Trust in reconciliation: Dimitrios Panagos, Reconciliation and trust in settler states’, Critical Review of International Social and Political Philosophy, 2025 | settler colonial studies blog

Trust in reconciliation: Dimitrios Panagos, Reconciliation and trust in settler states’, Critical Review of International Social and Political Philosophy, 2025

08Jul25

Abstract: This article examines the phenomenon of reconciliation in the context of settler states (e.g. Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United States, etc.). It takes the position that reconciliation is necessary in these states because they are the products of a particular form of historic injustice (i.e. settler state colonialism), which continues to poison the relationship between Indigenous and non-Indigenous citizens. The aim of the article is to outline three key features that would be necessary for the construction of a satisfactory, detailed account of Indigenous-non-Indigenous reconciliation in settler states. The first feature is that such an account must be sensitive to the background context of settler state colonialism, which sometimes requires Indigenous people to turn away from non-Indigenous peoples, and sometimes supports Indigenous-non-Indigenous engagement and cooperation. The second feature is that the account of reconciliation must include the promotion of trust and trustworthiness, and illustrate how settler states can bring this about. The third feature is that the account should employ a duty-centric discourse instead of rights-talk when the concern is Indigenous-non-Indigenous reconciliation. While this article does not offer a comprehensive theory of reconciliation in settler states, it puts forward that these three features are first, but necessary steps for constructing such a theory.

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