POL 2104 Lecture Notes - Lecture 25: Srebrenica Massacre, Tutsi, Hutu
20 Aug 2016
School
Department
Course
Professor
POL2104
April 6 2016
Genocide
TA Lecture
-genocide: acts committed with intent to destroy (in whole or in part) a national, ethnic,
religious or racial group
-killing members of one culture
-serious bodily or mental harm
-physical destruction of a group inflicted on purpose
-imposing birth control/preventive birth restrictions on women of certain groups
-forcible transfer of children from one group to another (to assimilate)
-cases of genocide (those pre-WWII were determined after the fact):
-1492-present: Aboriginals in America
-1885-1095: Belgian Congo (10 million)
-1904-1908: Herero in German South West Africa (80% of the population)
-1915: Ottoman Armenians (1.5 million)
-1932-1933: Ukraine (Holodomar) (2.5 million)
-1933-1945: Holocaust (6 million Jews, 11 million total)
-1971 Bangladesh (3 million)
-1975-1979: Cambodia (1.4-2.2 million)
-1994: Rwanda (1 million)
-1995: Srebrenica Massacre (Bosnia)
-2003-present: Darfur (0.5 million)
-cultural genocide: enforcing conditions that make it impossible for a certain group to
continue their way of life
-cultural genocide softens the term
-is more complex
-ethnic identity in Rwanda:
-85% Hutu
-15% Tutsi
-less than 1% Twa
-primordialism: fixed identity that has always been and will always be
-spiritual inevitable bond to your own group
-a quality of human people connecting them to their fixed aspect of culture
-essentialism: picking up on a specific trait and making it the identification
-one trait or a number of traits become the identifier (physical qualities)
-involves reducing identity to one characteristic
-Tutsi people were seen as former monarchs with lighter skin, and being taller and more
graceful (and were favoured because of this by Belgians)
-Hutu people were seen as short, savage and stupid
-the two groups were forced to wear identification badges
-social constructivism: everything is socially constructed
-gender role and identity is learned
-it is shaped by what we do, who we are around, etc
-until independence, Tutsis were favoured by Belgians
-Hutu questioned the rigid binary and remembered a time pre-colonization where identity
was more fluid
-Hutus came to power in 1962 and reversed the power hierarchy
-roles became even more rigid and differences between the groups were exacerbated for
political ends (revenge for being oppressed by Tutsis)
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Document Summary
Genocide: acts committed with intent to destroy (in whole or in part) a national, ethnic, Physical destruction of a group in icted on purpose. Imposing birth control/preventive birth restrictions on women of certain groups. Forcible transfer of children from one group to another (to assimilate) Cases of genocide (those pre-wwii were determined after the fact): 1904-1908: herero in german south west africa (80% of the population) 1933-1945: holocaust (6 million jews, 11 million total) Cultural genocide: enforcing conditions that make it impossible for a certain group to continue their way of life. Primordialism: xed identity that has always been and will always be. Spiritual inevitable bond to your own group. A quality of human people connecting them to their xed aspect of culture. Essentialism: picking up on a speci c trait and making it the identi cation. One trait or a number of traits become the identi er (physical qualities)
