Essay on The Bystander Effect in Genocides - 737 Words

Many times we ask why nobody did anything to stop such horrific events from happening. Actually, many people said that this would never happen again but this is not the case. Since the Holocaust we have seen several examples of how the general public sometimes refuses to acknowledge the occurrence of events and how the government often has little political will to stop mass murders until it is too late. One example of this that occurred not too long ago is the Rwandan Genocide. In 1994, between half a million to a million Rwandan Tutsi as well as thousands of moderate Hutu, were exterminated in the clearest mass murder case since the Holocaust. The world stood back and observed as the murders took place. Samantha Power, in the book she†¦show more content†¦The position taken by the United States then led the United Kingdom. to decide that because approval from the United States in the Security Council would be needed for intervention force such as the UNAMIR, it would not be possible for it to be approved. In other words the endangered,unsupported and under-supplied UNAMIR force should be recalled. This is a perfect example of how the world often does not act upon atrocities such as the Holocaust until it is too late. The Rwandan genocide occurred not too long ago and the world had already decided that mass murders would not occur again yet they stood back and watched as hundreds of thousands of people were killed. D. Conclusion When comparing the events of the Holocaust to the events in recent mass murders and genocides such as the Rwandan genocide we can see how such events were able to occur. Just like the general population was aware of what was happening in Rwanda to a certain extent, the Austrians were aware of how the Nazi regime was treating their prisoners. In both cases knowledge was limited but there was awareness of the fact that something was wrong. Although we now know that the Rwandan genocide could have been stopped way before hundreds of thousands of lives perished the world is beyond late in taking action. We cannot label the entire Austrian population as being responsible for the extermination of the Jews and the abuse of prisoners. The only ones who can be blamedShow MoreRelatedThe Genocide Is Not A Thing Of The Past1525 Words   |  7 PagesUnbeknownst to many, genocide is not a thing of the past. Genocide and acts of atrocity are still being enacted today all around the w orld. 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Leadership can be a particular ability that can either be a mental or a physicalRead MoreWill You Practice What You Preach? Essay example1493 Words   |  6 Pagesof bullying, just how responsible is a bystander to act? We don’t have to put ourselves at danger necessarily, but calling the police or just saying, â€Å"Stop that!† could go a long way. The choice to act or not to act when crisis strikes lies within a person’s psyche. This dilemma is a widely known trend called the bystander effect. As authors and psychological researchers Jason Marsh and Dacher Keltner describe in their article â€Å"We Are All Bystanders,† â€Å"When study participants thought thereRead MoreReflective Essay On Silence In Night870 Words   |  4 Pagesstepped in, millions of innocent lives would have been rescued. One voice was all that it would have taken to stop this nightmare. However, due to the lack of action, a huge genocide occurred, and it left behind a charred mark on history. 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