dear kwame, et al
the un defn of genocide could be applied when a very small number of people are involved, if they are targeted because of their ethnicity, etc. that seems a weakness in the defn.
i also think we all have an intuitive sense of genocide, which occurs when "they" are trying to wipe "us" out. i am happier with this simple way of thinking about it.
in the case of german history, in africa, we could argue that real genocide was intended and carried out against the herroros. for arendt, that was the first genocide in history, but maybe she was wrong.
the cherokees were targets, among many other native peoples, in the u.s. long before the herroros. think about the slaughter of buffalos, intended to starve the indians! what brutality.
and i know all of us could cite many other cases.
i must say it saddens me to see such deepseated dissension still today about whether the case of biafra was one of genocide when so many people died under tragic conditions. it was an historical crime and tragedy. i won't enter into the debate about who was at fault--i've read the comments and see no clear path to convince one side or the other to join together in condemning the deaths. in a sense until that happens we won't have true reconciliation.
ken
kenneth harrow
professor emeritus
dept of english
michigan state university
517 803-8839
harrow@msu.edu
Sent: Sunday, December 30, 2018 2:04:27 AM
To: USA Africa Dialogue Series
Subject: Re: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Re: Unfair Asian Critiques of Adichie
Here is a definition of genocide from the UN:
"In the present Convention, genocide means any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such."
https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.un.org_en_genocideprevention_genocide.html&d=DwIFaQ&c=nE__W8dFE-shTxStwXtp0A&r=Zy8I_UX8z9DLbmf5YJ0EIg&m=RQ4CYBr6uh9Wi9RnfVWqtwimLgc80jBm_rI3nqMPp8w&s=yLUcr1JU8lBmRFWeVri7sRK7bQmKi1JKVhUMAFQ7Ztw&e=
If we accept this definition, then the test would be proving that a specific racial, ethnic, religious or national group was targeted.
Biafra and South Sudan would be candidates because, arguably, Igbos were targeted in Nigeria and non-Muslims were targeted in South Sudan. I say "arguably" because it would be up to the respective groups to support their case with evidence.
Syria, Iraq, Yemen are all horrific, but they dont seem to fit the UN definition. A specific group like the Kurds fit the UN criteria.
In New Zealand, the Māori were virtually wiped out (reduced to about 14% of population) and replaced by whites. This is a clear case of genocide.
African Americans made an official charge of genocide against the US govt in 1951. Signatories to the document included W.E.B. Du Bois, William Patterson, Paul Robeson, and Claudia Jones. You can read the entire document here:
"We Charge Genocide"
https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__archive.org_details_We-2DCharge-2DGenocide-2D1970_page_n1&d=DwIFaQ&c=nE__W8dFE-shTxStwXtp0A&r=Zy8I_UX8z9DLbmf5YJ0EIg&m=RQ4CYBr6uh9Wi9RnfVWqtwimLgc80jBm_rI3nqMPp8w&s=5A57lLQeDksJUNPEFCcJhDgrcMxCMI3c66KORLdw9YA&e=
Some of us believe the US govt plotted to assassinate Malcolm X because of his potential as a pan-Africanist, his growing influence in the Muslim world, and his plan to take our (African American) case to the UN.
All Black Lives Matter,
brother shabazz
Pronouns: African
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