American Genocide In Rwanda

Genocides happen when ethnic divisions become apparent. Many times, these ethnic divisions were due to colonization from people of different race. These cases are especially true in Africa when Europeans colonized their territory, with clear racial divisions between them (Gavin). These genocides go on because of nations acting on ignorance and refusing to help out the nations in turmoil, allowing the genocides to continue, without wasting their own resources. These nations purposefully ignoring the slaughter of people cause the nations to also be guilty of the genocide underway (“The Heart”). The genocide occurred in Rwanda in Central Africa during 1994. The decades of Tutsi oppression of Hutus and the assassination of President Habyarimana in 1994 led to the genocide in Rwanda.

Sources disagree on the definition of genocide. According to American Heritage 4th edition “Genocide is the systematic and planned extermination of an entire national, racial, political, or ethnic group.” The definition of genocide proves how genocide happened in Rwanda because Hutus and Tutsis were deliberately killed based on their ethnicity. Genocide not only happened in

The Rwandan Genocide was the 1994 mass slaughter in Rwanda of the ethnic Tutsi and Hutu peoples. The Rwandan Genocide left 70% of total ethnic Tutsi dead and a total of 20% of the entire country 's population dead. Today, more than twenty years later, Rwanda is a growing society with an ever expanding skyline.

Rwanda was left with a crisis amongst the children and people, leaving them with horrible memories. A lot of children have been orphaned too.

The Rwandan Genocide was one of the most horrific acts of genocide since the Holocaust during World War II.  Lasting only one hundred days it claimed the lives of over 800,000 people and had lasting effects on global civilization to this day. Even though the world had been consumed by many travesties before, the Rwandan Genocide exposed that violent human injustices on a grand scale could still happen regardless of the advancements made within “global society”. Decades of internal conflict within Rwanda because of colonialism, class, and clan played a great role in marring cultural identity and thusly created a foundation for the genocide.  The homogeny of cultures evolved, separating the population of Rwanda into three distinct groups: Hutu, Tutsi, and a marginal group of Twa that made up one percent of the population. Hutu ultimately came into power and with the help of the Interahamwe (a Hutu militia group) and the Rwandan Armed Forces committed atrocities towards Tutsi peoples under the ideal of 'social revolution ' and extermination of perceived 'enemies ' of the Hutu race. The planning and execution to erase and exterminate the culture and identity of Tutsi people is a classic and legal example of Genocide.

A Genocide is the deliberate killing of a large group of people, especially of those of an ethnic group or nation. There has been seven genocides, and the Rwanda genocide is no exception. Only a little less than a million people were killed, over a period of approximately 100 days (Singh 1). With the bad living conditions already in Rwanda, it is a place of poverty and discomfort for many people among other problems such as inequality. The genocide could have been prevented if Rwanda, and surrounding countries, had placed refugee camps near Rwanda for fleeing Tutsis, the United Nations stepping in sooner and educating the public on the genocide, and allowing the Hutus to have as much of a voice that the Tutsis had (before the genocide had started).

Rape itself is a sensitive topic, although it was desensitized by the Hutu men after they raped approximately 250,000 women (Brysiewicz et al. 2). The genocide in Rwanda was devastating, causing problems with deeper roots than a normal war. Not only were there upwards of 1 million deaths, a whole community was destroyed and corrupted by HIV/AIDS. Rape was such a driving force of the genocide because the Tutsi women were sexually sweeter, and it allowed the community to feel destroyed (Brysiewicz et al. 3). Rape babies serve as constant reminder of the tragedy; the effects are everlasting and people slowly died from HIV/AIDS, as well as social isolation.

Genocide is a powerful word. International law requires intervention if something is deemed genocide. There is no doubt that the Holocaust is the most famous and most studied case of genocide, although there have been numerous throughout history. One of the more recent is the Rwandan genocide, in which 800,000 people were killed (United Human Rights). The two have several similarities and differences in their origins, exterminations and aftermath.

Destexhe, Alain. Rwanda and Genocide in the Twentieth Century. New York, New York: New York University Press: 1995

Throughout history, human beings have revolutionized the world using technology and other innovative means. However, it goes without saying on the opposite side of the coin that although people are capable of creating phenomenal things, people are just as capable of destruction. For as long as there has been differences amongst people in society, there has always been discrimination against people in regards to a certain race, class, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, and etc. In the most extreme cases, differences of groups of people in society have resulted in mass persecution through the systematic destruction know as genocide. In society, atrocious genocides aren't uncommon events. Since the beginning of time, people have participated in horrific acts of injustice against one another from the first modern genocide of “the 13th century, when heretics in Medieval Europe were massacred during Albigensian Crusade” (History 1) to the most recent, the Rwandan Genocide. The

“One ugly, deadly and recurrent reality check persists: genocide. Genocide has occurred so often and so uncontested in the last fifty years that an epithet more apt in describing recent event than the often chanted “Never Again” (Power 1998, p. 1). Genocide is one of the most devastating phenomena in the international community it is so often unchallenged that the occurrences continue to repeat. While envisioning the impending danger of these incidents, it is necessary, through cross-country comparison to understand what drives and sustains genocide. This essay will analyze three paradigms that are suggested causes of the phenomena, idealism, political, and state interest while assessing the genocides in both Rwanda and Darfur in order to prevent

In order to examine the Rwandan Genocide in the context of failed international intervention, I have chosen to look at the Genocide from a Realist perspective. The Realist paradigm focuses on states and their influence in the global sphere. Realists believe that states are only driven by power and that their policies therefore reflect these desires for power. States want to secure their security and the longevity of their nation and their ideologies. Waltz portrays this paradigm quite simply by stating: “Success is the ultimate test of policy and success is defined as preserving and strengthening the state. These views reign true when examining the Rwandan Genocide, therefore I believe that the international community's lack of response to

In human history, atrocious genocides are not uncommon. This particular event is especially important because it represents that the structure of society is flawed and can easily deteriorate. The acknowledgment can only deem to be a virtue, whereas ignorance could put society in a quandary. When we feign ignorance towards former events, we are instilling the mentality of staying a blind eye to future generations. The Rwandan Genocide serves as an example of genocide that is overlooked in history. The Rwandan Genocide was a recent event that happened in history; it only happened 21 years ago. To speak out about the barbaric circumstances are essential to changing society and preventing such a horrific event from ever occurring again, but most

In April of 1994 a terrible event took place, one where approximately one-million people were brutally murdered on the basis of their ethnicity or if they opposed the regime. (Uvin, 2003). This terrible event occurred in Rwanda, and it is known as the Rwandan Genocide. Genocide can be described as a one sided mass killing in which the state or other authority intends to destroy a group, as that group and membership in it are identified by the perpetrator. (Hintjens, 1999) This is exactly what took place in Rwanda in 1994. In Rwanda the population was mostly Hutu (84%) and had two minorities, Tutsi (15%) and Twa (1%). (Hoex, 2010) The perpetrators of the genocide were the Hutu majority and the victims were the Tutsi. In order to

The genocide concept comprised two words, genos, a Greek word meaning tribe or race and cide a Latin word meaning killing of pointed out by Polish Jurist Raphael Lemkin.