Genocide
Genocide is "the deliberate and systematic destruction, in whole or in part, of an ethnic, religious, racial, or national group"
This year in humanities, we studied the Rwandan genocide and the events leading up to its occurrence. The following essays are items that we worked on during the course of the unit. The essay titled "Rape-A Weapon of Warfare" is an Op-Ed based on the premise of a free choice writing piece that students can write about whatever they like regarding Genocide.
This year in humanities, we studied the Rwandan genocide and the events leading up to its occurrence. The following essays are items that we worked on during the course of the unit. The essay titled "Rape-A Weapon of Warfare" is an Op-Ed based on the premise of a free choice writing piece that students can write about whatever they like regarding Genocide.
In-Class Essay
Social Darwinism and imperialism played a huge part in the 1994 Rwandan genocide, which had resulted in 20% of the population being killed (around 800,000 people) (WFoundation, Sept12). The two main ethnicities (Hutus and Tutsis) living in Rwanda had been having problems for about 70 years until the initial crime of the massacre itself was committed. Though they were the minority, the Tutsis had held all of the political power, and were initially the wealthier group. The Hutus had revolted in attempts of getting fairer economic and political balance back in Rwanda and took out the vast majority of the Tutsis, as well as any pro-peace believers who stood in their way. At the time, the Tutsis had full imperial power and were playing with the term “survival of the fittest”, forcing Hutus to take extreme action in changing the ways of modern day Rwanda.
The basic idea of imperialism is that it is "the creation and/or maintenance of an unequal economic, cultural, and territorial relationship, usually between states and often in the form of an empire, based on domination and subordination”. (WFounation,Sept.5) Up until 1918, the Germans had control of Rwanda due to the Europeans splitting Africa into sections, but due to their actions in WWI, they lost control of Rwanda and it was handed over to the Belgians. Only after the Belgians started to inhabit Rwanda did segregation become a problem. They had announced the Tutsis as the “superior race” and initially gave them full power over the Hutus. In a short period of time, the Tutsis held almost all of the powerful and influential work positions such as political, educational, and military. Naturally, the Tutsis favored their own race over others, and that is when the real discrimination began to happen. Hutus were the laborers of the country, the farmers and the mistreated race for a very long time. Knowing it was unfair treatment, the idea of revolt started working its way across the country.
In hopes of getting fair imperialism back, the Hutus decided the only way they would be able to do that is if they kill off all of the Tutsis, and all of the pro peace Hutus that would attempt to prevent that. The Hutu extremists virtually brainwashed other Hutus into thinking that Tutsis are less than human. A common reference made to Tutsis was cockroaches. The whole time the Hutus were dehumanizing the Tutsis, they were spreading drugs and alcohol around to all of the militias, to get average people out of their normal mindset. The first of the massacres began in April of 1994. It has been estimated that the killing was so violent and so extreme that in only 100 days, over 500,000 people had been killed.
By the end of the genocide, the Hutus had gotten all of the imperialistic power they had been searching for, and then some. The UN announced that Rwandan politics be changed to a democratic system, instead of their once used royal lineage. It resulted as a dictatorship, but was artfully masked as a democracy. It had once been that it was only Tutsis, who ruled Rwanda, but after the genocide, that was completely flipped around, and it was pure Hutus. The whole unfair system the Hutus had hoped to banish was completely finished, leaving room for yet another genocide to make the tides turn again.
The basic idea of imperialism is that it is "the creation and/or maintenance of an unequal economic, cultural, and territorial relationship, usually between states and often in the form of an empire, based on domination and subordination”. (WFounation,Sept.5) Up until 1918, the Germans had control of Rwanda due to the Europeans splitting Africa into sections, but due to their actions in WWI, they lost control of Rwanda and it was handed over to the Belgians. Only after the Belgians started to inhabit Rwanda did segregation become a problem. They had announced the Tutsis as the “superior race” and initially gave them full power over the Hutus. In a short period of time, the Tutsis held almost all of the powerful and influential work positions such as political, educational, and military. Naturally, the Tutsis favored their own race over others, and that is when the real discrimination began to happen. Hutus were the laborers of the country, the farmers and the mistreated race for a very long time. Knowing it was unfair treatment, the idea of revolt started working its way across the country.
In hopes of getting fair imperialism back, the Hutus decided the only way they would be able to do that is if they kill off all of the Tutsis, and all of the pro peace Hutus that would attempt to prevent that. The Hutu extremists virtually brainwashed other Hutus into thinking that Tutsis are less than human. A common reference made to Tutsis was cockroaches. The whole time the Hutus were dehumanizing the Tutsis, they were spreading drugs and alcohol around to all of the militias, to get average people out of their normal mindset. The first of the massacres began in April of 1994. It has been estimated that the killing was so violent and so extreme that in only 100 days, over 500,000 people had been killed.
By the end of the genocide, the Hutus had gotten all of the imperialistic power they had been searching for, and then some. The UN announced that Rwandan politics be changed to a democratic system, instead of their once used royal lineage. It resulted as a dictatorship, but was artfully masked as a democracy. It had once been that it was only Tutsis, who ruled Rwanda, but after the genocide, that was completely flipped around, and it was pure Hutus. The whole unfair system the Hutus had hoped to banish was completely finished, leaving room for yet another genocide to make the tides turn again.