Comparison of the Rwanda Genocide with the Holocaust

Comparison of the Rwanda Genocide with the Holocaust The events of both Rwanda and the Holocaust were equally horrific parts of history that will never be forgotten. In the years of April and June of 1994, the Rwanda genocide occurred. The history behind this was the resentment of being inferior. When Belgium claimed Rwanda and surrounding areas for German East Africa in about 1924, there became tension between two tribes. The Belgiums favored the Tutsi (which were 12% of the population) and the Hutu (85% of population) grew angry for being considered inferior. This struggle waged on for sixty years and finally hit its peak. The catalyst of the genocide was when President Juvenal Habyarimana, the Rwandan leader and Hutu, was killed when his plane was shot down on April 6, 1994. The Hutus blamed the Tutsi for his death and with various other problems, the true battles began. When a Tutsi ruler took control, the Hutus were greatly angered. The Tutsis and their supporters were being slaughtered in anger and retribution. Most of Rwanda’s population took action in this event, spreading the genocide throughout the nation. About 800,000 people died in this tragedy. Though both events were in different time periods, the Rwanda genocide and the Holocaust are very similar to each other. Both were the killing of a specific group(s) of people. People in both genocides killed their friends and even family members, whether directly or indirectly. Hundreds of thousands and even millions of innocent people were sentenced to death just by a prejudice of others. Anyone or anything that was associated with Jews or Tutsis were completely decimated. Both groups tried to flee to safety, whether that was Sweden or Zaire. However, a difference in these two genocides is that the Jews were pulled into concentration camps, where they stayed, awaiting their deaths. In Rwanda, the Tutsis were killed outright and there was not a specific organization that led in these attacks. The genocides in both Germany and Rwanda were eventually stopped with the help of outside forces. The casualties in these events are still remembered and still have a great impact on the world. However, the casualties in Rwanda still climb over the years that have passed, but this is not part of the genocide because both Tutsis and Hutus were being killed by the opposite sides. The Holocaust and the Rwanda genocide are some of the darkest moments in history that have affected the world in ways that will never be forgotten.