to Family Violence
A Restorative Approach to Family Violence looks back at an early and successful
demonstration of a family and culturally based model to stop severe fam-
ily violence. This conferencing model, called family group decision mak-
ing, was applied by three diverse Canadian communities—Inuit, rural, and
urban—to the benefit of child and adult family members. Narrative inquiry
identifies how engaging the family and relatives resets the narrative from
misrecognition to recognition of their competence and caring.
Family violence poses some of the most long-term and controversial ques-
tions in restorative justice. Should we use a restorative approach to stop gen-
dered and intergenerational harm? Or will bringing together those who have
been harmed, those causing harm, and their supporters only incite more
violence? Underlying these questions is a profound distrust of families and
their cultural networks. This distrust has stalled turning away from carceral
interventions that particularly harm minoritized communities.
Moving forward in time, the volume identifies blocks to trusting families
and their cultural networks and means of circumventing these blocks. The
book offers a theory of feminist kin-making to comprehend the restorative
process and gives practical guidance to restorative participants, practitioners,
policy makers, and researchers.
Joan Pennell is Professor Emerita of Social Work and founding director of
the Center for Family and Community Engagement at North Carolina State
University. Before her return to the United States, she was principal inves-
tigator (with Dr. Gale Burford) of the Newfoundland and Labrador, Can-
ada, demonstration of family group decision making in situations of child
maltreatment and domestic violence. In the US, she has conducted research
on family group conferencing and other forms of engaging families in deci-
sion-making. She has a long-term commitment to the movements for gender,
racial, and economic justice.
Routledge Frontiers of Criminal Justice
The Impact of Covid-19 on Prison Conditions and Penal Policy
Edited by Frieder Dünkel, Stefan Harrendorf and Dirk van Zyl Smit
The Virtual Reality of Imprisonment in Russia
“Preparing myself for Prison” in a Contested Human Rights Landscape
Laura Piacentini and Elena Katz
Life Without Parole
Worse than Death?
Ross Kleinstuber, Jeremiah Coldsmith, Margaret E. Leigey and Sandra Joy
Penal Responses to Serious Offending by Children
Principles, Practice and Global Perspectives
Nessa Lynch, Yannick van den Brink and Louise Forde
A Restorative Approach to Family Violence
Feminist Kin-Making
Joan Pennell
Interviewing of Suspects with Mental Health Conditions
and Disorders in England and Wales
A Paradigm Shift
Laura Farrugia
Convictions Without Truth
The Incompatibility of Science and Law
Robert Schehr
For more information about this series, please visit: www.routledge.com/
Routledge-Frontiers-of-Criminal-Justice/book-series/RFCJ
A Restorative Approach
to Family Violence
Feminist Kin-Making
Joan Pennell
First published 2023
by Routledge
605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10158
and by Routledge
4 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 4RN
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2023 Taylor & Francis
The right of Joan Pennell to be identified as author of this work has
been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright,
Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or
reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical,
or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including
photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval
system, without permission in writing from the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks
or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and
explanation without intent to infringe.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Pennell, Joan, 1949- author.
Title: A restorative approach to family violence : feminist kin-making /
Joan Pennell.
Description: New York, NY : Routledge, 2023. | Series: Routledge
frontiers of criminal justice | Includes bibliographical references and
index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2022000398 (print) | LCCN 2022000399 (ebook) |
ISBN 9780367612665 (hbk) | ISBN 9780367615253 (pbk) |
ISBN 9781003105374 (ebk)
Subjects: LCSH: Family violence. | Family violence--Prevention.
Classification: LCC HV6626 .P453 2023 (print) | LCC HV6626 (ebook) |
DDC 362.82/92--dc23/eng/20220121
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022000398
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022000399
ISBN: 978-0-367-61266-5 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-0-367-61525-3 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-1-003-10537-4 (ebk)
DOI: 10.4324/9781003105374
Typeset in Bembo
by KnowledgeWorks Global Ltd.
To My Family Group
I dedicate this book to my family, friends,
and all those with whom I have made,
am making, and will make kinship.
Contents
Foreword from Labrador xiv
Foreword from Newfoundland xvi
Preface xviii
Project Materials xxi
Abbreviations xxii
1 A Restorative Approach—Narrative Threads 1
Defamiliarizing family violence 1
Feminist action against family violence 2
An unexpected conclusion 3
Feminist kin-making 4
From resemblance to affinity 4
An imposed ethic of care 5
From taking to tending 5
A restorative approach and family violence 6
Culturally responsive 6
Multiplying benefits 7
Instigating change 8
Western restorative traditions 8
Gendered shaming 8
Movements to colorize restorative justice 9
Growing openness 10
Resistance to White supremacy 10
Accountability for racial justice 11
Endogenous-exogenous solutions 12
Learnings 13
Cultural practice and rights 13
A family group or the family group 13
Recognition without the necessary power and means 14
