Beyond punishment: Towards a framework of transformative accountability

Abstract

The entrenched nature of punitive ideologies within societal structures demands a radical reconceptualization of justice and accountability. Sustained inquiry into modes of accountability that seek to exist outside the bounds of the broadly punitive thus presents a radical and necessary project. This article explores transformative justice (TJ) as a community-centered form of accountability that challenges punitive ideologies. Using ethnographic interviews with US-based TJ facilitators, I explore how these practices seek to address harm in a way that centers accountability, rather than punishment. I present a framework of eight spectrums that distinguish TJ processes from punishment. While punitive approaches seek to assign blame and isolate harmful actors from their communities, TJ relies on the core principle that all people are deserving of safety, dignity, and belonging, regardless of any harm they have caused. This article contributes to penal theory by arguing for a framework that views punishment and transformative consequences along a continuum, offering a critical perspective on the possibilities for justice beyond punitive mechanisms.