Moments of Truth at the Hilton Lake Buena Vista, Orlando, FL
I decided to make my paper on my experience during my stay in Orlando, since I stayed at this hotel for 3 days, this paper will focus on the most important moments of truth that I had during this trip. I arrived with 3 other friends early on February 21 and the first thing we noticed was the entrance. It was clean and organized, the valet personnel were busy helping other guests and we got down of our van with the help of our driver, we carried our bags to the hotel without any help but, since I am used to doing this when I go on trips, it did not have any negative impression on me. As we moved into the lobby, we noticed a sign that welcomed the guests in several languages, the hotel was completely full and the line to check in was quite large but it move quickly. As we approached the front desk, the guest service agent informed us that we could not check in yet because the reservation was under our professor’s name but that they would be more than happy to take our luggage while we waited for him. This left a very good impression on me because, even if they could not assist us with giving us a room yet, they took care of our luggage so that we could go explore the surroundings.
Around 10:00AM, I had to go and print some documents that were needed for the conference, I ran to the business center where I found a nice surprise; both using and printing at the business center were free! This left a great impression on me because most of the places I have stayed previously usually charge you a fee to use the equipment. Also, the computers looked brand new and were Mac, which gave me the sensation that the hotel does worry about having the best things available to its guests.
After about two hours, our professor and arrived and we proceeded to do the check in. Although there was a line it ran quickly and the room assignment was done technically in no time, it was good to see how efficient they were even when the hotel was as booked as it was. However, when we got into the room, it smelled like cigarette. We immediately went down to the front desk to let them know and they said housekeeping would be back to clean the room, but even after four hours the smell was still sharp. This was a very disappointing for me; first, because no room in a nonsmoking hotel should smell like cigarette, and second because it was a Hilton, and I have very high expectations from the Hilton Worldwide team.
On the other hand, one experience that did leave an excellent impression on me was the one I had with the bell service personnel. A bell man in training called Carlos took our luggage to the room. He was very efficient and friendly and let us know about the different services that the hotel offered.
To end the first day of my stay, we headed to the conference opening session, where a couple of minor issues took place, these issues were present during all of the sessions held at the conference; the first issue had to do with the microphone: it kept turning off and the sound wasn’t as good as it should have been, the second issue – and to me the most important – is that the room temperature was too low, everybody was cold during the sessions. This, to me, left a neutral impression, I know technical issues happen but I believe something could have been done to prevent it or solve it when it first happened.
Moving forward to the second day, I ran into a housekeeper named Barbara, we talked about how the hotel had been sold out for a couple of days and I told her about the issue with my room, she explained that the people that stayed there before were veterans and smoked inside the room. These people checked out right before we checked in and housekeeping tried to get rid of the smell, but they couldn’t and had to wait until we checked out to do a thorough cleaning. Barbara was so friendly and understanding of the situation that, when she explained it to me, I did not care about the problem anymore, she left and excellent impression on me and I hope Hilton continues to hire talent like her.
As my stayed continued, I had another excellent impression. I was helping out with the banquet centerpieces and it was great to see how attentive the hotel’s team was. They assisted us with every request, from staples to rolling carts; they always made sure we had everything we needed for the conference to run smoothly. However, the food for the banquet was not really good; it was cold and it lacked flavor. Also, there were two dessert options and no guest were asked which one they wanted, these two factors left a very bad and disappointing impression on me.
On the contrary, two things that left a great impression were the fact that the arcade was opened 24 hours and had enough variety of games to play, and the fact that the concierge was so helpful when we asked for information regarding how to buy park tickets and where to go eat.
To conclude, I would like to touch on my last experience, it wasn’t a very pleasant one because the bell service gave me a wrong bag and couldn’t find mine, after a few minutes, I realized it was on the counter and asked for it. After they asked me what it had inside – which I thought was good for security purposes – they gave it back to me and apologized.
The overall experience was pretty satisfactory, even though there were some “bumps” during my stay; I would definitely go back, because the good experiences made up for the bad impressions.
Written on March 5, 2013
Tulsi Vivah and Pujas at Durga Temple, Fairfax Station VA
At first I was uncertain regarding which religious tradition to use on my paper because I was interested in exploring all of the traditions we have discussed in class. However, I decided to focus this project on Hinduism because I feel it has a lot of features that I can easily incorporate to my own religious beliefs. After locating a temple near my location, I visited it three times before actually going to the service just to get more familiar with the tradition. Then, I looked at their online calendar and decided to go on the day the Tulsi Vivah ceremony was taking place. It is important to highlight that I could not stay during the whole ceremony, and that I observed both part of the Tulsi Vivah and people doing private pujas and prayers.
The temple I chose for the project is The Durga Temple, located in Fairfax Station, VA and it is the first temple dedicated to goddess Durga in the U.S. In addition, deities such as Vishnu, Shiva, Parvati, Ganesh, Krishna, Lakshmi and some others are also housed at this temple. Besides being a place of worship, The Durga Temple holds a variety of educational and cultural activities that help people get a better understanding of Hinduism.
Moving forward into the ceremonies, the Tulsi Vivah and the pujas were held inside the temple. For the pujas people approached the different deities’ altars, where a priest guided the family through the ritual, offering of incense and coconut. For the Tulsi Vivah, an altar was placed in the center of the temple; it was decorated with red fabric, plants and flowers – it resembled a garden –. At the center, there was a portrait of Krishna and Devi – one of his wives –, a statue of Ganesh and a Tulsi plant, adorned with white cloth and flowers. Three priests were leading this ceremony; one chanted the mantras, another one assisted the main attendees – an engaged couple and their parents that prayed for good fortune on the future marriage – with the offerings, and the other one assisted the rest of the participants.
The participants were seating quietly on the floor – with the exception of seniors, who were seating on chairs –, facing the altar. There were approximately thirty people on the temple; around twenty of them were participating in the Tulsi Vivah, while the other ten were offering pujas and praying to the different deities on the temple. In addition, there were noticeably more female attendees and only two children. Most participants were wearing regular clothes, only about five people were wearing traditional Hindu outfits and they all seemed to be medium or upper working class.
The general atmosphere on the temple while performing this ceremony was respectful and joyful, as the ceremony progressed; one could feel more joy and happiness among the participants. During the Tulsi Vivah there was an extensive period of mantra chanting and pujas to Krishna and his wife. Also there was a puja to Ganesh and one of the participants told me that, even though that is not a part of the ceremony, they incorporated it because the main participants were devotees of that particular deity. In addition to that, one of the priests told the story – in Indian – of the origins of the ceremony, which commemorates the legend of Vrinda, and her marriage to Vishnu. The ceremony incorporated the use of bells, incense, food – especially bananas –, a red thread – that the priest used to make bracelets for the participants – and vermillion – which he used to paint a red dot on everyone’s forehead –. These two elements were used to represent the union between Vishnu and Vrinda, regarding the bracelet, men had to use it on their right hand while women had to use it on their left hand. The dot on the forehead was worn by both men and women
At first I decided to only observe the ceremonies; I sat down with a friend and took notes on what was happening and how people were behaving. However, my friend and I eventually became participants when one of the priests approached us to paint a dot on our foreheads and make a bracelet out of red yarn. When the priest approached us I felt happy, even though he knew we were not part of the community, he made us feel welcomed and part of the ceremony. It was an amazing moment that I will treasure in my memory.
Throughout my visit at the temple I felt at peace and welcomed, all of the participants were engaged in their own religious experience and nobody interfered with anyone’s personal experience. I was truly fascinated with the traditions this community displayed. Also, I was very surprised with the fact that, even when a main ceremony was taking place – the Tulsi Vivah –, some people still visited the temple only to pray to a particular deity.
I learned many things from visiting The Durga Temple; people that participated on the Tulsi Vivah ceremony have a strong connection with their religious tradition, and they believe that participating in this ceremony bring prosperity to their families, especially to those people who are getting married soon. In addition, the community of The Durga Temple has a great sense of sharing and contribution; The altar used for the Tulsi Vivah, as well as all the offerings were made and brought by different members of the community. Moreover, the community is extremely friendly and welcoming towards non-members; regardless of your religious beliefs, they are happy to have people visit the temple and take part in the different religious and cultural activities they offer.
The temple has two stories, the worship salon and a cultural hall; they both express the Hindu values and stories, they are both designed in a very simplistic way. On the cultural hall of the Temple, there are various posters that introduce the visitor to the Hindu religion and its deities. In addition, the Temple has its own library and they schedule cultural and religious activities such as Sanskrit and meditation classes, introduction to Hinduism and so on. Moreover, the worship salon is filled of altars for the different deities; some of the altars are decorated opulently while others are decorated in a simpler way. There are six altars that are bigger than the rest in the temple because the deities portrayed in those altars are worshipped more often (Krishna, Shiva and Parvati, Ganesh, Hanuman, Durga and Rama).
I believe that people are part of this community for many reasons. First, it allows people to reunite with others that share their traditions, both religious and cultural. Also, it gives the people a sense of belonging; it can be difficult to live in another country, and places like The Durga Temple allow people to still practice their beliefs in an environment where they feel confortable.
In addition, participating in the activities that The Durga Temple holds, aids in reinforcing the participant’s faith, and it provides children and teenagers with an environment where they can learn about their traditions even when they are far from their land. I strongly consider that being part of a religious community such as The Durga Temple has multiple positive outcomes, not only religiously but socially as well; it allows participants to share their experiences and support each other.
Written on November 27, 2012
Errors as a Guiding Force in Life
Throughout history, individuals have held diverse thoughts regarding errors. Certain people believe that errors allow us to grow and move forward while others think they are undesirable and even sinful. I strongly believe in the first point of view; without errors we would have never accomplished most discoveries that help us live life as we know it today. Errors shape our life and direct us in the right path of discovering the truth.
Even though I hold an optimistic view of errors, I am aware that some of them can be amiss –like theft or murder-, but can those faults be classified as errors or were they done on purpose? I recall reading in Schulz’s essay, “Two Models of Wrongness”, that people who want to eradicate mistakes often cross the line –without noticing– and end up trying to eliminate people that hold beliefs different than theirs.
Like Hitler who, for example, wanted to exterminate a group that he assumed was harmful and wrong, but was it really? Or was he just frightened about the differences between Jews and himself? We all know that the Holocaust was completely wrong, but did he know this? Anyone who has read Mein Kampf, knows that Hitler believed it was the right thing to do —it was his “truth”. His experiences throughout life led him to think he was doing the right thing, not only for himself but for mankind.
This makes me ask myself a few questions: How do we judge what is right or wrong? Do we judge according to what is best for us or our family? According to what is beneficial for society or even for the environment? And also, how do we tell if we are judging appropriately? We judge errors and circumstances based on ethics and values. That is how we distinguish right from wrong.
Also, I realized that my perception of errors has been linked to the notions of right and wrong, but they are neither of them. Errors are relative. What is considered a fault today it might not be a fault tomorrow. Flaws lead us to our reality, even if we have to fail a few times before reaching it.
What can be a mistake to you could be someone else’s reality. For instance, we have two individuals -one believes in God and the other one is an Atheist- these are their particular realities and, even when they differ, they must be respected and accepted.
Think for a moment, how did Fleming discovered the penicillin, or how was the microwave invented? These discoveries started because of a slip; a slip that intrigued the researcher, made them dig deeper and, ultimately, made him discover a new “truth”. How science is constantly rediscovering concepts and new ideas is one outstanding example of this process, as Schulz states “…the scientific method is essentially a monument to the utility of the error.” (398).
And this process not only occurs with prodigious discoveries, each individual’s life is shaped by the mistakes he/she makes. I think that errors, particularly the little ones, shape us into what we need to become. It is like a sculpture: Life is an artist and errors are the chisel; life uses errors to remove parts of us that we do not need, molding us into something more beautiful, carrying us closer to our truth. Error allows us to make room for our little Renaissance man full of doubts, releasing the Shakespeare, Galileo, Audrey Hepburn or Sinatra that lives within ourselves.
Yes, errors shape us and sometimes the process can be cruel and shameful, but one has to learn how to dance in the rain, knowing that the rainbow will come afterwards, and we will discover our very own pot of gold. For that reason, I hold errors as high as I hold motivation in my life. To me, they are the two central forces that guide people through life. Without them, existence becomes ordinary, without them one cannot find his/her true passion, without it one cannot set goals. Think about it, where would you be if you have never made a mistake in your life? Would you be the same individual or would you be someone completely different?
Written on September 17, 2012
On Technology and How It Is Destroying Human Interactions:
Wherever one looks, there will always be someone interacting with an electronic device. People nowadays are connected with the world, but (at the same time) they are disconnecting themselves from their community, lowering one-on-one interactions. Technology and its effects on how people interact is a field of study that recently caught my attention. While seeing my younger sister gathered with her closest friends, I realized that everybody was constantly checking their smartphones and all they talked about was related to Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. I believe that we have all experienced these episodes (sometimes even more frequently than we would like), and that is the reason I am expressing my concerns on where technology is leading our social interactions. As a member of the “digital generation”, I strongly consider that technology is destroying human’s one-on-one interactions and the social skills linked to them.
Reliance on technology has set our brains under a permanent state of alert and stress. The world as we know it requires us to be connected as much as possible – if not always –. In fact, people expect us to be connected at every moment, and some individuals actually get upset when a text is not replied within a short time frame. That constant activeness has made us stay in a never-ending state of alert. Gary Small (2008) has helped us define that state; he claims that the technology-driven world has created a condition of continuous partial attention or CPA (the terms continuous partial attention and CPA will be used interchangeably during this essay). He also emphasizes that when in a state of continuous partial attention we move from activity to activity looking for, and I quote, “every type of contact at any given moment”. In other words, continuous partial attention is a cry for attention, not only from the person jumping from e-mail to e-mail, but also from the person who sends them.
Moreover, the state of continuous partial attention affects both screenagers and nonscreenagers (according to de Encyclopedia of American Studies (2010), the term screenager is used in reference of the generation that was born with a personal computer in their homes). For example, a business person receives multiple texts while he/she is writing an e-mail about the next corporate meeting as he listens to music. With this CPA state affecting business people, a new door has opened for them: Technology allows them to take work with them wherever they are (including home), increasing the continuous partial attention state and deteriorating the amount of time, attention or quality of the interactions between family members. Moving forward to how CPA affects the younger group; a teenager is constantly checking her phone to see who is following her on Twitter as she video chats with her best friend, while they both do homework and watch the new Justin Bieber’s video on Youtube. The continuous partial attention condition is present in everyone who is “connected” to the technological revolution, making one-on-one interactions reduce greatly in terms of time and quality.
I have also noticed that, technology is a distraction in social gatherings. The constant arrival of information makes us check our cellphones more often that we should and this may lead to uncomfortable situations: such as being available when you do not want to be, or not being “available” to share with your friends because you are available online. On an interview to José Márquez, he was asked if he believed that technology had contribute to isolate people and shares a personal anecdote: One day he asked his two younger children what they wanted for dinner and, to his surprise, their answers came via Whatsapp (a mobile messaging application compatible with most smartphones, similar to Blackberry messenger). It is, the minute I come across these situations, when I fear for the future of human interactions; I fear we are forgetting how to interact with each other without a screen in front of us.
Others may say that technology aids in making life of students and business people more efficient, however, overexposure to technology can weaken the brain areas that control social interaction. According to Small (2008), technology is shifting the way our brains operate. Small claims that our brain is focusing on the technological skills and is leaving social skills behind (like finding the emotional background of a gesture). In addition, he affirms that a healthy brain needs a balance between non-human stimulation and personal interaction. In regards to continuous partial attention, Small declares that the brain sets itself in a sharp state of stress and, if this stress is lengthy, it can result in anxiety, tiredness, depression and bad temperedness (he defines this as Techno-brain burnout). Small concludes stating that “While the brains of today’s Digital Natives are wiring up for rapid-fire cyber searches, the neural circuits that control the more traditional learning method are neglected and gradually diminished. The pathway for human interaction and communication weakens as customary one-on-one people skills atrophy”.
With as much exposure to technology as we have nowadays, my main concern is how we can build the social aspect of our brain (with less intervention from computers) so that a healthy level between human interaction and other stimuli can be reach once more. Unfortunately, I do not have the answer to that question without involving technology, and I start to think that (if we continue this way) soon enough we will be living like the humans on Walt Disney’s movie, Wall-E (2008). Technology has helped us destroy our social interaction’s skills, widening the generation gap between screenagers and non-screenagers. In addition to that, the fast “rewiring” of our brain may cause newborns to lack – or forget – at early ages, fundamental social skills.
In conclusion, technology has dragged us down the continuous partial attention path, making us ramble from task to task and demanding attention from other “onliners”. Although technological advancements have aid us in making multiple aspects of our lives more efficient, it has also help fade the social interactions in our lives and this is not healthy. Our brain is shifting so quickly that a study on Small’s book (2008) show that an emoticon is now activating the brain areas that control nonverbal communication. There is no doubt that our brain is evolving rapidly thanks to technology, and that our social interactions are changing forever. At this point in time, I believe we could take Aristotle’s famous quote that says “man is by nature a social man” and transform it to suit current times, saying that man is an iSocial man.
Works Cited and Consulted
Aristotle. La Política: Argentina: La Editorial Virtual, 2007. Print.
“Cyberculture.” Encyclopedia of American Studies. : Johns Hopkins UP, 2010. Credo Reference. Web. 9 Oct 2012.
Márquez, José G. “On Technology and Isolation.” E-mail interview. 09 Oct. 2012.
Small, Gary W., and Gigi Vorgan. IBrain: Surviving the Technological Alteration of the Modern Mind. New York: Collins Living, 2008. Print.
WALL-E. Dir. Andrew Stanton. By Andrew Stanton, Jim Reardon, Ben Burtt, Elissa Knight, and Jeff Garlin. Prod. Jim Morris. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, 2008. Film.
Written on October 15, 2013
Living in New York City versus Living in Washington D.C
There is always a moment in life when a person has to choose where to live. As a student, I will be soon transferring to a four-year university and it is time for me to assess where I should live. This essay will focus on evaluating the differences and similarities between living in two of the major cities in the United States; New York City and Washington D.C. I have visited both cities multiple times and they are both exceptional places to settle, but consider that living in New York City will suit my lifestyle better than living in the nation’s capital.
To make a better evaluation between these two cities, this essay will be based only in three criteria: Metro transportation, museums and theaters, and architecture.
Regarding the first element –Metro transportation–, Washington D.C possesses a Metro system that closes at 12 A.M. Sundays through Thursdays and at 3A.M. on Fridays and Saturdays. In addition to that, prices vary according to the length of the trip and peak hours. On the other hand, The Metro system in New York City is operational on a 24/7 basis, and it has a flat rate of 2.50 each trip regardless of the time and length of the journey. The one thing both Metro systems have in common is the fact that they have daily and weekly passes, which allow the holder to take as many trips as needed for a flat rate over the time the pass is active.
Moving forward onto art and theaters, Washington D.C. has the Smithsonian museums as well as various art galleries which are, mostly, free of charge. This feature makes them available and appealing to a wide audience. In addition to museums, the nation’s capital has a few theaters that one can visit, but the selection of plays is very limited, especially if one want to see a famous production. In contrast to the free admission of museums in D.C., New York City’s museums often involve paying a high admission fee, this makes them less affordable to people living on a budget. On the other hand, the Big Apple offers a wide variety of plays; from musicals to classics and independent productions, New York City has a play for everyone in town. An outstanding fact that contrast the theater ‘experience’ within these two metropolises lies in the fact that D.C does not have a theater district, while New York City does. Having said this, the Big Apple is home to some of the most famous plays such as The Phantom of the Opera and Wicked while D.C. is home to a collection of museums that are known internationally.
Lastly, architecture varies severely between these two metropolises. Washington D.C. exhibits a very classic architecture; the constructions are not as tall as the ones present in a modern urban area. The nation’s capital presents a landscape full of monuments and buildings inspired on Greek and Roman designs, construction’s elevation seem to be below the Washington’s Monument and the Capitol’s height. Some of the most significant landmarks of D.C. are The Lincoln Memorial, The White House, The Capitol and The Washington Monument; all of these grand landmarks are examples of Washington D.C.’s architecture. Unlike Washington D.C, New York City’s landscape is filled with skyscrapers. Tall buildings with countless shapes are the norm when walking around the Big Apple, some of the most famous skyscrapers in New York City are the Empire State Building, the Chrysler Building, the new World Trade Center complex – which is still under construction – and the Trump Tower. If Washington’s constructions are inspired in Greek and Roman designs, New York City’s is inspired by the constant changes in technology nowadays.
Finally, after assessing each of the items described in the beginning of the essay, I have concluded that New York City would be –from these two cities– the ideal place for me to live; it will save me the problems and expenses of having a car since public transportation is open 24/7, it also satisfies my challenging artistic tastes with a variety of plays and museums from where to choose –despite they are more expensive– and the architecture makes me feel at home since I grew up in a city full of tall buildings and busy, narrow streets. New York City is, to me, the ideal place to live.
Written on September 29, 2012
Jewish Holocaust and Rwandan Genocide, War of Races
“For the survivor who chooses to testify, it is clear: His duty is to bear witness for the dead and the living. He has no right to deprive future generations of a past that belongs to our collective memory. To forget would be not only dangerous but offensive, to forget the dead would be akin to killing them a second time. The witness has forced himself to testify. For the youth of today, for the children who will be born tomorrow. He does not want his past to become their future.” Elie Wiesel, Night, Prefacr to the New Translation (New York: Hill and Wang. c2006), page xv.
Genocides have been part mankind’s history for a very long time. One of the most known genocides is the Holocaust, which took place between 1935 and 1945. Its main objective was to eradicate Jews from the territories controlled by the Third Reich. As well as the Holocaust, Rwandan genocide is one of the most intensive mass-exterminations seen on the 20th century; it has its origins on race conflict between to ethnic groups of the African country: The Hutus and the Tutsis.
The Holocaust and the Rwandan genocide will be compared in this essay in order to show that prejudice is one of the major causes triggering mass-extermination, and how propaganda influences people in actively participating in such massacres.
Holocaust and Rwandan genocide:
Background:
The Holocaust was the planned, bureaucratic, state-sponsored annihilation of Jews by the Nazis between 1933 and 1945. The ideology of the Nazi movement –led by Adolf Hitler– was founded, from the beginning, on a hatred of Jews; Hitler’s adepts though supported the thought that Jews were an inferior race.
The Nazi movement started gaining popularity in 1932 and, by 1933, Hitler was appointed Chancellor of Germany. When the German President died in 1934, Hitler took over his charge. With Hitler in the Presidency, the chasing of Jews and other so-called “inferior” races –all for the sake of the Aryan race– started officially.
One of the major events that marked the beginning of the Holocaust was the Kristallnacht, on November 9th, 1938. On this night, Nazis attacked Jewish citizens and their properties. In addition, the Nazis arrested at least 30,000 Jewish men; they were sent to concentration camps.
In September 1939, Nazis invaded Poland and the Jews that lived there were subjected to extreme violence. But it wasn’t until 1941, when the Germans invade the Soviet Union, that their genocidal hatred was fully released.
When Germany occupied these new territories, Hitler saw the opportunity to implement his “final solution” to the Jewish “problem” in Europe; the genocide had started and, by the end of this period, two out of every three European Jews had been killed (5 to 6 million people), including 1.5 million children.
One would think that, after a tragedy such as the Jewish massacre from World War II, mankind would have learned the lesson. However, it seems as if mankind liked to trip over the same stone more than once. Rwandan genocide happened 49 years later, between April and June 1994. It was one of the most intensive killing campaigns in human history; in only 100 days, an estimated of 800,000 Rwandans were killed.
The root of this conflict was ethnic tension. Rwanda had two major ethnic groups: Hutus and Tutsis. These groups have always had disagreements among them –issue that had grown largely since the colonial period – despite speaking the same language, living in the same areas and sharing the same traditions.
However, when the Belgians took over Rwanda after World War I, they saw Tutsis where taller, thinner and had more European characteristics. Thus, they were given the roles of responsibility, making the Hutus upset. It was also the Belgians who decided to implement an Identification card, where it must say which ethnical group the person belonged to. These cards were still being used after Rwanda’s independence, and they provided crucial information to the perpetrators of the genocide.
When Rwanda was fighting for its independency, Belgium switched the status of the two groups, giving the power to Hutus (the majority). This made Tutsis upset and the tension began. Some extremist Hutus murdered around 15,000 Tutsis between 1959 and 1962; this made more than 100,000 Tutsis flee to neighboring countries.
In 1973, the totalitarian regime of Juvenal Habyarimana was installed, and the Tutsis remaining in Rwanda were stripped of their wealth and social status. After 1986, Tustis living in Uganda formed the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) a guerrilla organization which main objective was to overthrow the President Habyarimana’s regime.
In 1990, the RPF launched the invasion, occupying zones of the northeast of the country. As consequence, in1993, Habyarimana accepted to sign a peace treaty that granted Tutsis a share of the political and military power. However, extremists Hutus were not fascinated with this idea, and did not accept the peace agreement. These extremist Hutus were the ones in charge of the genocide; they saw themselves as patriots defending their nation. For this group, moderated Hutus who supported the peace treaty also became a target. These people – the extremists – created the “Hutu Power” movement that led and supervised the Rwandan Genocide.
The Massacre:
The Nazis extermination campaign started, without a doubt, with the mass detentions and annihilation of male Jews during the early period of the Nazi Rule (1931-1941). These same strategies were used against women in later stages. Mass executions and the gas chambers knew nothing about gender or age. The Nazi party killed approximately tens of thousands Jews in the closing stages of the war.
The Reich developed a squad called Einsatzgruppen (death-squad); this group “trained” their officers through a step escalation of killing. First they shot only teen and adult men; this was done so they could “acclimate” to mass execution prior to killing women, children and elderly Jews. The idea of these mass shootings was to cleanse the conquered space from any manifestations of Jewry and Bolshevism. This led to the mass murder of Jews in mass shooting like Babi Yar -where 33,000 Jews were killed-, the gas-vans and the famous concentration camps.
On the concentration camps, women, children and the elderly were targeted for immediate extermination; while young boys and male adults were usually preserved and forced to work. They lived under the most precarious environment in the concentration camps, and most of them died of starvation or in the gas chambers.
On the other hand, Rwandan genocide started on April 6th, 1994, when a missile shot down President Habyarimana’s plane. Which group is accountable for this has never been confirmed, but studies suggest that the Hutu extremist decided to get rid of the President and implement a “final solution” to the Tustsi “problem”.
Within 24 hours of the death of the President, the Interahamwe –military part of the “Hutu Power” movement- blocked roads around the capital, asking everybody for their ID and separating Hutus from Tutsis. Tutsis were after killed by hand weapons such as machetes and knives; also, many taller Hutus were presumed to be Tutsis and were killed as well. Meanwhile, death-squads worked with list of Tutsis and moderate Hutus that needed to be assassinated; these lists included the Prime Minister.
Rapidly, the genocide expanded from the capital to the countryside and, by April 21st, around a quarter of Tutsis and moderate Hutus had been slaughtered. This, together with the World War II genocide, was the most concentrated act of genocide in human history.
As in the Holocaust, genocides targeted principally the men. Regarding women, the main strategies used in genocides were mutilation and rape. In later stages, genocides targeted the whole population; men, children and women were faced the same future, death.
Propaganda and media:
The Nazis has a weekly newspaper, Der Sturmer (The Attacker), at the bottom of the front-page it said: “The Jews are our misfortune”.
They also developed a series of books, board games, and brochures that advertised the danger of Jews to the Aryan community, along with speeches and regulations against Jews.
In regards to the Rwandan genocide, the Hutu extremists controlled a newspaper called Kangura. In December 1990, the paper published “The Ten Commandments for the Hutu” where they basically stated that any contact with Tutsis was treason to their race.
RML (Radio Television des Milles Collines) also spread hate. When the killing of Tutsis started, they took an active role in the genocide. RML announced the names of individuals that should be killed and where to find them.
How many people died?:
According to Raul Hilberg, “The Jewish dead numbered more than 5 million: about 3 million in killing centers and other camps, 1.4 millions in shooting operations, and more than 600,000 in ghettos” (Hilberg, “Holocaust”, Encarta Encyclopedia).
On the other hand, the number of people killed in Rwandan genocide has not been systematically assessed due to the chaotic nature of the event. However, in February 2002, the Rwandan government released the results of the first major census that allow estimating the number of people killed in the genocide. Approximately one-seventh of the population was killed (1,074,017 people) being the Tutsis a 94% of these victims.
General conclusions:
Both genocides are very similar, even when they were performed in different continents and involving different ethnical groups. The hatred between two races (German and Jews in the Holocaust and Hutus and Tutsis in Rwanda) can be easily recognized, as well as the so-called solution of eradicating one of the groups.
The Holocaust and the Rwandan genocide used propaganda and media to influence people in taking participation in the genocide acts. Both Nazi’s and Hutu’s media displayed direct offensive messages about the other group.
History gives us many examples of genocides and killing, and most of them have the same reasons: Prejudice and irrational hate. Also, most of them could have been stopped on time if somebody from outside had act early, as the British historian Ian Kershaw wrote: “The road to Auschwitz was built by hate, but paved with indifference”.
Written on September 6, 2011
U.S. and Teenage Suicide
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, suicide is “The action of killing oneself intentionally.” The World Health Organization states that suicide is one of the leading causes of death worldwide, and one of the three leading causes of death in young adults under the age of 25. These are facts that should worry the population of the US, especially the parents of teenagers throughout the country.
The process of being a teenager can be very overwhelming and, if teens are not properly guided through this difficult stage, it can become a major problem. Teenagers are dealing with the process of discovering themselves and experimenting new things; during this process, several things can make a teenager think about attempting suicide: Social pressure, alcohol and drug abuse, depression, having a sense of no belonging anywhere, and anxiety are a couple of examples.
When someone thinks about attempting suicide they don’t really want to die. What happens is that they can’t find another solution to stop the suffering or the despair they are feeling. Not everybody that thinks about attempting suicide ends up doing it; statistics show that, from 8 to 25 suicide attempts, only 1 is completed.
But how can society help reduce the risks of suicide in young adults? Education is the key. In order to reduce suicide attempts in young adults, high schools must start an awareness and prevention campaign where both –teenagers and parents– learn about causes and consequences of suicide and how to prevent it from happening.
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