Abolition feminism and transitional justice: Reflections on theory and praxis from Guatemala

Abolition feminism and transitional justice are two bodies of scholarship and practice which have rarely been in direct conversation with each other. This article attempts to bridge that gap by applying an abolitionist analysis to Guatemala’s near 30-year transitional justice process. I focus on the limits of the transitional justice process in Guatemala in addressing the depth of intergenerational harm of historic and ongoing colonialism in a heteropatriarchal and racially stratified state. Drawing from ethnographic research with the Centre for Training, Healing and Transpersonal Investigation – Q’anil – in Guatemala, I provide a practical example of what abolition feminists would call ‘life-affirming practices’ in the pursuit of healing and justice in the aftermath of conflict. I argue that abolition feminism may guide us towards alternative ways of understanding and doing justice in the aftermath of conflict and in response to the historic and ongoing harms of colonialism.