State Violence, Resistance and Justice

Overview

This module situates state violence, resistance and justice in decolonial thought and Southern Criminology. It critically explores different types of violence such as colonialism, racialised violence, mass violence and the destruction of Planet Earth. We will critically explore forms of resistance that emerged such as epistemological and violent resistance and kinds of justice such as state apologies, restitution for looted heritage, restorative justice and criminal justice on the international level. The module is global in its outlook, taking students to places such as South Africa, Guatemala, Rwanda and Nigeria. It encourages critical and interdisciplinary thinking drawing from socio-legal studies, African Studies, post-colonial studies, anthropology, and criminology.

Learning Objectives

1. Understand and discuss academic debates on and key concepts concerning state violence, resistance and justice
2. Explain the forms, causes and consequences of state violence
3. Critically analyse the kinds of justice and forms of resistance developed in response to state violence
4. Apply concepts of violence, resistance and justice to selected case studies.

Skills

This module aims to enable students to develop the following skills:
1. Written and oral communication skills
2. Presenting data and evidence in an appropriate format for a variety of audiences
3. Evaluating evidence of diverse kinds and drawing appropriate conclusions
4. Identifying the most important arguments or evidence in a text and recording and/or representing these
5. Engaging in critical reflection and independent thinking that leads to new insights into and different perspectives on sensitive problems and issues in contemporary society

Assessment

None