Upcoming Events
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Ripples of Justice
Date: Thur. Sep. 26 5:30-7:30pm
Location: The Jefferson School, 233 4th St. NW Charlottesville VA 22903
Join us for an evening of reflection, connection, and inspiration as we celebrate the strides made toward justice and explore ways to expand our impact. This event will celebrate and highlight CVCJ’s impactful restorative justice work from the past year. Attendees will have the opportunity to hear inspiring stories of how CVCJ’s restorative practices have fostered justice and safety within the community. The evening will provide a unique platform for community members who share a commitment to justice and healing to connect and collaborate.
WITH SPECIAL GUESTS:
Meghan Nayak, Vera Institute of Justice
Sarah Peaslee, CVCJ Restorative Justice Participant
As Mother Teresa famously said, “I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create many ripples.” Your presence at “Ripples of Justice” will help us continue creating those ripples, fostering a more just and equitable community.
Learn more and reserve your ticket here.
Many thanks to our event sponsors, Soul Food Joint, Tip Top Restaurant, Wegmans, and Harvest Moon Catering. (Additional sponsorship opportunities are available; please contact info@communityjusticeva.org for more information.)
Past Events
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CVCJ Office Hours
Date/Time: 2nd Tuesday of the month (April 9, May 14, June 11), 11:30am-12:30pm
Location: Region Ten Blue Ridge Center, 100 Burnet St. Charlottesville VA 22902
Have you been charged with a crime or caused harm to someone and wish there was a way to make amends directly to the person you harmed? Have you been harmed by someone and want support handling the situation outside of the criminal legal system? Do you want to learn more about how CVCJ helps community members direct their own healing and accountability, whether they are involved with the criminal legal system or not? CVCJ provides adults and youth with a way to resolve incidents of harm that is focused on healing, safety, and repair.
Stop by, enjoy some snacks, and speak with us about our services and if restorative justice may be right for you.
No registration required. See all of Blue Ridge Center’s programs here.
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Responding to Harm: Reflective Jail Tour and Intro to Restorative Justice
Date: Wed. April 17, 2024
- Morning Session: 9:30 am – 11:30 am
- Afternoon Session: 12:30 pm – 2:30 pm
- Evening Session: 3:00 pm – 5:00 pm
Location: Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail, 160 Peregory Ln, Charlottesville, VA 22902
If you have never been in your local jail, now is the time. This tour, led by Col. Martin Kumer, superintendent of the jail, will offer a glimpse at conditions in the jail. Following the tour, a Central Virginia Community Justice representative will facilitate a reflection on the experience, and an introduction to how CVCJ is offering restorative justice as an alternative to incarceration.
This event is free but requires pre-registration. Please email samh@ejusa.org to reserve a spot. Space is limited!
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Let’s Talk: A Panel Discussion About Conversations During Conflict
Date/Time: Friday, April 19, 2024 10:00am
Location: CitySpace on the downtown mall. NOTE: “CitySpace” does not show up on Google Maps; use 100 5th Street NE. CitySpace is located at the corner of the downtown mall and 5th Street NE – go up the brick stairs located by the parking garage elevator and through the glass doors.
When conflict, harm or crime happens, where can those involved get support if they want to talk it through? This panel discussion brings together numerous organizations in Charlottesville who provide support for these conversations. Come to build our community’s conflict-competency by learning what resources are available to you, whether you are in conflict with a landlord, co-parent, neighbor, friend, police officer, or anyone who has hurt or harmed you.
- Moderator: Eddie Howard, Abundant Life Ministries. Panelists: Erin Campbell, Central Virginia Community Justice; Taylor Frome, Mediation Center of Charlottesville; Inez Gonzalez, Police Civilian Oversight Board; Todd Niemeier, Charlottesville Human Rights Commission & Office of Human Rights; Brian Page, BUCK Squad
This event is free and does not require pre-registration. Find more information on the Tom Tom Festival website.
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Traffic Violence and Restorative Justice
Date & Time: Tue. April 23, 2024 6:00-7:15pm
Location: Online
This event will address the intersection of two of the most powerful (and problematic) systems in our community: transportation and criminal justice. When someone is harmed by traffic violence, how should the legal system respond?
One approach is primarily punitive/carceral, while another approach downplays the severity of the harm caused. A restorative justice model attempts to avoid the pitfalls of these two approaches and has recently become a criminal diversion option in Charlottesville and Albemarle.
Erin Campbell, Co-Director of Central VA Community Justice and Shannon Neal, Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney for Albemarle County will discuss this model. We will also hear from the survivor & the driver of a local hit and run case who chose the restorative justice option.
This presentation is free and open to the public. To register: https://events.humanitix.com/traffic-violence-and-restorative-justice
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Crime Victims’ Rights Week event
Date/Time: Friday, April 26, 5-6pm
Location: Free Speech Wall, Charlottesville downtown mall
Stop by the Free Speech Wall to share your ideas for options, services, and hope for survivors of crime and harm. CVCJ staff will be there to hand out chalk, speak with survivors and those who support them, and answer questions about how restorative justice can meet survivors’ needs. All are welcome!
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Tomorrow Talks | Restorative Justice in Real Life: A Workshop on Communicating to Repair
Date & Time: February 21, 6:30-8:30pm
Location: Tom Tom Foundation, 100 South Street West ##1D Charlottesville, VA 22902
In this interactive session, Erin Campbell and Rydell Payne from Central Virginia Community Justice will introduce us to restorative frameworks and practices that can strengthen us as individuals and as an interconnected community.
CVCJ’s restorative justice is used innovatively by Charlottesville and Albemarle’s criminal legal systems, diverting cases away from the courtroom so that crime and harms can be addressed directly by those most impacted. People who have been harmed ask for what they need to heal, and those who are responsible for harm grow by taking action and accountability. Erin and Rydell will share some stories of CVCJ’s powerful work, and how, when we are treated with dignity and given space to reflect, we are more willing to step into accountability and empathy.
This workshop will introduce “circle process,” a way of slowing down the conversation to hear and share what’s at the heart of the matter. Then, participants will be invited to apply RJ principles to a situation in their own lives. We’ll use journaling, pair share and group share to ponder how RJ can bring healing, repair and safety to situations of harm and conflict happening in our community right now.
Come prepared for this workshop – bring along your journal and pen!
All tickets are donation based on a sliding scale ($15 – $35).
To register & learn more: https://www.tomtomfoundation.org/post/tomorrow-talks-restorative-justice-in-real-life-a-workshop-on-communicating-to-repair