Taking a Look at the Rwandan Genocide - 1016 Words

According to Michael P. Scharf, over 800,000 Tutsis were slaughtered in just 4 months. To put that in perspective, that is two times more people than everyone in Atlanta, and every single one of their lives were taken in a third of the year. Such a terrible atrocity and no one accepted the blame. A small group of African leaders came together and blamed other countries such as the United States and the members of the United Nation’s for not intervening on the genocide that was occurring. Others, however, stated that it was not their place to get in the middle of a civil war. Looking deeper into this matter, some even say that the Rwandan government shares a portion of the blame for putting the two groups, the Hutus and the Tutsis, against each other. There has been a long, thick tension between the two for many years going back to when Belgium owned a colonial state known as Rwanda-Burundi. Rwanda and Burundi had two main ethnic groups, the Hutus and the Tutsis. While the Hutu s were greater in population, the Belgians favored the Tutsis for their physical advantages such as lighter skin. The Belgium military encouraged bureaucracy throughout the state and insisted the Tutsis have more power than the Hutus. This created a lot of tension between the two groups; especially so when you consider that the Hutus were 85% of the entire population. Throughout Belgian rule, the Tutsis were given considerably more power than the majority Hutus. They did so through military enforcementShow MoreRelatedTaking a Look at the Rwandan Genocide627 Words   |  2 PagesThe struggle for power and the constant tension between these two groups led to the event that would spark this genocide. It would occur at 8:30 p.m., on April 6th 1994. On this day President Juvà ©nal Habyarimana of Rwanda was returning from a summit and his plane was shot down, causing the death of everyone on board. (BBC) Hutu extremist immediately took control over the government and blamed the assassi nation on the Tutsi. This was the last straw for the Hutu. The killing began in Rwanda’s capitalRead MoreThe Rwandan Genocide And The Genocide1637 Words   |  7 PagesWith over eight hundred thousand to one million deaths, the Rwandan genocide is undoubtedly one of the most sad and shocking examples of the lack of intervention by not only the US and the UN, but by other countries as well. The ongoing tensions between the Hutu, the largest population in Rwanda, and the Tutsi, the smaller and more elite population is what eventually lead to the Rwandan genocide. The killings began quickly after President Habyarimana s plane was shot down. After hundreds of thousandsRead MoreEssay on Genocide: Examples of Rowanda and Germany885 Words   |  4 Pagesdefinition, genocide is the deliberate killing of a large group of people, especially those of a particular ethnic group or nation. The Rwandan Genocide was the 1994 mass killing of hundreds of thousands of Rwandas Tutsis and Hutu political moderates by the Hutu dominated government under the Hutu Power ideals. Hutus believed the Tutsi were taking their jobs, and that they were foreigners who had worn out their welcome (Genocide-Rwanda). In comparison to Germany, the largest genocide in history,Read MoreEssay on Rwandan Genocide: Tutsis versus Hutus1421 Words   |  6 PagesRwandan Genocide: Tutsis vs. Hutus The many tears that stream down my face cry for the generations of my kids to come. I sit here as an innocent victimized Tutsi woman, to tell you my story of the Rwandan genocide and how it impacted my people. Through many years of pain and suffering I sit here before you to relieve my anger and install my knowledge of why the Belgium through colonization only installed more love in me toward my people and hatred towards me for not being able to help my peopleRead MoreThe Documentary Ghost Of Rwanda 987 Words   |  4 PagesThe documentary â€Å"Ghost in Rwanda† illustrates the devastation of the 1994 Genocide where approximately eight hundred thousand Rwandans were exterminated by their own government. The genocide was a result of ongoing conflicts between the Hutu, the ethnic majority in Rwanda, and the Tutsi the ethnic minority. The United Nation assisted in the establishment of a peace agreement between the two warring parties and sent General Romeo Dallaire, UN Force Co mmander, to Rwanda to ensure the terms of the agreementRead MoreThe Rwandan Genocide And The Genocide1382 Words   |  6 Pagesâ€Å"When you start to see another human being as less than you, it s a danger.†-Immaculee Ilibagiza. In 1994, a mass genocide broke out in Rwanda, a small country in Africa. The genocide occurred between the two ethnic groups where the Hutus were targeting the tutsis. The Rwandan genocide, ranking in the top five largest genocides in the world, was caused because of the resentment the hutus had towards the tutsis and was even more instigated by media and outsiders causing differences between the twoRead MoreThe Genocide : A Mass Murder Of People From A Ethnic Group1648 Words   |  7 PagesA genocide is a mass murder of people from a particular ethnic group or nation. The genocide in Rwanda seems to start when the Rwandan president Juvenal Habyarimana, a Hutu, was shot down above Kigali airport in 1994.The political and historical context was hand led passably as it showed to an extent how innocent Hutus and Tutsis were being slaughtered. It also mentioned the president being Hutu and Tutsis killed him from his plane, and how the radio announcers were calling Tutsis cockroaches andRead MoreThe Genocide Of The Rwandan Genocide2458 Words   |  10 PagesGenocide has been plaguing the world for hundreds of years. Millions of innocent lives have been taken all for the sake of prejudice. One of the most atrocious aspects of genocide is that a large percentage of them are sponsored by the state in which they are taking place. Over the years scholars have studied just what motivates a state to engage in such awful behavior. What motivates them? Why would they do such horrendous things to their own citizens? Is it solely for some economic incentive, orRead MoreAn Ordinary Man1209 Words   |  5 Pagesgovernment agents, does it change how you look at the role graft plays in society? This is not just a â€Å"yes† or â€Å"no † answer. Explain your answer. No, graft will always be in a government. Whether it is a governor being tried for adultery or a president being impeached, graft is a role in every government. Without it, Rusesabagina or Schindler would not have been successful in carrying out their compromises. 5. How does Rusesabagina use the â€Å"Rwandan No† as a way to critique first his own cultureRead MoreNegative Effects Of Imperialism1139 Words   |  5 Pagesconquered in order to â€Å"civilize† them,† according to Vern Cleary, the author of â€Å"Motives of Imperialism.† During the Scramble for Africa, these ideas were very prevalent, considering the European countries felt no guilt and didn’t think twice before taking the land from the Africans. These beliefs don’t last just over night. Even after Africa was freed from Europe, people still believe that their race is superior, and these beliefs have still lasted to this day. As you can see, imperialism causes racism