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Consequences of genocide
Genocide 1900s-present
Consequences of genocide
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Genocide: The Worst Humanitarian Disaster
I am not a refugee. I am a white, middle-class, female American. I am a student at a public high school in the suburbs. My country is not being torn apart by genocide. My parents haven’t been killed. My government does not rape me. My family does not live in a tent in the middle of the desert. My community does not get by on a $1.00 per week for food, but my desires and passions connect to those who do.
There are hundreds of us spread out on the lawn of the Washington Monument. There is plenty of room, but we all crowd together, helping and encouraging each other. We are kneeling on the grass, creativity pouring out of us and into our posters- the sounds of markers constantly being capped and uncapped clicking loudly. There’s rushed conversation, people throwing their heads back as they laugh. The overhead clouds are glowing so white; one might mistake it for sunlight shining on the nation’s capitol. From Florida to Alaska, we all took different plane routes to get to our common destination, Washington D.C. We did not know anything about each other except that we were all there with the same goal in mind.
The several hundred of us picked up where the others had left off- trying to make up for the lost time, trying to make up for that generation in between. It was evident from their Washington Monument-sized smiles on their faces, that the generations before us, and even after us, as we watched little children clap their hands and stare at us wide-eyed, are relieved to see that there are teenagers who are willing to fight for change in the world too. Some of us are aware of the world’s issues and are willing to fight for justice. It was the most empowering experience and feeling to k...
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...ures and ethnic groups; they see that everyone is human, and everyone is alike in that way. This is the age where they need to be taught that being different is not wrong, and genocide at all costs, is. “Now, courses focusing on genocide and other human rights violations developed in the early 1970s are part of a larger response to rewriting the curriculum by including subjects and issues traditionally ignored or silenced” (Aspel). Another lesson they need to be taught is the pyramid of hate. At the bottom of the pyramid is prejudiced attitudes which involves scapegoating, and then the next level is acts of prejudice which includes name-calling and ridicule. The next level is discrimination, then violence, and lastly, genocide. When prejudice attitudes and acts of prejudice are seen, they need to be stopped before the situation escalates to something much worse.
Caporino, Grace M. and Rose A. Rudnitski. General Guidelines for Teaching about Intolerance and Genocide. Teaching for a Tolerant World. Ed. Judith P. Robertson. Urbana, Illinois: National Council of Teachers of English, 1999.
The word genocide was derived from the Greek root genos (people) and the Latin root cide (killing), and did not exist in the English language until 1944, which was the end of World War II (Power). According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, genocide is “the deliberate and systematic destruction of a racial, political, or cultural group.” Such violence occurred during the Holocaust and during the separation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The problems of ethnic cleansing and repression have become so prevalent in the last century that they have contributed to two world wars, over fourteen million deaths, and a new word. United Nations Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, said, “Far from being consigned to history, genocide and its ilk remain a serious threat. Not just vigilance but a willingness to act are as important today as ever.”
Throughout history, the youth of the generation challenges the status quo. At the zenith of physical vigor and sensitivity, we expose ourselves to influences of a broader world. Subtlety is lost, acute distinctions of what was black and white suddenly become the different shades of gray. Our appetite for curiosity shape our worldview. Life becomes visceral, and truth is revealed rather than logically proven. In the graphic novel, March by John Lewis, he tells the story of his youth as he reflects on the past. His generation refused to accept the narrow confines of the social norm and sought to break free. Their nonviolent protests was not only an act of resistance but that of also self-expression. The societal dogma of segregation and institutional racism would finally come to surface during the early years of his youth. We can gain further insight of this historical time from the following passages.
We have been given a multitude of chances to take the lessons of our ancestors in stride and better ourselves from their experiences, but instead we choose to neglect our lessons and relapse into a society fueled by hatred. The act of dehumanization has been an ongoing reoccurrence throughout our tarnished history. It may change, and evolve into new levels of hatred. It has no bias; it will choose its victims between race, sex, social levels and many other faucets that most of us are born into. In short, the historical lessons of this course have taught me that if we wish to provide a better future for not only our generation but also the generations that are to follow us, then we must change the way that we treat others who are different than us. The best way we can achieve this goal is to learn from the lessons that have been so prevalent throughout our
The biggest war the world has ever seen was World War II. What was one factor that led to such a quick escalation? Genocide. Over 45 million people were murdered during this tragic time. The question is: was it the allies responsibility to intervene? The answer: No. The Global Community has no responsibility to intervene in states committing genocide.
Whatever the movement had accomplished, the most paramount tasks still lay ahead. We will not give up; we will continue to fight. We realize this is a never-ending struggle, yet we surge on, with hope and pride. For one day "we shall overcome."
The genocides of the 20th century which occurred in Rwanda and Germany had striking similarities, something that should have alerted the world to stop them. At the core of these two massacres, patterns existed that outlined how similar thinking and reasoning could lead to something as horrible as these two events. One can see how both groups used their command of knowledge as a way to control the people, how the rest of the world refused to step up to stop the killings, and how the people were thought of as less than humans to provide a just cause for such terrible acts.
The life of a refugee is not just a life of trials and ordeals, but also has rewards for those who pushed through the pain.
Washington, DC is a spectacular place. This being my first time in DC, I was in awe of everything and all the historical places I encountered. The presence of the monuments and history is what made the capitol so magnificent. Having only read about the Lincoln memorial, I never had the chance to experience the sensation of being inside such an honorable place of importance. The imposing white marble walls of the memorial and the many people surrounding it could be seen from afar. Arriving at the location, an unknown feeling came over me. I was experiencing history in a whole different level. When I think about a memorial, the term remembrance comes to mind. Seeing the statue of Abraham Lincoln brought pieces of memories from history class and evoked thoughts of what it might have felt like to be in his shoes. I was astonished by the statue’s enormousness and how grand Abraham Lincoln looked in his chair. The size of the statue compared to pictures from books and elsewhere was surreal. Abraham Lincoln was a very “powerful and prominent individual” in the history of our nation, the statue’s design and size reflected upon that. Looking around me, I wanted to know what the others thoughts were on seeing his statue and how they felt in that building. I finally had the courage to ask one or two people what they thought; they all had the same appreciation as me. Hearing about an important person or learning about them in a history book gives you vast knowledge but it doesn’t evoke the feeling of utter appreciation as the memorial does. When Abraham Lincoln was assassinated, many people wanted to build a memorial in honor of him. They wanted to be able to show how important he was to shaping our nation and to “honor his existence”. Ce...
After Elie Wiesel was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1986, he gave an acceptance speech reflecting upon the true meaning of his novel and reflecting upon the crimes in our history. He revealed how “silence encourages the tormentor” while “indifference [is] the most insidious danger of all.” I find a lot of truth in these words and I agree with his assertion. Individuals tend to get overwhelmed by desperation, a sense of helplessness and fear in the face of acts, such as oppression and genocide. During these times, it is the responsibility of the world community to step in. This is proved to be true by the novel Night, the movie The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, and by the article called “A Secret Life.”
It’s amazing how a small spark of hatred can grow and grow only to become a wildfire causing mass destruction. The horrific acts of humanity, now universally dubbed as genocide, occurred to frequently throughout history, and action for complete and absolute prevention should be taken at all times.
On September 11, 2001, something bad happened. Nearly 3,000 people were killed. It destroyed the world’s two largest building. 9/11 is also a very important event in U.S. history because it took lots of lives, affected the U.S., and changed lots of people’s lives.
Genocide is a reality that no one can ever conquer or vanish if they are working alone or do not look at the consequences upon taking choices of action. We as Americans feel it is our duty to only take a course of action if we know and are fully aware of the actions being made against the people, or if we are being affected directly. If it does not affect us and we do not know about it then obviously we cannot do anything about it.
When 1937 arrived, Japanese soldiers raided China’s capital of Nanking and began to mass murder citizens. A sole leader of the Japanese Imperial Army was non-existent. There were many of people in power such as generals who allowed these behaviors to occur. Baron Koki Hirota, Foreign minister at the time, proceeded to do nothing while being well aware of the Japanese’s persecution of the Chinese. These unsympathetic murders of those who were thought to be Chinese soldiers as well as woman, children and elderly. This massacre lasted between the 1937 and 1938. Within this time 300,000 Chinese citizens were viciously killed. This genocide is called Rape of Nanking because of raping the woman before killing them. Most likely this group was selected because the second world war happened in Asia. This was significant because a country was able to kill half the population of another. I believe the reason of this Genocide was for Japan to take advantage of China while expand Japan. Most likely the Japanese wished to exterminate China’s entire population.
Considering that the Syrians are seeking an escape from the same exact thing that Americans are, why have they not been accepted into America? Like many of the 70,000 refugees who are accepted into the United States every year, Syrian refugees search for shelter from wars and hope for a prosperous future (Welsh 1). Teresa Welsh, a writer for the “U.S. News and World Report”, describes in her article “Why the U.S. Can’t Resettle Syrian Refugees” that “the U.S. should be doing more to help resettle those fleeing conflict and repressive governments in the Middle East and Asia” (Welsh 1). The Syrians desire escape from a repressive government with no chance of rebuilding a better future; therefore, they seek support from outside countries, like the United States and other European countries. Observations made by International and Scholar Service Students at the University of Missouri-Saint Louis have found that two of America’s values include “Equality” and “Goodness of Humanity” (“Key American Values”).