Essay on The Genocides of the 20th Century - 1517 Words

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. In both cases of genocide, the killings were done as a way to ‘cleanse’ the population; they both resulted from a political power rising up and wishing to kill off†¦show more content†¦Stopping this flow of information differs; in Rwanda a simple radio jammer could have been used, but in Nazi Germany the press was under complete control of the Nazi Party. In each case, however, the world ref used to step up and try to stop the evils. The idea that other races were sub-human allowed the political parties to convince common people that the mass killing of these groups would be beneficial to the state itself. Both genocides relied on rallying people against other races, people groups, or tribes. People would only be okay with and support mass killings if they believed the victims were not the same as them, if their humanity had been taken from them. Political groups could only do this through controlling the flow of knowledge which reached the citizens. This persuasive control of knowledge and press to achieve a goal is known as propaganda. â€Å"Propaganda is the art of persuasion - persuading others that your side of the story is correct. Propaganda might take the form of persuading others that your military might is too great to be challenged; that your political might within a nation is too great or popular to challenge etc.† The Hutus were limited in their abilities to spread propaganda, but also needed it less; hatred already existed between the Hutus and Tutsis. The major form of propaganda for the Hutus was a Radio Rwanda and Radio Tà ©là ©vision des Milles Collines. Lieutenant-General Romà ©o Dallaire, the UN commander inShow MoreRelatedHuman Rights Are The Rights One Is Entitled To Based On1232 Words   |  5 Pageslaw. The most significant of these laws and documents emerged after the 20th century, due to the atrocities that occurred during that time - war, genocide, expulsion, and mass sterilization – and in particular, focused on the rights of women and racial minorities. 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