CFP: Philosophical Perspectives on Crime, Violence, and Justice

The Criminal Justice and Philosophy series, published by Trivent Publishing and edited by M. Blake Wilson, is calling for proposals and papers for its inaugural edited volume, Philosophical Perspectives on Crime, Violence, and Justice. We are soliciting abstracts, completed papers, and a limited selection of previously published papers from philosophers, legal scholars, political scientists, sociologists, and criminal justice researchers. 

IMPORTANT DEADLINES:

Deadline for submission (please submit either an abstract or a full paper): December 1, 2021

Notification of acceptance: January 15, 2022

Final full papers (6,000 – 8,000 words): June 1, 2022

HOW TO SUBMIT:

Abstracts or completed papers must be written in English. Completed papers should also include a brief abstract of no more than 250 words. Each submission should include a CV/resume. Please submit inquiries and materials to Blake Wilson at [email protected]

DESCRIPTION OF THE VOLUME:

As we reflect on the twenty-first century (thus far), one of the major recurring themes is criminal justice: the theory and the practice of how and why we punish wrongdoers. And rightfully so: from a normative perspective, punishment demands substantial justification if it is to be justified at all. Brought to the forefront by the graphic murder of George Floyd in May, 2020 by members of the Minneapolis Police Department, Floyd’s treatment and death at their hands and knees forced into the global public consciousness a perspective of the criminal justice system that had long been known to scholars, researchers, professionals worldwide and, of course, the individuals and communities who experience the system’s other side as defendants, felons, probationers, and parolees: the system is either broken (it fails to deliver justice), or it’s working perfectly well (it was never intended to deliver justice). While some call for the abolition of the system and others for its radical reformation, no one working in this area as a scholar or professional argues to maintain the status quo or argues in favor of increasing the power and presence of the so-called “punishment industry”––although populist opinion often calls shrilly for maximizing state control through policing and imprisonment while minimizing or eliminating its ability to increase welfare or pursue equity.  

Whichever standpoint is correct, criminal justice systems in the United States, Europe, and beyond rely upon a multitude of institutional sub-agents for its undergirding: legislators, law enforcement, legal professionals (lawyers, prosecutors, judges), fact-finders (juries), social welfare services, health providers, carceral employees, and surveillance agencies. These institutional structures and layers provides a rich substrate for theorists, philosophers, and researchers to explore a variety of the justifications, arguments, and normative approaches to crime, violence, and justice. 

Accordingly, this volume aims to canvas innovative, critical, and global/international debates addressing the intersection of criminal justice and philosophy (social, political, ethical, and legal). Here, criminal justice is broadly understood to include formal institutional responses to crime and misconduct, as well as informal and non-institutional responses which include behaviors considered ‘deviant,’ anti-social,’ or otherwise outside the scope of criminal law.

We invite proposals and completed articles addressing topics related to the philosophy of criminal justice as well as criminal justice and philosophy. We are particularly interested in the exploration of innovative approaches to the problems presented by the classification of certain behaviors as criminal or ‘merely’ wrongful, the maintenance of separate criminal and civil legal institutions, and the pervasive use of coercive institutions (police, jails, prison) as mechanisms of social control and punishment.

TOPICS OF INTEREST:

- The normative role of political agents (popular, legislative, executive) in criminal law and procedure

- Philosophical perspectives on crime, violence, and justice in terms of race, ethnicity, class, and nationality (e.g., differential punishment, mass incarceration, collateral consequences, etc.)

- Critical approaches to criminal justice institutions: police, courts, prisons

- Theories and justifications of punishment and incarceration (consequential, deontological, retributivist, expressivist, etc.)

- The problem of epistemic injustice in relation to crime and punishment

- Theories of crime causation (e.g., broken windows theory) and prevention 

- Alternatives to punishment: restorative justice, compensatory justice, etc.

- Justificatory reasons for the abolition of the prison/police

- The normative force of criminal law

- The relationship between criminal law and economic justice, social justice, and/or applied ethics

- Arguments over the unification of criminal and civil law

- Philosophical perspectives on psychiatry, psychopathology, and moral/legal responsibility

- Normative approaches to the use of technology (such as body worn cameras) in crime detection, punishment, and prevention

- Philosophical reflections on crime and criminal justice in the arts (literature, cinema, etc.)