Carrie Menkel-Meadow: Leading Us Towards Justice AND Peace

Abstract

In the 1960s, as today, and likely in all eras, there has been a tension and often debate regarding how best to work towards social change. From a big picture standpoint, can there be justice without peace, and can there be peace without justice? From a more individual perspective, is change best achieved through activism or even violence, or is change best achieved through communication, empathy and understanding? If both approaches can sometimes be appropriate, how do we decide which choice is best in a given situation?

Professor Carrie Menkel-Meadow, through both her life history and her scholarship, has helped us to see that both paths are important, and that the role of the activist can be blended with the role of the mediator or peacemaker. This essay will explore how she has highlighted the path of “And” – showing and explaining that it is not only possible but also desirable to seek justice as well as peace, to be both activist and neutral. Of course, tensions will remain. With regard to particular issues in specific moments we all must decide which path we can and should take. Which activism is best and which goes too far? With whom can we or should we negotiate, and when should we instead say “I can’t negotiate with this person or group?” When should we talk and listen and when are we realistically beyond that possibility? These questions do not have simple answers, but Carrie’s life and work offer important insights.

Keywords: Carrie Menkel-Meadow, mediation, justice, peace