Notable Read

A recent NPR radio report on October 10, 2019, by Tovia Smith presented a new perspective that is not heard too often:  "Growing Efforts Are Looking At How - Or If - #MeToo Offenders Can Be Reformed" (listen to the 7-minute audio version).  This report features a man who voluntarily offered to be a surrogate offender in several "vicarious restorative justice" dialogue processes that included women who had been victimized by sexual assault. 

Assisting these opportunities is a professor from Cal State University, Fullerton, Alissa Ackerman, who also teaches a course called "Sex, Crime, and Culture."  As a proponent of restorative justice, Ackerman has extensively researched how sexual offendering can benefit from appropriate conversations. "No matter what somebody has done, no matter what somebody has experienced, their voice is important in understanding why it happens and what survivors need."

A powerful example of this work is now presented through a TED Talk, "Our Story of Rape and Reconciliation," which involves a man who took full responsibility for the harm he caused on his former girlfriend.