"What's Genocide?" Why Students Should Know this Answer

One of the greatest humanitarian threats of our day is genocide: the heinous act of wiping out complete populations because of racial, ethnic, or religious differences. Genocide occurs all over the world, but yet most people only know genocide as the Holocaust; a terrible event that occurred years ago and couldn't possibly happen again. After the Holocaust, the world declared, “Never Again” and as far as the general public is concerned, we have kept that promise. Unfortunately, genocide has occurred again and again. There was the Armenian genocide before the Holocaust, and then many to follow after World War II.
In our schools today most children learn about the Holocaust, but it is taught with the rhetoric that it could never happen again. Do students hear about Cambodia in the 1970s, or Bosnia and Rwanda in the 1990s? I was in high school when the conflict in Darfur, Sudan broke out. I immediately became active in the anti-genocide movement which was created out of a need for change concerning Darfur. After the 100 day massacre of between 800,000 and one million Tutsis and moderate Hutus in Rwanda, people became fed up with standing by while mass atrocities occur. Because Rwanda happened so quickly, it was difficult to get involved, as most news reached international media after the massacre was over. When the conflict in Darfur hit the airwaves, human rights activists sprung into action.
As a high school student who was active in the movement, I was horrified that when I talked to my peers and family about the conflict, the most common response was, “What's genocide?” This question was popping up across the country among students and adults. Beyond not knowing what genocide was, or equating it with the Holocaust, knowledge of prior genocides was not on anyone's radar.
TAG: Teach Against Genocide is a campaign that was started to address this problem. TAG is working to pass education legislation in various states to make comprehensive genocide education mandatory. In April 2007, the Genocide Intervention Network conducted a poll and found that 80% of Americans support mandatory genocide education in public schools. Jacqueline Collins, a state senator from Illinois, helped to pass state legislation mandating genocide education and describes its importance:
By studying these tragic lessons from history, we can help our children understand the importance of freedom…When they recognize that crimes of genocide continue in some corners of the world, even in the 21st century, it will raise their awareness and help them understand what can happen when you judge people by their race, their homeland or their beliefs (Teach Against Genocide).
Education is the most valuable thing we have. In order to change the order of the world, we must learn from history, and in order to learn from history, we must tell it. I cannot imagine finding an American who would not support ending genocide, but it cannot end if people do not know it exists.
In Massachusetts, there is an active TAG campaign. On June 9th, 2009, I along with dozens of students from across the state lobbied and testified on behalf of HR463: An Act Concerning Genocide Education in front of the Joint Committee on Education. We are still awaiting to hear where HR463 stands, but it is imperative that students across the Commonwealth of Massachusetts receive an adequate education that includes an understanding of the concept of genocide, helping students to understand the link between past genocides and ways to prevent mass atrocities occurring today (Teach Against Genocide: Massachusetts).

Sources:
http://ma.teachagainstgenocide.org
www.teachagainstgenocide.org
www.standnow.org