“What Is Moral Injury?”
– that’s a really interesting idea that I hadn’t heard about before. It makes a lot of sense.
According to Katie Mansfield of the Strategies for Trauma Awareness and Resilience (STAR), it’s a traumatic response to being either the victim, or the perpetrator, of harm caused by violating morality. I would suggest that this is not of the “cultural conventions” variety, but rather, a violation of the loyalty that all of us need, and it is hoped, expect, from other human beings.
Because of its special nature, I think this is where “people are the cure”. But if a cure exists, then it would be unique in each case, since each case is unique in itself. So, I suggest, some (any) person has to do some specific thing in order to make good the harm that was done.
Mansfield says,
“It’s also important to address the social needs that emerge when people have experienced traumatic events and moral injury. Cycles of violence must be named and acknowledged. Restorative justice programs in court systems are a good way of addressing communal trauma. Here the humanity of the victims as well as the responsible parties is taken seriously, as are the needs of the impacted communities.”
In other words, being listened to, and treated as a human being, goes a long way.
Reg the Fronkey Farmer 7 years ago.
