Pursuing justice in a community experiencing environmental injustice: The practice of community revitalization

Justice is perceived divergently by the stakeholders of revitalization projects for the community experiencing environmental injustice. Weaving different conceptions of justice into revitalization practice is critical for correcting injustice faced by the community. This paper investigates brownfiel...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Lee, Tsuey-Ping (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
Published: 2020
In: Contemporary justice review
Online Access: Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
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Summary:Justice is perceived divergently by the stakeholders of revitalization projects for the community experiencing environmental injustice. Weaving different conceptions of justice into revitalization practice is critical for correcting injustice faced by the community. This paper investigates brownfield revitalization projects implemented in the Arkwright community in Spartanburg, South Carolina and explores stakeholders’ definitions of justice and how the abstract thoughts were transformed into elements of the projects. The stakeholders defined justice as equality, fairness, correctness, and involvement. Equality was pursued by programs of improving community living quality for giving every resident an equal opportunity to enjoy a better neighborhood. Fairness was sought by providing services to help residents reach an ideal living status regardless of race, ethnicity, and income. Correctness was attempted by correcting past transgressions. Involvement was addressed by keeping stakeholders informed, building communication channels and improving the community’s capacity for meaningful participation. Two factors necessary for successful community regeneration are extracted, trust between stakeholders and a holistic revitalization approach. Pursuing a vision shared by stakeholders through the coordination of grassroots organizations that witness the injustice history and insist on correcting it, restorative justice between environmental offenders and victims could be achieved even if that was not their original purpose.
ISSN:1477-2248
DOI:10.1080/10282580.2019.1700365