Author of case study: Marcela Torres Molano

Geopolitical location of space:
733 Portland Avenue
St. Paul, Minnesota
55104

Extant? Yes

Architect:
Original architect unknown

Timeframe RJ/TJ process in this space:

Start date: 2019
End date: ongoing

Background information:

The Circles of Peace initiative, held inside the Unity Unitarian Church, is part of an official justice approach that allows first time offenders to go through a restorative justice process instead of a traditional court session. If the offender completes the program their record will be clean.

Is restorative  justice actually taking place in this space?

Yes, racial and restorative justice processes take place here, fostering encounters between offenders and survivors, with community members facilitating the process. All participants are able to talk about the incident in this space.

Is this space designed/arranged for safe listening?

Even though the space is not designed specifically for restorative justice purposes, it is arranged for group sessions where everyone gets to speak and everyone gets to be heard. 

Who is the audience/the intended participants for this space?

First time offenders who commit minor crimes will be allowed to resolve their cases in the restorative circle. After the offender completes the program the crime will be deleted from their record. Under this model, first-time offenders can resolve their crimes through talking it out in a restorative circle, instead of going to court, paying fines or spending time in jail.

How or to what extent is this space public?
This is a private space inside of a Unitarian church. The space is not exclusively used for restorative justice practices. It is an interior space inside of a church.

Physical/factual description of space:

Saint Paul, the state capital of Minnesota, forms the “Twin Cities” with neighbouring Minneapolis. By 2018, it had a population of 307,695.

Area of St. Paul church building: 48,000 sq.ft

In 2013, the church building was expanded and renovated to include a revitalised entry courtyard, full accessibility on all levels of the facility, and new community gathering and educational spaces. The Circles of Peace are held in the centre room of the church, with a capacity of 25-30  people. It is an interior, central space without natural lighting or ventilation. The furniture is arranged to create a circle space that allows direct communication between participants. During the sessions the main element of the circles is a shining stone that serves as a talking piece.

Analytical description of space:

The city attorney’s office launched the  ETHOS program, working in collaboration with the Dispute Resolution Center of Saint Paul, and the initiative Circle of Peace to help design the program and train the facilitators. Every circle begins with a healthy meal prepared by volunteers. The Circle of Peace has an indigenous origin of being — communicating, building and maintaining relationships.

(ETHOS  stands for Engaging community, Taking responsibility, Healing, Overcoming obstacles and Sustaining solutions.)

There are two main rules for the circle space:
1. Only speak when you’re holding the talking piece
2. What’s said in the circle stays in the circle.

They facilitate a weekly restorative-justice circle, a conversation intended to foster racial healing in the community. It began with the idea of communicating with families of St. Paul gang members, and later the city government adopted elements of circle practice for first-time offenders of minor crimes.

One of the program’s coordinators affirmed: “We find that it’s the best accountability that you could offer someone because they’re involved in how they want to repair the harm that they’ve caused.” The offender, the victim, and a community member facilitate the conversation around the incident. Community members get training from the expert and other facilitators to become “circle keepers”. The facilitator helps the two participants talk about what happened, what caused it, and how it can be resolved. Even though the city of Saint Paul has worked with restorative approaches before, this is the first time it has implemented a formal program.