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 | Stage 1: Identification of a group to be victimized on the basis of their religion, race, gender, ethnicity, language, sexual orientation, etc. | ||||||||
| Stage 2: Dissemination of propaganda aimed at convincing the
public that the group:
Surprisingly, expertly crafted hate propaganda can often convince the majority of the public that a small minority represents a major threat to society: Hitler victimized the Jews in this way; Rwanda did it to the Tutsis; Bosnian Serbs victimized the Muslims. | ||||||||
| Stage 3: Extermination plans are proposed. | ||||||||
| Stage 4: Extermination of the group is carried out. |
In our opinion, the best technique to prevent atrocities is to make certain that the first step never happens. Unfortunately, there are already victimized groups in North America who are already at this stage, or beyond. They are being identified and discriminated against on the basis of:
| race, particularly African-Americans. |
| ethnicity, particularly Hispanics. |
| gender, particularly against women by religious institutions. |
| sexual orientation, particularly against homosexuals. |
| religion, particularly against Atheists, Jews, Wiccans, other Neopagans, and other minority religions. (Wiccans are followers of a Neopagan, earth based religion, pattered after ancient Celtic spirituality). |
In the field of religion, for example:
| Most born-again Christians in America view Islam and Buddhism as having a negative impact on society. 3 |
| Only 49% of American adults would vote for an otherwise well-qualified candidate for President, if she/he happened to be an Atheist. 3 |
| During 2000-MAY, the Southern Baptist Convention, the largest Protestant denomination in the U.S., decided to prohibit future ordinations of women. 4 |
| George W. Bush, during his race for the presidency, stated that Wiccan soldiers should be deprived of those religious freedoms that are routinely enjoyed by Christians and Jews. 5 |
| During the year 2000, a Baptist minister in Kileen, TX, allegedly said that the U.S. army should napalm all Wiccans. |
Attempts to hold perpetrators responsible:
If genocides and mass crimes against humanity cannot be eliminated, then at least the perpetrators can be hunted down, arrested, tried, and imprisoned. There are several steps being taken worldwide in this direction:
| Holding dictators responsible: Two of the world's most notorious perpetrators appear to be inching
closer to trials:
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| Cambodian genocide: In 2001-JAN, the lower house of the Cambodian government unanimously passed a law authorizing their courts to try leaders of the Khmer Rouge -- the group responsible for the extermination of almost a third of people in their country. | ||||
| International Criminal Court: As of the end of the year 2000, 139 countries, including the United
States, Britain, Canada, and Israel have signed the landmark treaty to
create an International Criminal Court. It would be pattered
after the court which heard a series of Nazi war crime trials after World War II.
It will try individuals from all countries who are accused of genocide, war crimes, and other
gross human rights violations. Only those cases which are not actively
pursued
in the country where the crimes occurred will be heard by the
international court. The tribunal will come into existence if 60 countries ratify the treaty. As of 2000-JAN-1, 27 nations have done so, including Austria, Belgium, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, New Zealand, Norway, Spain, and South Africa. If fully implemented, this court should dispense punishment to the perpetrators of genocide and bring justice to the victims. But its main effect may be to make every potential perpetrator of genocide feel insecure. If they know that they will likely be hunted down and imprisoned for a long time in the future, they will be less likely to commit genocide now. Senator Jesse Helms (R-NC) drafted a bill to forbid the United States from having anything to do with the court, and to punish any country that ratifies the treaty or cooperates with the court. | ||||
| U.S. federal law: The U.S. government passed the Genocide Convention Implementation Act of 1987, (a.k.a. The Proxmire Act). This is a federal law which targets genocidal acts, if "the offense is committed within the United States"; or "the alleged offender is a national of the United States." Fines for up to 1 million dollars can be levied. Imprisonment for life is possible in the case of murder, or up to 20 years otherwise. |
References:
- "Genocide," at: http://www.encyclopedia.com/
- "20th Century Democide," at: http://www.hawaii.edu/
- "Prejudice of Americans towards those of various faiths." On-site essay.
- "Women clergy in Orthodox and Protestant Christianity, and other religions," On-site essay.
- "Rolling cyber-debate on religious freedom," Web White & Blue 2000, 2000-OCT-15, at http://www.webwhiteblue.org/
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Site navigation: Home page > Laws & religion > Genocide > here |
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or: Home page > Religious violence > Genocide > here |
Copyright © 2001 to 2007 by Ontario Consultants on Religious
Tolerance
Originally written: 2001-JAN-1
Latest update: 2007-APR-07
Author: B.A. Robinson
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