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PEACE AND JUSTICE
Author(s) -
Fogarty Brian E.
Publication year - 1992
Publication title -
peace and change
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1468-0130
pISSN - 0149-0508
DOI - 10.1111/j.1468-0130.1992.tb00585.x
Subject(s) - economic justice , political science , criminology , sociology , law
It is often taken for granted in the peace studies and peacemaking communities that peace and justice are intimately linked. However, definitions of both peace and justice are difficult to agree upon. Worse, such definitions as are implied in the hypothesis tend to be ethnocentric in nature, rooted in Western Judeo‐Christian traditions. This article offers definitions of peace and justice that are independent of particular moral systems, by grounding them in principles of interactionist sociology. The conclusion is that peace and justice are in fact related, but not inevitably so. A just social order, based on genuine consensus on beliefs, values, and norms, is the surest way to maintain peace in the long run. But such consensus can be formed around widely varying belief systems, some of which may seem unjust to Western eyes.