Gladue was a woman: the importance of gender in restorative-based sentencing

¹ In 1999, the Supreme Court of Canada released its decision in R v. Gladue. The decision is praised for endorsing sentencing alternatives that reflect the unique circumstances of Aboriginal offenders. A fact that is generally overlooked is that the accused, Tanis Gladue, was female as well as Aboriginal. This chapter argues that Gladue should also be interpreted with a feminist lens that would illustrate the necessity of linking gender and race in the restorative sentencing process. It explores the potential for racialised and gendered social relations to be taken into account in the determination of criminal sanctions. Decisions like Gladue and others have expanded restorative possibilities. The criminal justice system could enhance its ability to acknowledge the social inequalities that inform the system's operations with the aid of feminist critiques.