February 1, 2024 - Anastasia Curwood & Austin Zinkle (Civil Rights and Restorative Justice-Kentucky)

Behind the Blue

LEXINGTON, Ky. (February 1, 2024) – “Every single one of them said, ‘My God, I had no idea something like this happened.’ I think they are learning something about their communities that they didn’t know before,” says Anastasia Curwood, director of the Commonwealth Institute for Black Studies, referring to the reaction of students to their work with the groundbreaking Civil Rights and Restorative Justice Kentucky Project, a pilot program stemming from the pioneering CRRJ Project at Northeastern University School of Law. Prompted by the national project and working with the University of Kentucky’s Rosenberg School of Law, they recognized the urgent need to address unsolved murders in Kentucky tied to racism or racial hostility.

The multidimensional approach encompasses legal seminars, historical research, and a restorative justice element, intertwining legal expertise and historical context to unravel mysteries dating back through the past 100 years. This unique project bridges the gap between academic disciplines, offering students the opportunity to delve into cold cases that state agencies, hindered by resource constraints, often overlook or are unable to continue work on.

The significance of this initiative lies not only in its historical inquiry but also in its potential to redefine how Kentuckians perceive their past. By investigating historical wrongs, the project seeks to create a more honest narrative of the Commonwealth, acknowledging the lasting impact on families and communities.

On this episode of ‘Behind the Blue,’ Curwood is joined by Austin Zinkle, a post-doctoral scholar and co-leader of the CRRJ-Kentucky legal clinic. They discuss the intricate connections between the past and present, and their efforts to shed light on real traumas and historical injustices that continue to shape Kentucky today.

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