Negative emotions and transitional justice / Mihaela Mihai.

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Vehement resentment and indignation are pervasive in societies emerging from dictatorship or civil conflict. How can institutions channel these emotions without undermining the prospects for democracy?

Emphasizing the need to recognize and constructively engage negative public emotions, Mihaela Mihai contributes theoretically and practically to the growing field of transitional justice. Drawing on an extensive philosophical literature and case studies of democratic transitions in South Africa, South America, and Eastern Europe, her book rescues negative emotions from their bad reputation and highlights the obstacles and the opportunities such emotions create for democracy. By valorizing negative emotions, either through the judicial review of transitional justice bills or the criminal trials of victimizers, institutions realize the value of respect and concern for all while contributing to a culture that is hospitable to democracy.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

CHOICE Review

Based on a doctoral thesis defended in 2010, whose chapters were first published separately as articles and then brought together in book form, this volume explores the relationship between (mostly negative) public emotional responses and state-led transitional justice programs implemented in post-dictatorial settings. The first part of the book puts forth a defense of the necessity to initiate transitional justice. Chapter 1 provides a selective overview of transitional justice that concludes with an examination of the emotional circumstances of justice during democratic shifts. Chapter 2 turns to resentment and indignation, as well as emotional expressions as sources of justice in transitional settings. The second part of the book focuses on the way domestic courts distributing post-conflict justice should recognize democratically appropriate resentment and indignation. Empirical cases drawn from South Africa, Latin America, and Eastern Europe illustrate how courts have dealt with public expressions of such emotions. Chapter 3 focuses on the judicial review of transitional justice laws, whereas chapter 4 discusses court trials as redress. Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate students and faculty. --Lavinia Stan, St. Francis Xavier University