Kristian Williams - Our Enemies in Blue - Police and Power in America

It is tempting to try to distinguish between a non-violent and restitutive formof popular justice, rooted in and accountable to the "community," and a violentand punitive form of popular justice executed by irresponsible and "lawless"individuals. "Community courts" (organized, responsible, restrained) areoften contrasted with "vigilantism," (spontaneous, reckless and brutal), andit is claimed that strengthening "community courts" will lead to less "vigilantism."There is some truth in this. But the reality is not neat and tidy. Manycommunities will sanction the use of violence in a wide range of conditions,sometimes to an extent that seems excessive to observers ....In a township like Guguletu most forms of vigilantism do not entail actualphysical violence: disputes within families or between neighbors or evenbetween people on different streets are settled through compensation orundertakings to change one's behavior. But behind these settlements liesthe threat of ostracism or of violence, and violence is widely used againstrebellious juveniles. Vigilantism is implicit in even the most peaceful formsof community court.. .. In other words, there seems to be a tacit acceptanceof violent forms of vigilantism if it is initiated by or has the consent ofstreet committees or other legitimate local institutions.7')Likewise, the Blue Book authors are critical of the South African model:[Wle are not sure that any form of "direct democracy" such as specially electedstreet and neighborhood committees would be workable. While this is thepattern in some South African models and has been tried in Belfast ... webelieve it would be hard to implement it in today's modern, differentiatedcommunities. HO'They go on to specifically criticize the reliance on violence:After considerable discussion, it was agreed that the presence of violenceas a sanction in a community justice system had a considerably de-legitimizingeffect.. .. This was despite the tact that several of the communityjustice systems examined (notably South Africa) had included the use ofviolent sanctions as punishment for offending.81Tn is disagreement points to a more fundamental concern, one that will largelydetermine the success or failure of any democratic or community-based system-namely,that of legitimacy. More important than the questions of ''law'' or''violence'' is the competition between the state and the revolutionaries to acquireand maintain political support Lee and Seekings note the popular support forsome types of violence, and specifically explain that its acceptability depends onthe legitimacy of the institutions authorizing it The Blue Book authors, likewise,do not denounce violence per se (remember, they hope someday to cooperatewith the police) , but they strongly recommend against its use in the contemporary context of Northern Ireland because it is likely to de-legitimize the restorativejustice efforts. This strikes me as politically wise: given the history of theconflict, the earlier involvement of the IRA in crime control, the widespread distrust of the RUC, and the continued tensions in the region (cease-fire or no) , itseems highly probable that any officially sanctioned violence will be viewed inpartisan terms and undercut the CRJ's efforts. In both these cases, there is a closecorrelation between public interpretations of violence and political legitimacy.234