WHAT IS JUSTICE?

Justice is an abstract idea tied to what we think is fair — a kind of “complex accounting,” in the words of bell hooks. When MJN formed, we knew that if we wanted to make justice normal, it’s the pervasive habits that needed attention, not only the siloed programmatic actions that limit norm shifts. 

Our working description is based on reading characterizations of justice, from climate, environmental, and procedural, to distributive, economic, and restorative. We don’t see this as a definition. Instead, it’s the draft outline for a system blueprint: the ingredients we think our system might need to make justice normal.

  • “The Earth is the Mother of all people, and all people should have equal rights upon it.”

    – Chief Joseph, Nez Perce

  • “Massive poverty and obscene inequality are such terrible scourges of our times.... Overcoming poverty is not a gesture of charity. It is an act of justice. It is the protection of a fundamental human right, the right to dignity and a decent life.”

    — Nelson Mandela

  • “Among those of us who share the goals of liberation and a workable future for our children there can be no hierarchies of oppression.”

    Audre Lorde

  • “Justice demands integrity. It’s to have a moral universe — not only know what is right or wrong but to put things in perspective, weigh things. Justice is different from violence and retribution; it requires complex accounting.”

    —bell hooks

  • “We live in a world where justice equals vengeance. Where private profit drives public policy.”

    ―Toni Morrison

  • "Power at its best is love implementing the demands of justice. Justice at its best is love correcting everything that stands against love.”

    ―Martin Luther King Jr.

  • "I raise up my voice—not so that I can shout, but so that those without a voice can be heard. … We cannot all succeed when half of us are held back."

    Malala Yousafzai

  • “Words like ‘freedom,’ ‘justice,’ ‘democracy’ are not common concepts; on the contrary, they are rare. People are not born knowing what these are. It takes enormous and, above all, individual effort to arrive at the respect for other people that these words imply.”

    — James Baldwin

AN ACTION

… To design systems that treat all members as inherently of equal value & voice — not the same — while:

  • naming and undoing anti-Blackness, anti-Indigeneity, bias, and prejudice. Is Earth also a member? And if so, who represents her voice where she can’t speak?

  • respecting unique individual contributions & wisdoms, such as getting credit for our hard work, without losing sight of equality.

A FUTURE STATE

… In which justice is a norm of systems & we see liberation:

  • collective prosperity, repair, and redressal for past wrongs, especially for all groups historically denied.

  • stewardship of Earth, knowing that voices of Earth beings most affected by poison in our air, water, & land are undermined in today's unjust systems.

  • harmony & synergy in everyday relationships, recognizing that systems are simply relational models.

4 CHARACTERISTICS

What does a system look like in which justice, as defined, is possible, sustained, and protected? Our working descriptions have led us to 4 characteristics to practice in operations, finance, and programs. We're gathering feedback to keep evolving.

PRACTICE & LISTEN

There are tensions in justice that organizations have been wrestling with for centuries. Like: how do we weigh equal value against individual contributions? Who should have power in decisions where few can be present — and why?

We’re beginning to share, blueprint, and pilot new systems, with hope that pilots will result in different outcomes at small scales. From there, we can scale what works.  Eventually, we hope justice becomes normal, not the exception.