The genocide in Rwanda was one of the fastest and most disturbing mass killings in history, the amount's of dead varying between 800,000 to 1.2 million dead in only three short month. One thing that stood out to me the most in the book and the movie was the fact that the difference between the Tutsi, Hutu, and Twa was very difficult, if not impossible, to tell. The book even goes on in several places to show that it was possible for Tutsi to be seen as Hutu just by a forged paperwork, and says that they had the same language and shared the same Gods. The book tells the story of the first foreigner coming in to Rwanda and measuring everything up with his eyes since he had already robbed other areas of Africa. From this one person next come the missions and the Padres and the death of the native Gods, and from the force of there "Christian" learning there began to be a divide between these tribes. This reminded me of the Native American genocide that went on here in America where religion was used to establish a difference within communities where no difference really existed. This foreign infringement spells out the beginning of the change within the mindset of the Rwandan people which grows greater as those who embrace the foreign gods and life become separate from their once brothers. This divide is then exploited by outside forces as new governments are established that favors the Hutu's leading to a economic divide. This point is talked about by the first story teller in the book, Michel Serumundo, when he details how he set up his video store in a block of stores, where all the owners formed a type of community. He recalls how that community has been dissolving since "others" started setting up small wares on the sidewalk, what he is referring to is really peoples of different tribes trying to bridge the economic gap. This economic drive can also be seen in the Doctor who wants wealth enough to kill his wife and children and all other Tutsi's in order to get it. In the movie Hotel Rwanda Don Cheadle plays as a Hutu assistant manager of a fancy hotel whose wife is a Tutsi. In the movie his actions reminded me very much of those of Oscar Schindler as he used his own wealth and influence in order to protect the Tutsi's within his hotel. There is also something to be said by the fact that as soon as things started to get rough the foreign manager quickly leaves, much like all the other foreigners of Rwanda. This seems to lend itself to the thinking that the world just didn't care what was going on, they were willing to turn a blind eye so long as it was Africans killing other Africans. This point is echoed by Colonel Oliver when he says that, "We are here as peace keepers, not peace makers." The world would rather have watched the world cup than tried to stop the fighting between these two African tribes it was their job to make peace not the rest of the worlds. The world's lack of involvement is really to do with the fact that there is no money in Rwanda it is a poor country, unlike say Iraq that has vast oil wealth.
In the Book the character that interested me the most was "Skipper" Gerard. His initial outburst in the cafe seemed to mark him as just a crazy person who had had too much to drink, but as the story develops the reader come to realize that he is the one true witness to many of the atrocities of the genocide. When he had said that he had drank their blood in the cafe I was very put off as to what that had to do with the genocide. In the end when it is revealed that he had the blood of those few who had chosen to fight poring all over him and into his mouth his madness begins to make since. The Skipper was so named because he was a dreamer someone who desired something outside the role of landlocked Rwanda, he wanted to sail. It stands as a tribute to the destructive power of this war that when he is encountered in the book he is now the only person who is willing to speak out and relive the genocide, while everyone else simply want to live a normal live. Gerard was also the one local witness to Cornelius's fathers true cowardice making him deflate a little from his stance of god of death that he has been played up to be.
MILLER-COMMENT ON COULTER'S BLOG
ReplyDeleteI really like your comparison of the hotel manager and Oscar Schindler. I think one of the most notable similarities between the two is the personal journey both of them encountered during each respective genocide. During the Holocaust, we see that Schindler was deeply affected by events going on around him. Eventually, he used his business as a way to protect those who he saw being hurt the most. This is exactly what happened with the hotel manager: at first, he only seemed interested in protecting his family; this is similar to Schindler’s initial impressions: he only wanted to protect his factory business. However, after personally witnessing the horrific events that were going on under their very noses, both Schindler and the manager became heroes within their own right. We see this in the form of the media we are reviewing for this class; both men are portrayed in the books and film as heroes.
Yes, part of the reason for the lack of interest by the United Nations was based on wealth, but to compare it with Iraq because of Wealth is slightly different. Iraq has a huge hand over the rest of the world besides us. Think of a world full of allies and everyone has their own. Well Russia is still a threat to the world, and its ally is Iran, and China. Iran doesn’t particularly like us, and Russia is basically becoming a world supper power again. They control a significant portion of the world’s oil, which they supply to Eastern Europe and England, and have been doing so since World War II. Russia is pretty scary place. People are still disappearing from there today. War is inevitable. The war on Iraq was for strategic positioning for a likely possibility of another upcoming World War, and I honestly do think we thought we were going to find weapons of mass destruction.
ReplyDeleteIt did stand out to me on how severe or extreme the genocide truly was. To read and see people constantly dying mainly because of a minor detail is difficult. Most of the time if you mix up a group of people, you cannot pick out that minor detail. A person may guess correctly, but their chances are pretty low. Using the same idea, people are being killed over a minor label. It is very similar to High School, but taken to a whole new level.
You bring up a very interesting point, I had not thought of the similarities between Paul and Oscar Schindler. Both of these characters were not victims, they could have avoided the conflict all together. However, there was something that was keeping both of them in the middle of this genocide. They are the type of people that feel responsible for the lives that are being lost around them. Both of them use their wealth and connections in order to “buy” lives and risk everything in order stand up to the enemy. Another similarity exists because both characters are surrounded by other people that could make a difference but choose not to. They stand out among the rest as those who have decided to stand alone against the enemy.
ReplyDeleteBoth of the characters can see the victims for who they are, innocent people. Paul’s wife is a Tutsi and so he sees all Tutsis as equal. Schindler treats the Jews as equals as well, even in a time where it was drilled into your mind that you are superior to all of these other people. In my opinion, both of these people could be labeled as heroes, no matter what situation they are in because they stood alone against an enemy when they didn’t have to.
Did you read the assigned text? You need to discuss it in your blog.
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