Hi Tipsters,
[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
> In a message dated 8/11/99 11:03:13 PM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes:
>
> <<This century is marked by unparalleled human cruelty, ethnopolitical
> conflict, and genocide.>>
>
> Your proposal was interesting and the main point is well taken. However, I
> don't believe that the statement above is true, especially if you include
> indigenous peoples conflicting with colonial and other powers (not to mention
> each other).
Usually, I write the word "perhaps" before the "unparalleled" to avoid this
debate. Clearly, I failed to do this in my recent posting. As to whether I did
this on the proposal, I'll need to check the final draft which on my computer at
work.
Having said that, I will state that there is a fair amount of debate regarding
this issue and I'm not sure that it is a question that can be successfully
answered. In many ways, due to changes in technology, the nature of
nation/states, population figures, etc., it is like comparing apples and oranges
(pre-Twentieth Century vs. Twentieth Century).
In terms of sheer numbers, it has been estimated that between 133 (the
verifiable number from the historic record) and 625 million individuals have
been killed by democide (death by government - would be comparable to a very
broad definition of genocide) prior to the Twentienth Century (30 B.C.E. through
the 19th Century). Between 170 and 210 (includes non-civilian, non-combatants
killed) million individuals have been killed by democide in just the Twentieth
Century alone. That is why many authors refer to and believe that this century
will be referred to historically as the Century of Genocide. Additionally, the
level of state sponsorship and industrialization is unique.
I should also note that colonization and the genocide of indigenous cultures is
a major factor in this century's genocide totals. The first recorded genocide
this century is usually listed as the genocide of the Herero's by Germany. For
a good discussion of this topic see:
Totten, S., Parsons, W., & Charny, I. (1997). Century of genocide: Eyewitness
accounts and critical views. New York: Garland Publishing.
> Spaniards and Aztecs, Mongols, Crusades, Americans and Natives,
> there are examples as far back as has ever been known. Even before the
> technology of the current century, acts of genocide have taken millions of
> lives. In fact, I believe we are actually more humane in our cruelty
> compared to previous centuries.
I think that would be difficult to argue to the victims of the Holocaust,
Rwanda, Cambodia, etc. Most of what we hear about atrocities consists of
sanitized versions of events. For example, most of the victims of the Holocaust
did not walk into a gas chamber to die a relatively quick death. It does not
reflect the massive cruelty and dehumanization that was the standard for Nazi
atrocities. And the same statement could be made with respect to other
atrocities this century. If anything, what has been learned from decades of
study in relation to methods of human cruelty has simply been applied and on
occasion applied systematically this century.
I must confess that I am actually stunned by the "more humane" statement. I am
tempted to run through a litany of horrors committed against individuals and
groups who suffered untold cruelties and torturous deaths but I'm not sure that
this would be a meaningful endeavor. I suggest you read more concerning
genocide this century.
> The fact is that "human cruelty" and
> "genocide" are historically part of our make-up and we have been good at it
> (as a species) for a very long time.
I'm not so sure that we have a genocide gene. In fact, I would strongly argue
that we do not.
Certainly, many would argue that human cruelty is part of our make-up as
humans. However, individuals who raise this as a hypothesis almost always
counter that the capacity for human kindness, empathy, and altruistic behavior
are also part of our make-up. It is not as one sided as you present.
Additionally, a genetic predisposition for violence as a monocausal explanation
of genocide is not support by the data. The roots of genocide are multicausal
and interact. The roots of genocide include cultural, intergroup, intragroup,
and individual factors that occur
within specific at-risk historical and political contexts. Early warning signs
that exist/develop prior to a genocidal action and the role of bystanders. Some
of the specific factors interacting to form the foundation for genocide include
degree of governmental control over individual and group behaviors, crisis
(e.g. economic or political) on group or individual identity, nationalism, and
bystander involvement levels. Secondary factors which can escalate the potential
for genocidal actions and their interactions include (but are not limited to)
the use of aggression as a traditional form of conflict resolution and its
relationship to socio-cultural patterns of obedience to authority,
in-group/out-group behaviors, pseudospeciation, moral exclusion, and
conformity. Additionally, genocide proponents use secondary factor manipulation
to facilitate perpetrator behavior and inhibit bystander behavior. Within this
broader cultural context, family patterns and their relationship to
scapegoating, victim dehumanization, and individual perpetrator acts of genocide
are involved.
> This is part of your main point, I
> know. But, this century is by no means unique in number, nor severity. In
> fact, it may be slightly less so.
At best, I believe it would be safe to say that the information provided to the
public makes the genocidal action this century appear more "humane" and less
cruel or severe. Unfortunately, that is not supported by a study of actual
events.
To read more, see my recommended reading list concerning genocide and democide
on my Holocaust and genocides studies web site.
Warm regards,
linda
--
linda m. woolf, ph.d.
associate professor - psychology
webster university
main webpage: http://www.webster.edu/~woolflm/
Holocaust and genocide studies pages:
http://www.webster.edu/~woolflm/holocaust.html
womens' pages: http://www.webster.edu/~woolflm/women.html
gerontology pages: http://www.webster.edu/~woolflm/gero.html
mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
