By Wilson Wu Fan Ai Tong School, 5A
"You've been tested positive.." Those words form the doctor weighed down like an anchor. MY heart sank, body iced and mind blanked in an instant. Now that I recall, the first image to enter my mind after regaining a semblance of composure was a dying AIDS1 victim, surrounded by his family members, in an advertisement from United Colours of Benetton. I'm now a carrier of the HIV2 virus.
About a year ago, I still had a future. Leading to its destruction, ironically, was an opportunity that my friends and I thought was golden. "Boys, we've got a gig!" exclaimed Steve. He was the lead vocalist of The Cream, a nascent band that featured his younger brother, Jacob, as the percussionist; Johnny, our childhood friend, as the bass guitarist; and me, the lead guitarist. Lady Luck must be smiling down, all of us thought, when Steve broke the news that we had been selected to perform at the annual Rock Festival.
The event was an unexpected success. We were buoyed by the cheers and applause from the electrified crowd. What surprised us even more were the flattering comments from Matthew, an influential composer in the region. "It was a fantastic performance. I didn't have the impression that you guys were a bunch of rookies," he remarked. Before parting, we were invited to a party at his house. Steve eagerly agreed on our behalf. "We need connections," he told us later.
An unmistakable air of hedonism permeated the sprawling apartment. The owner had no lack of any material comfort that I could think of. Every piece of furniture, decoration and entertainment device was synonymous with luxury. It seemed that we had entered a different world. Except for us, the guests at Matthew's party were all dressed in designer outfits. They were dancing to techno music while we stood at a corner sipping cocktails served by waiters who treated us condescendingly.
Jacob, feeling bored and uneasy, said, "There are only high society people here. This is not a place for us." Just when we were deliberating whether to leave, the host came up to us. "Hey, are you guys comfortable?" Matthew asked. "Let me be a gracious host," he continued without waiting for a reply. "You can ease yourselves into the party." Matthew then took Steve's hand, placed a packet of pink pills on his palm and closed the the fingers to make a fist before letting go. I saw a smirk on the composer's lips. His penetrating eyeballs gave each of us a glance. He walked away after pretending to pop something into his mouth. The gesture was easily understood.
"We are not going to touch that stuff!" Jacob protested as soon as the host was out of sight. I nodded in agreement. "Are you afraid of ending up like Kurt Cobain?" Steve snapped. "Don't forget the premature deaths of Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix and Jim Morrison!" Jacob retorted, citing the names of iconic rock personalities who had their lives terminated by drugs. The two brothers were embroiled in a heated exchange of words until Johnny interrupted, "Jacob, I know that we should stay clean, but your brother is right. We need the performances, songs and tips that Matthew can offer to give us the success that our talents deserve." There was no denying that Matthew could propel our musical ambition. Steve coaxed. Johnny cajoled. By rejecting the drugs, they believed we would not get another opportunity to seek the help of Matthew. In the end, we made a dual pact. We agreed to rid our lives of drugs once we achieved our objectives and to prevent each other from getting into a vicious cycle of addiction.
It turned out to be a Faustian pact. Our acceptance of drugs from Matthew brought us into his circle of influence. He used his clout to help the band gain publicity though various platforms, and much sooner than expected, a proposal was tabled for us to cut our very first album. In the meantime, we ventured deeper and deeper into the wasteland of drugs. The dark side of Matthew was soon revealed to us. Behind his facade as a respected composer, he was the leader of a drug syndicate. We were among his clientele. The few attempts made to wean ourselves from drugs were blocked by withdrawal symptoms that brought absolute misery. It was too difficult to exchange glamour and rewards for suffering. In the spiraling freefall, we graduated from "Ecstasy" pills to a smorgasbord of cocaine, heroin and marijuana.
A drug raid abruptly ended our life of decadence. Narcotics officers operating undercover arrested us in a discotheque. Memories of the incident are vague. I was high and dazed when the law caught up with me. It was in police custody that I realised the folly of my actions. However, I did not expect the consequences to be more severe that imprisonment and caning. Three days after a mandatory blood specimen test, I was told of my infection with the deadly HIV virus. It was tantamount to pronouncing the death sentence on me. The same fate fell on Steve. We must have been infected through needles used by other drug abusers.
Almost two months have since elapsed. During this period, I experienced the agony of freeing my body from narcotics dependence. Many times during the day, in a silent lucidity, I wished regretfully that time could be reversed. The nights were interspersed with intense moments of anguish. Thoughts of suicide crossed my mind. The haunting guilt and pain are difficult to exorcise.
Yet, I have derived from them the strength to live on. In the drug rehabilitation centre where I am now, many former addicts have shared their stories with me. All the accounts invariably end with a desire to make restitution to those who have been hurt. I cannot cause more sorrows to my parents. Rather than choosing a road to perdition, I have decided to complete my remaining journey with dignity. Obstacles will arise along the way, but I am prepared to face them. Indeed, the price for taking drugs is too high to pay and they must be shunned without hesitation.
1 AIDS is the acronym for Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome
2 HIV stands for Human Immunodeficiency Virus
20100512
20100511
Liviu Librescu
by Cassy Tischer, Skutt Catholic High School
9-10th Grade Category
Moral courage is a trait that is talked of frequently, but one becomes confused as to what a person with moral courage looks like, sounds like, or does. Moral courage requires and calls for all people to stand on the side of truth, even if they stand alone, and to speak up when they believe something is wrong. Each person who possesses moral courage has a story, but Liviu Librescu’s story touched a certain
place in my heart and stood out amidst all the rest. Librescu was among the few lucky people to actually survive the Holocaust, but he gave up his life willingly to protect his students and keep them alive. He stood up for what he knew was right and possessed courage in a situation where there was nothing but chaos.In the midst of World War II, Liviu Librescu was forced to witness his family being torn apart
(Moynihan). After being placed in several ghettos and moving around to a variety of places, his family was later reunited (Holland). Upon marrying and starting a family, Liviu immigrated to Israel in 1978 with his wife, who was also a Holocaust survivor (Moynihan). The family then moved to the U.S. where Librescu was a researcher and lecturer in engineering, along with having a degree in aeronautics
(Moynihan). Librescu became a professor at the college of Virginia Tech. After teaching there for years,the terrible day of April 16th, 2007 came along (Moynihan). A troubled young student attacked the school and started shooting innocent people. In the shooters’ two attacks, he made his way to Librescu’s room.Librescu directed his students to jump out of the window to safety while he barricaded the door with his body to prevent the shooter from getting inside (Holland). He saved many lives that day as he selflessly gave up his own. Liviu Librescu sacrificed his life in order to protect the students he taught. He did the only thing he knew how to do; it was a natural instinct. A young student by the name of Ms. Merrey said, “We had
heard the gunfire coming from the classroom behind us, and we just reacted to it and headed for the windows, Professor Librescu never made an attempt to leave. He’s a part of my life now and forever. I’m changed. I’m not the person I was before Monday.” (Moynihan) He not only affected the people whom he saved, but he also left a memorable mark upon anyone who knew him. Librescu was said to have been a brave man, and one who would never back down from helping those in need (Moynihan). He survived the Holocaust, and after, one would think that he would do anything to keep his life, but instead he saw the need to be the hero to those kids. He was not only doing what he thought was right, he was doing what he believed was his job. His heroic act brought hope to many people around the world. Liviu Lebrescu’s sacrifices not only affected the Virginia Tech population, but it also affected those outside of Virginia. His courage has influenced people today to take a stand and to speak up for what is right. His act was one out of a million, but has continued to help the people of today, and I am sure his story will go on for quite sometime. Many people could have died that day, but instead lives were saved because of his selflessness.
I have heard of many amazing people and people that are full of courage, but this story touched me deeply. It goes to show that no matter how persecuted someone has been, and how much they have been through, they can still find the power within themselves to save others. His story has inspired me to
“reap what I sow”, so to speak, and to treat others the way I want to be treated. When I first started to attend a Catholic school I was told that we would have to do a certain amount of service hours to graduate. My initial reaction was to groan and get them done as soon as possible. After doing my required hours, I came to like doing service. I was urged to step out of my comfort zone and work with those who
were less fortunate. I have taken these opportunities to enjoy helping people. Seeing the faces of the people I have worked with and seeing their response to my work and knowing that they are thankful, is one of the best feelings I have ever felt. Knowing that one man alone can save a whole classroom of students’ gives me hope that the things I am doing will in the end help those in need. I hope that one day I can also look back and say that I made a difference because I wanted to, not just because I was required to do so. Courage is the most important of all the virtues, because without courage you can't practice any other virtue consistently. You can practice any virtue erratically, but nothing consistently without courage.
-Maya Angelou
Bibliography
Holland, G.K. The Star Walker of the Month. June 2007. http://www.thestarwalkers.com.
Moynihan, Colin. “Professor’s Violent Death Came Where He Sought Peace.” New York
Times. April 19, 2007.
9-10th Grade Category
Moral courage is a trait that is talked of frequently, but one becomes confused as to what a person with moral courage looks like, sounds like, or does. Moral courage requires and calls for all people to stand on the side of truth, even if they stand alone, and to speak up when they believe something is wrong. Each person who possesses moral courage has a story, but Liviu Librescu’s story touched a certain
place in my heart and stood out amidst all the rest. Librescu was among the few lucky people to actually survive the Holocaust, but he gave up his life willingly to protect his students and keep them alive. He stood up for what he knew was right and possessed courage in a situation where there was nothing but chaos.In the midst of World War II, Liviu Librescu was forced to witness his family being torn apart
(Moynihan). After being placed in several ghettos and moving around to a variety of places, his family was later reunited (Holland). Upon marrying and starting a family, Liviu immigrated to Israel in 1978 with his wife, who was also a Holocaust survivor (Moynihan). The family then moved to the U.S. where Librescu was a researcher and lecturer in engineering, along with having a degree in aeronautics
(Moynihan). Librescu became a professor at the college of Virginia Tech. After teaching there for years,the terrible day of April 16th, 2007 came along (Moynihan). A troubled young student attacked the school and started shooting innocent people. In the shooters’ two attacks, he made his way to Librescu’s room.Librescu directed his students to jump out of the window to safety while he barricaded the door with his body to prevent the shooter from getting inside (Holland). He saved many lives that day as he selflessly gave up his own. Liviu Librescu sacrificed his life in order to protect the students he taught. He did the only thing he knew how to do; it was a natural instinct. A young student by the name of Ms. Merrey said, “We had
heard the gunfire coming from the classroom behind us, and we just reacted to it and headed for the windows, Professor Librescu never made an attempt to leave. He’s a part of my life now and forever. I’m changed. I’m not the person I was before Monday.” (Moynihan) He not only affected the people whom he saved, but he also left a memorable mark upon anyone who knew him. Librescu was said to have been a brave man, and one who would never back down from helping those in need (Moynihan). He survived the Holocaust, and after, one would think that he would do anything to keep his life, but instead he saw the need to be the hero to those kids. He was not only doing what he thought was right, he was doing what he believed was his job. His heroic act brought hope to many people around the world. Liviu Lebrescu’s sacrifices not only affected the Virginia Tech population, but it also affected those outside of Virginia. His courage has influenced people today to take a stand and to speak up for what is right. His act was one out of a million, but has continued to help the people of today, and I am sure his story will go on for quite sometime. Many people could have died that day, but instead lives were saved because of his selflessness.
I have heard of many amazing people and people that are full of courage, but this story touched me deeply. It goes to show that no matter how persecuted someone has been, and how much they have been through, they can still find the power within themselves to save others. His story has inspired me to
“reap what I sow”, so to speak, and to treat others the way I want to be treated. When I first started to attend a Catholic school I was told that we would have to do a certain amount of service hours to graduate. My initial reaction was to groan and get them done as soon as possible. After doing my required hours, I came to like doing service. I was urged to step out of my comfort zone and work with those who
were less fortunate. I have taken these opportunities to enjoy helping people. Seeing the faces of the people I have worked with and seeing their response to my work and knowing that they are thankful, is one of the best feelings I have ever felt. Knowing that one man alone can save a whole classroom of students’ gives me hope that the things I am doing will in the end help those in need. I hope that one day I can also look back and say that I made a difference because I wanted to, not just because I was required to do so. Courage is the most important of all the virtues, because without courage you can't practice any other virtue consistently. You can practice any virtue erratically, but nothing consistently without courage.
-Maya Angelou
Bibliography
Holland, G.K. The Star Walker of the Month. June 2007. http://www.thestarwalkers.com.
Moynihan, Colin. “Professor’s Violent Death Came Where He Sought Peace.” New York
Times. April 19, 2007.
20100510
Mother's Day
bY Rashmi Singh, 11-year-old, South Dartmouth.
Mother's Day to me is a day that I like to think purely about my mother. Whenever I think I get so "flooded" with what my mother has done for us . . .
Teaching my sister and me to read (my brother is just beginning). Washing the dishes. Doing the laundry. Dropping us to school. Taking me to my piano lessons. Taking my sister to ballet lessons. Dropping me to the Southworth Library most any time that is reasonable, and when I want to go. Attending concerts. I've listed only a few, but these tasks seem overwhelming to me! I'm just left in a daze.
My mother and I enjoy talking about so many issues . . . from "How was school?" to downright politics.
I wonder if God gave my mom two brains instead of one! I mean, my mom can dry the dishes while still paying attention to the news!
My mother is very special to me because she taught me all the virtues of being a good person. Sincerity, honesty, forgiveness, persistence, tolerance, and fairness. She taught me to be kind and caring. To work hard and do your duties, don't worry about the results. To be generous and giving. To be patient.
So whenever I see these things being done, I always remember my mother. She is my friend, my teacher, she is my Earth. She has resources . . . like this planet -- Earth.
But how to pay her back for all the things she has done for us? I don't know. She has done so much for us! But I will try to make all 365 days Mother's Day by helping her. What I really want to say to her is: "THANK YOU, MOM!"
-- RASHMI SINGH
Mother's Day to me is a day that I like to think purely about my mother. Whenever I think I get so "flooded" with what my mother has done for us . . .
Teaching my sister and me to read (my brother is just beginning). Washing the dishes. Doing the laundry. Dropping us to school. Taking me to my piano lessons. Taking my sister to ballet lessons. Dropping me to the Southworth Library most any time that is reasonable, and when I want to go. Attending concerts. I've listed only a few, but these tasks seem overwhelming to me! I'm just left in a daze.
My mother and I enjoy talking about so many issues . . . from "How was school?" to downright politics.
I wonder if God gave my mom two brains instead of one! I mean, my mom can dry the dishes while still paying attention to the news!
My mother is very special to me because she taught me all the virtues of being a good person. Sincerity, honesty, forgiveness, persistence, tolerance, and fairness. She taught me to be kind and caring. To work hard and do your duties, don't worry about the results. To be generous and giving. To be patient.
So whenever I see these things being done, I always remember my mother. She is my friend, my teacher, she is my Earth. She has resources . . . like this planet -- Earth.
But how to pay her back for all the things she has done for us? I don't know. She has done so much for us! But I will try to make all 365 days Mother's Day by helping her. What I really want to say to her is: "THANK YOU, MOM!"
-- RASHMI SINGH
20100506
Green Teens
Iris R. Nunez, age 16 – Easing the “Pain” of Pollution
Murry Bergtraum High School
Manhattan
“Planting trees is one of the most beneficial, wonderful and cost-effective ways to ease the pain of pollution, ozone depletion and urban blight. With these trees, we are cleaning our air, beautifying our environment, and reducing the pollution that is bad for our bodies.”
Daniell Martinez, age 16 – “It’s Up to Us, New York!”
High School for Health Profession and Human Services
Manhattan
“I will try my best to help Mayor Bloomberg implement his initiative to plant one million trees by 2017… If everyone in New York planted at least one tree, Mayor Bloomberg’s plan will be a success. It’s up to us New York!”
Nedine Dobson, age 17 – A “Melting Pot of Beautiful People” with Beautiful Trees
Clara Barton High School
Brooklyn
“Each school district should be responsible for involving each school in the district to embark on a go green project. The project will require groups of students to be responsible for the design of areas in their school district to plant trees… this initiative promises to make New York, with its melting pot of beautiful people, a garden of beautiful trees.”
Eric Murray Datcher, age 16
Bushwick High School for Social Justice
Brooklyn
“The key to the Mayor’s plan is involving the youth of New York City. There are young people throughout the city who are simply waiting for an opportunity to make a major change. The Million Trees project could be that change to unite the youth in a positive project… I believe I can use my strong voice to gather more students, young people, and community members to beautify more places throughout New York City.”
Oytun Tangul, age 18
New York University
Manhattan
“I believe that I, and any other teenager, can help Mayor Bloomberg to achieve his goal by volunteering to help plant trees. I can help serve my community and my future by doing this. This project can actually be fun. I will get to meet new friends. I can tell my current friends about it and we can all plan to help our society together. By volunteering to plant trees, not only will I be helping Mayor Bloomberg to put his initiative into effect, but I will also be helping myself by choosing to do something rewarding and supportive for my future and the future of my potential children.”
Jamel Irby-Shabazz, age 12
Park Place Middle School
Brooklyn
“Every month we will get teens to sign up as a special citizenship program with the NYC Parks Department to help plant trees. Teens will then make a difference in their community and experience something positive in their community. The teens will also be able to place their family name on the trees… I also believe that a million trees will equal a million healthy breaths. A million healthy breaths can help a brain learn and be more conscious about the environment in which we live.”
Murry Bergtraum High School
Manhattan
“Planting trees is one of the most beneficial, wonderful and cost-effective ways to ease the pain of pollution, ozone depletion and urban blight. With these trees, we are cleaning our air, beautifying our environment, and reducing the pollution that is bad for our bodies.”
Daniell Martinez, age 16 – “It’s Up to Us, New York!”
High School for Health Profession and Human Services
Manhattan
“I will try my best to help Mayor Bloomberg implement his initiative to plant one million trees by 2017… If everyone in New York planted at least one tree, Mayor Bloomberg’s plan will be a success. It’s up to us New York!”
Nedine Dobson, age 17 – A “Melting Pot of Beautiful People” with Beautiful Trees
Clara Barton High School
Brooklyn
“Each school district should be responsible for involving each school in the district to embark on a go green project. The project will require groups of students to be responsible for the design of areas in their school district to plant trees… this initiative promises to make New York, with its melting pot of beautiful people, a garden of beautiful trees.”
Eric Murray Datcher, age 16
Bushwick High School for Social Justice
Brooklyn
“The key to the Mayor’s plan is involving the youth of New York City. There are young people throughout the city who are simply waiting for an opportunity to make a major change. The Million Trees project could be that change to unite the youth in a positive project… I believe I can use my strong voice to gather more students, young people, and community members to beautify more places throughout New York City.”
Oytun Tangul, age 18
New York University
Manhattan
“I believe that I, and any other teenager, can help Mayor Bloomberg to achieve his goal by volunteering to help plant trees. I can help serve my community and my future by doing this. This project can actually be fun. I will get to meet new friends. I can tell my current friends about it and we can all plan to help our society together. By volunteering to plant trees, not only will I be helping Mayor Bloomberg to put his initiative into effect, but I will also be helping myself by choosing to do something rewarding and supportive for my future and the future of my potential children.”
Jamel Irby-Shabazz, age 12
Park Place Middle School
Brooklyn
“Every month we will get teens to sign up as a special citizenship program with the NYC Parks Department to help plant trees. Teens will then make a difference in their community and experience something positive in their community. The teens will also be able to place their family name on the trees… I also believe that a million trees will equal a million healthy breaths. A million healthy breaths can help a brain learn and be more conscious about the environment in which we live.”
20100501
Mamohatra
School: Davidson IB Middle School
City: Mamohatra
Team: Luke Frederick Churchill, Emily Annie Yue, Rebekah Ruth Swallow
Teacher: Jay Durant Hager
Engineer-Mentor: Dane Allen Horna, PE
Mamohatra
Mamohatra has combined futuristic technologies, green principles, and cultural diversity to create a thriving, sustainable metropolis on the island of Madagascar. Our citizens enjoy clean water, renewable energy, convenient and efficient public transportation, job opportunities, arts and entertainment, and beautiful parks and recreation.
Implementing environmentally friendly technologies, we have developed CARE (Community Adaptable Refugee Establishment), a system designed to combat the global problems of poverty and homelessness. CARE meets the needs of refugees and the homeless by providing secure temporary homes with flexible living spaces and convenient access to all city services, including educational programs and job training. The CARE system also provides electricity, clean water, public transportation, communications, and waste management. We apply the principles of green engineering, using industrial processes that are economically feasible and have a low carbon footprint. These processes make CARE a clean, green, transitional living facility.
The CARE system is targeted toward refugees, homeless, and poor (people who earn 50% or less of average income). The complex can house 10-15,000 people. The CARE system is designed to help its residents by providing public services geared toward the immediate needs of the residents, such as job training and language acquisition. The CARE system is set up to help residents make the transition from temporary accommodations to paid employment and permanent housing. Community colleges and small starter loans help encourage people to improve their lives. Nestled between the industrial, commercial, and agricultural districts, and near transportation hubs, CARE provides residents convenient access to our entire city, making it easier for them to find jobs suited to their skills and then to rent or purchase their own housing in other parts of the city.
CARE structures are adobe-like, multistory complexes, made of a compound called “agro-waste” and bio-based foam insulation, and built vertically to save land. Once a prototype, agro-waste has become a reality. It is made by mixing various agricultural wastes such as rice and cornhusks, and then adding beach sand to make a moldable paste. When it hardens, the paste creates a reusable compound similar to stucco in both color and texture. It is highly durable against violent weather and other types of damage. When agro-waste’s minimal insulation is coupled with bio-based foam insulation, it provides a shield against extreme temperatures and helps prevent the spread of disease. Agro-waste transforms agricultural waste into an environmentally sustainable building material that decreases the carbon footprint.
CARE units are assembled with a lightweight durable carbon fiber frame on which the agro-waste is attached. The frame has nanosensors that analyze the integrity of the agro-waste material for safety. The nanosensors replace the more expensive nanobots located in buildings in other parts of our city, thus providing a more economical maintenance system.
Inside the buildings, sliding “smart screens,” similar to those in Japan, allow each unit to be adapted to the needs of different size families, which might range from one to eight persons. Smart screens allow residents to change the layout of walls, as well as their color, style, and decorative themes. The screens also reflect light waves, creating an aesthetically pleasing glow.
Our building is not only durable, but also replaceable. When the structure is in need of replacement (approximately 100 years), the agro-waste is re-compounded with new agricultural waste to reform the structure onto the existing frame. Sensors built into the carbon fiber frame send waves throughout the entire structure assessing cracks, breaks, and other flaws in the structure. This system records the flaws and when the flaws become too large or hazardous, engineers come to fix them. Using this system, the structures may endure for centuries.
CARE incorporates numerous green technologies to maximize efficiency. Our engineers researched multiple technologies and decided on Earthship design. Earthship design is the process of designing a home using the most efficient materials and technologies. Our engineers matched CARE to some of the more effective processes used in Earthships: “green” roofs and walls, and passive cooling. With different plants growing on the structure itself, green roofs provide food, recreation, and climate control. Passive cooling is a biomimicry concept—a building technology that mimics processes found in nature. Passive cooling mimics a termite nest, which is built to take advantage of natural solar heating and cooling from breezes. Like a termite mound, our building uses an intricate network of walls and windows to funnel air throughout the structure. It collects cool air that moves down and hot air that moves up. This regulates the temperature by controlling the amount of hot and cool air that flows through the building.
Although CARE is a very efficiently engineered community, it is not without faults. Agro-waste does not produce much extra refuse, but to dispose of any waste we use plasma gasification, a trash-disposal system that uses high temperatures to turn waste into a gas that can be made into textiles. Our plasma gasification system takes away almost all of the negative impact that the CARE system has on the environment.
CARE not only provides for the needs of thousands of refugees, it also enriches the entire community of our city. The quality of life and accommodations provided by CARE increases both land value and the overall appeal of our city. CARE promotes international cooperation and allows for everyone to find a place in Mamohatra. It provides public services and jobs for citizens that have nowhere else to go and minimizes crime by keeping the homeless off the streets. CARE’s technologies and systems provide a model for buildings everywhere. Soon, the CARE system will extend across the globe, leading to a tomorrow where the word ‘homeless’ is obsolete.
City: Mamohatra
Team: Luke Frederick Churchill, Emily Annie Yue, Rebekah Ruth Swallow
Teacher: Jay Durant Hager
Engineer-Mentor: Dane Allen Horna, PE
Mamohatra
Mamohatra has combined futuristic technologies, green principles, and cultural diversity to create a thriving, sustainable metropolis on the island of Madagascar. Our citizens enjoy clean water, renewable energy, convenient and efficient public transportation, job opportunities, arts and entertainment, and beautiful parks and recreation.
Implementing environmentally friendly technologies, we have developed CARE (Community Adaptable Refugee Establishment), a system designed to combat the global problems of poverty and homelessness. CARE meets the needs of refugees and the homeless by providing secure temporary homes with flexible living spaces and convenient access to all city services, including educational programs and job training. The CARE system also provides electricity, clean water, public transportation, communications, and waste management. We apply the principles of green engineering, using industrial processes that are economically feasible and have a low carbon footprint. These processes make CARE a clean, green, transitional living facility.
The CARE system is targeted toward refugees, homeless, and poor (people who earn 50% or less of average income). The complex can house 10-15,000 people. The CARE system is designed to help its residents by providing public services geared toward the immediate needs of the residents, such as job training and language acquisition. The CARE system is set up to help residents make the transition from temporary accommodations to paid employment and permanent housing. Community colleges and small starter loans help encourage people to improve their lives. Nestled between the industrial, commercial, and agricultural districts, and near transportation hubs, CARE provides residents convenient access to our entire city, making it easier for them to find jobs suited to their skills and then to rent or purchase their own housing in other parts of the city.
CARE structures are adobe-like, multistory complexes, made of a compound called “agro-waste” and bio-based foam insulation, and built vertically to save land. Once a prototype, agro-waste has become a reality. It is made by mixing various agricultural wastes such as rice and cornhusks, and then adding beach sand to make a moldable paste. When it hardens, the paste creates a reusable compound similar to stucco in both color and texture. It is highly durable against violent weather and other types of damage. When agro-waste’s minimal insulation is coupled with bio-based foam insulation, it provides a shield against extreme temperatures and helps prevent the spread of disease. Agro-waste transforms agricultural waste into an environmentally sustainable building material that decreases the carbon footprint.
CARE units are assembled with a lightweight durable carbon fiber frame on which the agro-waste is attached. The frame has nanosensors that analyze the integrity of the agro-waste material for safety. The nanosensors replace the more expensive nanobots located in buildings in other parts of our city, thus providing a more economical maintenance system.
Inside the buildings, sliding “smart screens,” similar to those in Japan, allow each unit to be adapted to the needs of different size families, which might range from one to eight persons. Smart screens allow residents to change the layout of walls, as well as their color, style, and decorative themes. The screens also reflect light waves, creating an aesthetically pleasing glow.
Our building is not only durable, but also replaceable. When the structure is in need of replacement (approximately 100 years), the agro-waste is re-compounded with new agricultural waste to reform the structure onto the existing frame. Sensors built into the carbon fiber frame send waves throughout the entire structure assessing cracks, breaks, and other flaws in the structure. This system records the flaws and when the flaws become too large or hazardous, engineers come to fix them. Using this system, the structures may endure for centuries.
CARE incorporates numerous green technologies to maximize efficiency. Our engineers researched multiple technologies and decided on Earthship design. Earthship design is the process of designing a home using the most efficient materials and technologies. Our engineers matched CARE to some of the more effective processes used in Earthships: “green” roofs and walls, and passive cooling. With different plants growing on the structure itself, green roofs provide food, recreation, and climate control. Passive cooling is a biomimicry concept—a building technology that mimics processes found in nature. Passive cooling mimics a termite nest, which is built to take advantage of natural solar heating and cooling from breezes. Like a termite mound, our building uses an intricate network of walls and windows to funnel air throughout the structure. It collects cool air that moves down and hot air that moves up. This regulates the temperature by controlling the amount of hot and cool air that flows through the building.
Although CARE is a very efficiently engineered community, it is not without faults. Agro-waste does not produce much extra refuse, but to dispose of any waste we use plasma gasification, a trash-disposal system that uses high temperatures to turn waste into a gas that can be made into textiles. Our plasma gasification system takes away almost all of the negative impact that the CARE system has on the environment.
CARE not only provides for the needs of thousands of refugees, it also enriches the entire community of our city. The quality of life and accommodations provided by CARE increases both land value and the overall appeal of our city. CARE promotes international cooperation and allows for everyone to find a place in Mamohatra. It provides public services and jobs for citizens that have nowhere else to go and minimizes crime by keeping the homeless off the streets. CARE’s technologies and systems provide a model for buildings everywhere. Soon, the CARE system will extend across the globe, leading to a tomorrow where the word ‘homeless’ is obsolete.
20100428
Responding to Crimes against Humanity: Prevention, Deployment, and Localization
Sophia Sanchez
Ladue Horton Watkins High School
St. Louis, Missouri
Coordinator: Megan McCorkle
“Never again” has long been the somber declaration of those victimized by crimes against humanity. It bears with it the hope that the international community can learn from past atrocities and, in the words of the United Nations Charter, “save succeeding generations from the scourge of war.”1 However, a lack of cohesive international action has meant that genocide, torture, and other such acts continue to occur. Based on lessons learned from case studies of Somalia and Rwanda, the international community should prevent escalation of conflict by addressing its socioeconomic root causes, maintain a long-term peacekeeping force that utilizes a multilateral approach, and establish a localized administration system bolstered by a structure of accountability.
The Somali conflict stemmed from decades of political and ethnic unrest, which was intensified by the regime of Siad Barre. The northern Issaq clan resented Siad Barre’s 1969 seizure of power, which established an ethnically Marehan government.2 In 1988, the Somali National Movement (SNM), a primarily northern endeavor, began an insurrection against the Barre regime.3 On January 27, 1991, Siad Barre fled the capital to escape the northern assault, causing a power struggle between the former United Somali Congress members.4
By the end of 1992, over 300,000 Somalis had died from the conflict.5 Human Rights Watch expressed its outrage at seeing Somali refugees “undergoing traumatic suffering with apparently no end in sight.”6 The United Nations later labeled the systematic rape, displacement, and torture by rival clans in Somalia as crimes against humanity as defined in Article 7 of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.7
While rhetoric was in no short supply among global actors, the humanitarian response to the crisis proved inadequate. Relief efforts were complicated by the loss of 60 percent of Somalia’s infrastructure and insufficient peacekeeping forces.8 From October to December of 1992, the World Food Programme anticipated sending 100,000 metric tons of food to Somalia, but only distributed 18,900 metric tons.9 UNOSOM (United Nations Operations in Somalia) concentrated its forces in Mogadishu while leaving positions in smaller settlements unfilled, effectively cutting off assistance to certain regions of Somalia.10
As the atrocities mounted, international actors began to withdraw altogether from Somalia. On October 3 and 4, 1993, eighteen American soldiers were killed during the Battle of Mogadishu.11 Faction leader Mohammad Aideed used these deaths to increase foreign discontent with the Somali operations and rid the country of peacekeeping forces.12 By March 31, 1994, all United States forces had evacuated Somalia.13 Lacking support, UNOSOM disbanded one year later, and Somalia became the epitome of a failed state and a failed international intervention.14
The violence in Rwanda resulted from prolonged ethnic tension that erupted after the assassination of Rwandan president Juvenal Habyarimana. After Hutus overthrew the Tutsi king in 1959, displaced Tutsis formed the Rwanda Patriotic Front (RPF) in Uganda.15 The RPF invaded Rwanda in 1990, marking the beginning of the civil war.16 Radio stations broadcast propaganda, urging Hutus to “exterminate the Tutsi cockroaches.”17 On April 6, 1994, President Habyarimana’s plane was shot down, an act the Hutus blamed on the Tutsis, and three months of genocide began.18
From April 6 to July 4, 1994, approximately 800,000 Rwandans were systematically murdered.19 Two million Rwandans fled to neighboring countries, where many ended up in disease-ridden refugee camps.20 On May 17, 1994, a UN Security Council resolution stated that “acts of genocide may have been committed,” but refrained from definitively labeling the Rwandan conflict “genocide.”21 As Vince Kern, director for African affairs and head of the Rwanda Task Force at the Pentagon, explained, “Genocide finding could commit [governments] to actually ‘do something.’ ”22 The genocide ended on July 4, 1994, when the RPF captured the capital city of Kigali, but Rwanda was left in ruins.23
Despite the international community’s knowledge of these atrocities, its response to the conflict in Rwanda proved woefully insufficient. A CIA report issued 20 days before Habyarimana’s assassination stated that 300,000 to 500,000 people could be killed if hostilities intensified.24 Clearly, the international community knew of the danger, but lacked a plan of action. Matters worsened when Hutu extremists murdered ten Belgians on April 7, 1994, prompting an international outcry.25 The United States closed its embassy, while the United Nations withdrew all but 270 UNAMIR (United Nations Assistance Mission for Rwanda) peacekeeping troops for the duration of the genocide.26
After the conflict ended, the international community implemented a tiered judicial system that worked toward lasting peace. An international tribunal presided over high-profile cases, while the localized Gacaca court system handled less serious offenders.27 The courts held trials in each village to not only prosecute defendants accused of genocide, but also to promote reconciliation through dialogue and community service.28 Such localized reintegration programs may be the key to quelling ethnic tension. For example, after the Gacaca system was implemented in Sovu, Rwanda, only 2 percent of residents agreed with the statement “I prefer to buy things from a shopkeeper of my own ethnicity.”29 The Gacaca approach was one of the successes of the Rwandan intervention, although much work remains to be done.
With the atrocities committed in Somalia and Rwanda in mind, international actors should subdue conflict by addressing socioeconomic root causes. On a financial level, the international community should work to stabilize depressed economies in at-risk nations. One way this might be achieved is through microfinancing, a small-scale investment program that effectively stimulated post-war Rwandan farming.30 The international community should also address social tensions by targeting hate radio, which was a large factor in escalating ethnic resentment in both Somalia and Rwanda.31 International law should permit the destruction of hate-radio transmitters when an agreed-upon code of conduct is broken.32 The global community must address economic and social root causes of conflict if it hopes to effectively prevent mass atrocities from occurring.
On the national level, governments such as the United States should establish an interagency Atrocities Prevention Committee (APC), as outlined by the Genocide Prevention Task Force.33 The APC should work with the United Nations, subregional organizations, NGOs, and individual nations to coordinate information concerning at-risk nations. The committee should establish a tiered warning system, based on factors such as institutional racism, history of conflict, media propaganda, and leadership instability. Reports such as the one that predicted 300,000 to 500,000 deaths in Rwanda should immediately trigger an ad hoc meeting at the presidential level to discuss policy options. With mass atrocities like the Rwandan genocide occurring in the time span of 100 days, it is imperative that international actors be prepared to take quick and decisive action to prevent their occurrence.
Should the conflict reach a point where preventive measures are no longer possible, international peacekeeping forces should commit themselves to rapid deployment and long-term stationing. The United Nations should plan for troop deployment in at-risk nations within 30 days of a Security Council resolution.34 In order to supply sufficient peacekeeping forces, international organizations should capitalize on subregional offers of assistance and support a civilian police force within war-torn countries. The key is to create a multilateral coalition that reflects global sentiments, not to establish western imperialism. These measures can work to drastically decrease response time and increase long-term peacekeeping capabilities by involving troops at the international, regional, and national levels.
Finally, the United Nations, United States, and other international actors should rely on a decentralized peacekeeping approach, rather than focusing on an urban headquarters. In order to increase dissemination of aid, staffing small towns should be a greater priority than establishing a headquarters in the capital.35 Global actors can garner local support by admitting regional leaders into intervention discussions. In northern Somalia, UNOSOM incorporated local elders into policy meetings, which increased clan willingness to cooperate with the United Nations in dismantling anarchistic factions.36 Placing a priority on local intervention personnel leads to better distribution of aid and more effective peace negotiations.
The judicial system for crimes against humanity should likewise be localized. The system should be modeled on the Rwandan Gacacas, assigning a court to each village. As more criminals are brought to justice, localized court systems demonstrate that war crimes will be punished. Dialogue between the accused and the victimized and a sentence involving community service should be key facets of the courts. A system of accountability similar to the one in Rwanda, in which 90 percent of the electorate voted for Gacaca judges, would ensure that local judges have the consent of the people and are not arbitrarily appointed.37 Moreover, the international community should establish sentencing guidelines, which would standardize punishments and guarantee a focus on reintegration, not retribution. By utilizing a localized judicial system, the international community can transition from a goal of short-term peace to long-term stability.
In the wake of the atrocities in Somalia and Rwanda, it is critical that the international community learn to better protect against crimes against humanity. By addressing the root causes of conflict, rapidly deploying a long-term peacekeeping force, and shifting to a localized administration approach, international actors can convert rhetoric into results. The process will not happen overnight, but by implementing these policies, the international community can begin to make “never again” a reality.
Notes
1. Goodrich, Leland Matthew, and Edvard Isak Hambro. Charter of the United Nations: Commentary and Documents. London: World Peace Foundation, 1949.
2. Sahnoun, Mohamed. Somalia: The Missed Opportunities. Washington, DC: United States Institute of Peace Press, 1994.
3. Brown, Michael E., and Richard N. Rosecrance. The Cost of Conflict: Prevention and Cure in the Global Arena. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 1999.
4. Sahnoun. Somalia.
5. Bush, George. “Humanitarian Crisis in Somalia.” Lettter from President Bush to the Speaker of the House and President Pro Tempore of the Senate. Washington, DC, December 10, 1992.
6. "Human Rights Watch World Report 1993—Somalia." Human Rights Watch. January 1, 1993. Accessed January 20, 2009. http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/467fca601e.html
7. Rishmawi, Mona. "Situation of Human Rights in Somalia." UN Commission on Human Rights, Geneva. April 22, 1999.
8. "Somalia—UNOSOM I." United Nations Operations in Somalia I . March 21, 1997. Accessed 23 January 2009. http://www.un.org/Depts/DPKO/Missions/unosomi.htm
9. Sahnoun. Somalia.10. Ibid.
11. Smith, Michael. Killer Elite: The Inside Story of America's Most Secret Special Operations Team. New York: St. Martin's, 2007.
12. Kaempf, Sebastian. “Somalia and General Aideed's Strategic Response to U.S. Intervention: Invoking America's Experiences in Lebanon and Vietnam.” Paper presented at the nnual meeting of the International Studies Association, Chicago, IL, 2007.
13. Copson, Raymond W. Africa's Wars and Prospects for Peace. New York: M. E. Sharpe, 1994.
14. Peterson, Scott. Me against My Brother: At War in Somalia, Sudan, and Rwanda. New York: Routledge, 2000.
15. Cohen, Jared. One Hundred Days of Silence: America and the Rwanda Genocide. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2007.
16. Ibid.
17. Sutton, Barbara, Sandra Morgen, and Julie Novkov. Security Disarmed: Critical Perspectives on Gender, Race, and Militarization. Piscataway, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2008.
18. Khan, Shaharyar M., and Mary Robinson. The Shallow Graves of Rwanda. New York: I. B. Tauris, 2000.
19. Barnett, Michael. Eyewitness to a Genocide: The United Nations and Rwanda. Ithaca, New York: Cornell University Press, 2002.
20. "Rwanda: Accountability for War Crimes and Genocide." Special Report, January 1995. United States Institute of Peace. Accessed January 20, 2009.
http://www.usip.org/pubs/specialreports/early/rwanda1.html
21. "Timeline: 100 Days of Genocide." BBC News, April 6, 2004. AccessedJanuary 21, 2009.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/3580247.stm
22. Kern, Vince. Discussion paper. Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Middle East/Africa Region. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, November 18, 1998.
23. Cohen, Jared. One Hundred Days of Silence: America and the Rwanda Genocide. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield,2007.
24. Ibid.
25. Barnett, Michael. Eyewitness to a Genocide: The United Nations and Rwanda. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 2002.
26. Ibid.
27. Drumbl, Mark A. Atrocity, Punishment, and International Law. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2007.
28. Ibid.
29. Rettig, Max. "Gacaca: Truth, Justice, and Reconciliation in Postconflict Rwanda?" African Studies Review 51 (2008): 25¬–50.
30. Wilson, Tamsin. "Microfinance during and after Armed Conflict: Lessons from Angola, Cambodia, Mozambique, and Rwanda.” Concern Worldwide and the Springfield Centre for Business in Development. March 2002. AccessedJanuary 22 2009. http://www.microfinancegateway.org/files/14563_14563.pdf
31. Adelman, Howard, and Astri Suhrke. The Path of a Genocide: The Rwanda Crisis from Uganda to Zaire. New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction, 2000.
32. As suggested in Allan Thompson and Kofi Annan. The Media and the Rwanda Genocide. Ann Arbor, MI: Pluto, 2007.
33. Albright, Madeleine K., and William S. Cohen, co-chairs. Preventing Genocide: A Blueprint for U.S. Policymakers. Genocide Prevention Task Force. United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, American Academy of Diplomacy, and United States Institute of Peace. 2008. Accessed January 21, 2009. http://www.usip.org/genocide_taskforce/pdf/FINAL%20REPORT.pdf
34. As suggested in Lakhdar Brahimi, chairman. Report of the Panel on United Nations Peace Operations. New York: United Nations, 2000.
35. Sahnoun. Somalia.
36. Ibid.
37. Brown, Jane. "Rwanda—Gacaca." Center for Communication Programs, John Hopkins University. 2005. Accessed January 19, 2009.
http://www.jhuccp.org/africa/rwanda/gacaca.shtml
Bibliography
Print Sources
Adelman, Howard, and Astri Suhrke. The Path of a Genocide: The Rwanda Crisis from Uganda to Zaire. New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Publishers, 2000.
Barnett, Michael. Eyewitness to a Genocide: The United Nations and Rwanda. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 2002.
Brahimi, Lakhdar, chairman. Report of the Panel on United Nations Peace Operations. New York: United Nations, 2000.
Brown, Michael E., and Richard N. Rosecrance. The Cost of Conflict: Prevention and Cure in the Global Arena. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield , 1999.
Bush, George. “Humanitarian Crisis in Somalia.” Lettter from President Bush to the Speaker of the House and President Pro Tempore of the Senate. Washington, DC, December 10, 1992.
Cohen, Jared. One Hundred Days of Silence: America and the Rwanda Genocide. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2007.
Copson, Raymond W. Africa's Wars and Prospects for Peace. New York: M. E. Sharpe, 1994.
Drumbl, Mark A. Atrocity, Punishment, and International Law. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2007.
Goodrich, Leland Matthew, and Edvard Isak Hambro. Charter of the United Nations: Commentary and Documents. London: World Peace Foundation, 1949.
Kaempf, Sebastian. “Somalia and General Aideed's Strategic Response to U.S. Intervention: Invoking Americas Experiences in Lebanon and Vietnam.” Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Studies Association. Chicago, IL, 2007.
Kern, Vince. Discussion paper. Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Middle East/Africa Region. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, November 18, 1998.
Khan, Shaharyar M., and Mary Robinson. The Shallow Graves of Rwanda. New York: I. B. Tauris, 2000.
Peterson, Scott. Me against My Brother: At War in Somalia, Sudan, and Rwanda. New York: Routledge, 2000.
Rettig, Max. "Gacaca: Truth, Justice, and Reconciliation in Postconflict Rwanda?" African Studies Review 51 (2008): 25–50.
Rishmawi, Mona. "Situation of Human Rights in Somalia." UN Commission on Human Rights, Geneva. April 22, 1999.
Sahnoun, Mohamed. Somalia: The Missed Opportunities. Washington, DC: United States Institute of Peace Press, 1994.
Smith, Michael. Killer Elite: The Inside Story of America's Most Secret Special Operations Team. New York: St. Martin's, 2007.
Sutton, Barbara, Sandra Morgen, and Julie Novkov. Security Disarmed: Critical Perspectives on Gender, Race, and Militarization.
Piscataway, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2008.
Thompson, Allan, and Kofi Annan. The Media and the Rwanda Genocide. Ann Arbor, MI: Pluto, 2007.
Internet Sources
Albright, Madeleine K., and William S. Cohen, co-chairs. Preventing Genocide: A Blueprint for U.S. Policymakers. Genocide Prevention Task Force. United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, American Academy of Diplomacy, and United States Institute of Peace. 2008. Accessed January 21, 2009. http://www.usip.org/genocide_taskforce/pdf/FINAL%20REPORT.pdf
Brown, Jane. "Rwanda—Gacaca." Center for Communication Programs, John Hopkins University. 2005. Accessed January 19, 2009. http://www.jhuccp.org/africa/rwanda/gacaca.shtml
"Human Rights Watch World Report 1993—Somalia." January 1, 1993. Human Rights Watch. Accessed January 20, 2009. http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/467fca601e.html
"Rwanda: Accountability for War Crimes and Genocide." Special Report, January 1995. United States Institute of Peace. Accessed January 20, 2009. http://www.usip.org/pubs/specialreports/early/rwanda1.html
"Somalia—UNOSOM I." United Nations Operations in Somalia I. March 21, 1997. Accessed January 23, 2009. http://www.un.org/Depts/DPKO/Missions/unosomi.htm
"Timeline: 100 Days of Genocide," BBC News, April 6, 2004. Accessed January 21, 2009.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/3580247.stm
Wilson, Tamsin. "Microfinance during and after Armed Conflict: Lessons from Angola, Cambodia, Mozambique and Rwanda.” Concern Worldwide and the Springfield Centre for Business in Development. March 2002. Accessed January 22, 2009. http://www.microfinancegateway.org/files/14563_14563.pdf
Ladue Horton Watkins High School
St. Louis, Missouri
Coordinator: Megan McCorkle
“Never again” has long been the somber declaration of those victimized by crimes against humanity. It bears with it the hope that the international community can learn from past atrocities and, in the words of the United Nations Charter, “save succeeding generations from the scourge of war.”1 However, a lack of cohesive international action has meant that genocide, torture, and other such acts continue to occur. Based on lessons learned from case studies of Somalia and Rwanda, the international community should prevent escalation of conflict by addressing its socioeconomic root causes, maintain a long-term peacekeeping force that utilizes a multilateral approach, and establish a localized administration system bolstered by a structure of accountability.
The Somali conflict stemmed from decades of political and ethnic unrest, which was intensified by the regime of Siad Barre. The northern Issaq clan resented Siad Barre’s 1969 seizure of power, which established an ethnically Marehan government.2 In 1988, the Somali National Movement (SNM), a primarily northern endeavor, began an insurrection against the Barre regime.3 On January 27, 1991, Siad Barre fled the capital to escape the northern assault, causing a power struggle between the former United Somali Congress members.4
By the end of 1992, over 300,000 Somalis had died from the conflict.5 Human Rights Watch expressed its outrage at seeing Somali refugees “undergoing traumatic suffering with apparently no end in sight.”6 The United Nations later labeled the systematic rape, displacement, and torture by rival clans in Somalia as crimes against humanity as defined in Article 7 of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.7
While rhetoric was in no short supply among global actors, the humanitarian response to the crisis proved inadequate. Relief efforts were complicated by the loss of 60 percent of Somalia’s infrastructure and insufficient peacekeeping forces.8 From October to December of 1992, the World Food Programme anticipated sending 100,000 metric tons of food to Somalia, but only distributed 18,900 metric tons.9 UNOSOM (United Nations Operations in Somalia) concentrated its forces in Mogadishu while leaving positions in smaller settlements unfilled, effectively cutting off assistance to certain regions of Somalia.10
As the atrocities mounted, international actors began to withdraw altogether from Somalia. On October 3 and 4, 1993, eighteen American soldiers were killed during the Battle of Mogadishu.11 Faction leader Mohammad Aideed used these deaths to increase foreign discontent with the Somali operations and rid the country of peacekeeping forces.12 By March 31, 1994, all United States forces had evacuated Somalia.13 Lacking support, UNOSOM disbanded one year later, and Somalia became the epitome of a failed state and a failed international intervention.14
The violence in Rwanda resulted from prolonged ethnic tension that erupted after the assassination of Rwandan president Juvenal Habyarimana. After Hutus overthrew the Tutsi king in 1959, displaced Tutsis formed the Rwanda Patriotic Front (RPF) in Uganda.15 The RPF invaded Rwanda in 1990, marking the beginning of the civil war.16 Radio stations broadcast propaganda, urging Hutus to “exterminate the Tutsi cockroaches.”17 On April 6, 1994, President Habyarimana’s plane was shot down, an act the Hutus blamed on the Tutsis, and three months of genocide began.18
From April 6 to July 4, 1994, approximately 800,000 Rwandans were systematically murdered.19 Two million Rwandans fled to neighboring countries, where many ended up in disease-ridden refugee camps.20 On May 17, 1994, a UN Security Council resolution stated that “acts of genocide may have been committed,” but refrained from definitively labeling the Rwandan conflict “genocide.”21 As Vince Kern, director for African affairs and head of the Rwanda Task Force at the Pentagon, explained, “Genocide finding could commit [governments] to actually ‘do something.’ ”22 The genocide ended on July 4, 1994, when the RPF captured the capital city of Kigali, but Rwanda was left in ruins.23
Despite the international community’s knowledge of these atrocities, its response to the conflict in Rwanda proved woefully insufficient. A CIA report issued 20 days before Habyarimana’s assassination stated that 300,000 to 500,000 people could be killed if hostilities intensified.24 Clearly, the international community knew of the danger, but lacked a plan of action. Matters worsened when Hutu extremists murdered ten Belgians on April 7, 1994, prompting an international outcry.25 The United States closed its embassy, while the United Nations withdrew all but 270 UNAMIR (United Nations Assistance Mission for Rwanda) peacekeeping troops for the duration of the genocide.26
After the conflict ended, the international community implemented a tiered judicial system that worked toward lasting peace. An international tribunal presided over high-profile cases, while the localized Gacaca court system handled less serious offenders.27 The courts held trials in each village to not only prosecute defendants accused of genocide, but also to promote reconciliation through dialogue and community service.28 Such localized reintegration programs may be the key to quelling ethnic tension. For example, after the Gacaca system was implemented in Sovu, Rwanda, only 2 percent of residents agreed with the statement “I prefer to buy things from a shopkeeper of my own ethnicity.”29 The Gacaca approach was one of the successes of the Rwandan intervention, although much work remains to be done.
With the atrocities committed in Somalia and Rwanda in mind, international actors should subdue conflict by addressing socioeconomic root causes. On a financial level, the international community should work to stabilize depressed economies in at-risk nations. One way this might be achieved is through microfinancing, a small-scale investment program that effectively stimulated post-war Rwandan farming.30 The international community should also address social tensions by targeting hate radio, which was a large factor in escalating ethnic resentment in both Somalia and Rwanda.31 International law should permit the destruction of hate-radio transmitters when an agreed-upon code of conduct is broken.32 The global community must address economic and social root causes of conflict if it hopes to effectively prevent mass atrocities from occurring.
On the national level, governments such as the United States should establish an interagency Atrocities Prevention Committee (APC), as outlined by the Genocide Prevention Task Force.33 The APC should work with the United Nations, subregional organizations, NGOs, and individual nations to coordinate information concerning at-risk nations. The committee should establish a tiered warning system, based on factors such as institutional racism, history of conflict, media propaganda, and leadership instability. Reports such as the one that predicted 300,000 to 500,000 deaths in Rwanda should immediately trigger an ad hoc meeting at the presidential level to discuss policy options. With mass atrocities like the Rwandan genocide occurring in the time span of 100 days, it is imperative that international actors be prepared to take quick and decisive action to prevent their occurrence.
Should the conflict reach a point where preventive measures are no longer possible, international peacekeeping forces should commit themselves to rapid deployment and long-term stationing. The United Nations should plan for troop deployment in at-risk nations within 30 days of a Security Council resolution.34 In order to supply sufficient peacekeeping forces, international organizations should capitalize on subregional offers of assistance and support a civilian police force within war-torn countries. The key is to create a multilateral coalition that reflects global sentiments, not to establish western imperialism. These measures can work to drastically decrease response time and increase long-term peacekeeping capabilities by involving troops at the international, regional, and national levels.
Finally, the United Nations, United States, and other international actors should rely on a decentralized peacekeeping approach, rather than focusing on an urban headquarters. In order to increase dissemination of aid, staffing small towns should be a greater priority than establishing a headquarters in the capital.35 Global actors can garner local support by admitting regional leaders into intervention discussions. In northern Somalia, UNOSOM incorporated local elders into policy meetings, which increased clan willingness to cooperate with the United Nations in dismantling anarchistic factions.36 Placing a priority on local intervention personnel leads to better distribution of aid and more effective peace negotiations.
The judicial system for crimes against humanity should likewise be localized. The system should be modeled on the Rwandan Gacacas, assigning a court to each village. As more criminals are brought to justice, localized court systems demonstrate that war crimes will be punished. Dialogue between the accused and the victimized and a sentence involving community service should be key facets of the courts. A system of accountability similar to the one in Rwanda, in which 90 percent of the electorate voted for Gacaca judges, would ensure that local judges have the consent of the people and are not arbitrarily appointed.37 Moreover, the international community should establish sentencing guidelines, which would standardize punishments and guarantee a focus on reintegration, not retribution. By utilizing a localized judicial system, the international community can transition from a goal of short-term peace to long-term stability.
In the wake of the atrocities in Somalia and Rwanda, it is critical that the international community learn to better protect against crimes against humanity. By addressing the root causes of conflict, rapidly deploying a long-term peacekeeping force, and shifting to a localized administration approach, international actors can convert rhetoric into results. The process will not happen overnight, but by implementing these policies, the international community can begin to make “never again” a reality.
Notes
1. Goodrich, Leland Matthew, and Edvard Isak Hambro. Charter of the United Nations: Commentary and Documents. London: World Peace Foundation, 1949.
2. Sahnoun, Mohamed. Somalia: The Missed Opportunities. Washington, DC: United States Institute of Peace Press, 1994.
3. Brown, Michael E., and Richard N. Rosecrance. The Cost of Conflict: Prevention and Cure in the Global Arena. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 1999.
4. Sahnoun. Somalia.
5. Bush, George. “Humanitarian Crisis in Somalia.” Lettter from President Bush to the Speaker of the House and President Pro Tempore of the Senate. Washington, DC, December 10, 1992.
6. "Human Rights Watch World Report 1993—Somalia." Human Rights Watch. January 1, 1993. Accessed January 20, 2009. http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/467fca601e.html
7. Rishmawi, Mona. "Situation of Human Rights in Somalia." UN Commission on Human Rights, Geneva. April 22, 1999.
8. "Somalia—UNOSOM I." United Nations Operations in Somalia I . March 21, 1997. Accessed 23 January 2009. http://www.un.org/Depts/DPKO/Missions/unosomi.htm
9. Sahnoun. Somalia.10. Ibid.
11. Smith, Michael. Killer Elite: The Inside Story of America's Most Secret Special Operations Team. New York: St. Martin's, 2007.
12. Kaempf, Sebastian. “Somalia and General Aideed's Strategic Response to U.S. Intervention: Invoking America's Experiences in Lebanon and Vietnam.” Paper presented at the nnual meeting of the International Studies Association, Chicago, IL, 2007.
13. Copson, Raymond W. Africa's Wars and Prospects for Peace. New York: M. E. Sharpe, 1994.
14. Peterson, Scott. Me against My Brother: At War in Somalia, Sudan, and Rwanda. New York: Routledge, 2000.
15. Cohen, Jared. One Hundred Days of Silence: America and the Rwanda Genocide. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2007.
16. Ibid.
17. Sutton, Barbara, Sandra Morgen, and Julie Novkov. Security Disarmed: Critical Perspectives on Gender, Race, and Militarization. Piscataway, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2008.
18. Khan, Shaharyar M., and Mary Robinson. The Shallow Graves of Rwanda. New York: I. B. Tauris, 2000.
19. Barnett, Michael. Eyewitness to a Genocide: The United Nations and Rwanda. Ithaca, New York: Cornell University Press, 2002.
20. "Rwanda: Accountability for War Crimes and Genocide." Special Report, January 1995. United States Institute of Peace. Accessed January 20, 2009.
http://www.usip.org/pubs/specialreports/early/rwanda1.html
21. "Timeline: 100 Days of Genocide." BBC News, April 6, 2004. AccessedJanuary 21, 2009.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/3580247.stm
22. Kern, Vince. Discussion paper. Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Middle East/Africa Region. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, November 18, 1998.
23. Cohen, Jared. One Hundred Days of Silence: America and the Rwanda Genocide. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield,2007.
24. Ibid.
25. Barnett, Michael. Eyewitness to a Genocide: The United Nations and Rwanda. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 2002.
26. Ibid.
27. Drumbl, Mark A. Atrocity, Punishment, and International Law. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2007.
28. Ibid.
29. Rettig, Max. "Gacaca: Truth, Justice, and Reconciliation in Postconflict Rwanda?" African Studies Review 51 (2008): 25¬–50.
30. Wilson, Tamsin. "Microfinance during and after Armed Conflict: Lessons from Angola, Cambodia, Mozambique, and Rwanda.” Concern Worldwide and the Springfield Centre for Business in Development. March 2002. AccessedJanuary 22 2009. http://www.microfinancegateway.org/files/14563_14563.pdf
31. Adelman, Howard, and Astri Suhrke. The Path of a Genocide: The Rwanda Crisis from Uganda to Zaire. New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction, 2000.
32. As suggested in Allan Thompson and Kofi Annan. The Media and the Rwanda Genocide. Ann Arbor, MI: Pluto, 2007.
33. Albright, Madeleine K., and William S. Cohen, co-chairs. Preventing Genocide: A Blueprint for U.S. Policymakers. Genocide Prevention Task Force. United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, American Academy of Diplomacy, and United States Institute of Peace. 2008. Accessed January 21, 2009. http://www.usip.org/genocide_taskforce/pdf/FINAL%20REPORT.pdf
34. As suggested in Lakhdar Brahimi, chairman. Report of the Panel on United Nations Peace Operations. New York: United Nations, 2000.
35. Sahnoun. Somalia.
36. Ibid.
37. Brown, Jane. "Rwanda—Gacaca." Center for Communication Programs, John Hopkins University. 2005. Accessed January 19, 2009.
http://www.jhuccp.org/africa/rwanda/gacaca.shtml
Bibliography
Print Sources
Adelman, Howard, and Astri Suhrke. The Path of a Genocide: The Rwanda Crisis from Uganda to Zaire. New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Publishers, 2000.
Barnett, Michael. Eyewitness to a Genocide: The United Nations and Rwanda. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 2002.
Brahimi, Lakhdar, chairman. Report of the Panel on United Nations Peace Operations. New York: United Nations, 2000.
Brown, Michael E., and Richard N. Rosecrance. The Cost of Conflict: Prevention and Cure in the Global Arena. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield , 1999.
Bush, George. “Humanitarian Crisis in Somalia.” Lettter from President Bush to the Speaker of the House and President Pro Tempore of the Senate. Washington, DC, December 10, 1992.
Cohen, Jared. One Hundred Days of Silence: America and the Rwanda Genocide. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2007.
Copson, Raymond W. Africa's Wars and Prospects for Peace. New York: M. E. Sharpe, 1994.
Drumbl, Mark A. Atrocity, Punishment, and International Law. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2007.
Goodrich, Leland Matthew, and Edvard Isak Hambro. Charter of the United Nations: Commentary and Documents. London: World Peace Foundation, 1949.
Kaempf, Sebastian. “Somalia and General Aideed's Strategic Response to U.S. Intervention: Invoking Americas Experiences in Lebanon and Vietnam.” Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Studies Association. Chicago, IL, 2007.
Kern, Vince. Discussion paper. Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Middle East/Africa Region. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, November 18, 1998.
Khan, Shaharyar M., and Mary Robinson. The Shallow Graves of Rwanda. New York: I. B. Tauris, 2000.
Peterson, Scott. Me against My Brother: At War in Somalia, Sudan, and Rwanda. New York: Routledge, 2000.
Rettig, Max. "Gacaca: Truth, Justice, and Reconciliation in Postconflict Rwanda?" African Studies Review 51 (2008): 25–50.
Rishmawi, Mona. "Situation of Human Rights in Somalia." UN Commission on Human Rights, Geneva. April 22, 1999.
Sahnoun, Mohamed. Somalia: The Missed Opportunities. Washington, DC: United States Institute of Peace Press, 1994.
Smith, Michael. Killer Elite: The Inside Story of America's Most Secret Special Operations Team. New York: St. Martin's, 2007.
Sutton, Barbara, Sandra Morgen, and Julie Novkov. Security Disarmed: Critical Perspectives on Gender, Race, and Militarization.
Piscataway, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2008.
Thompson, Allan, and Kofi Annan. The Media and the Rwanda Genocide. Ann Arbor, MI: Pluto, 2007.
Internet Sources
Albright, Madeleine K., and William S. Cohen, co-chairs. Preventing Genocide: A Blueprint for U.S. Policymakers. Genocide Prevention Task Force. United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, American Academy of Diplomacy, and United States Institute of Peace. 2008. Accessed January 21, 2009. http://www.usip.org/genocide_taskforce/pdf/FINAL%20REPORT.pdf
Brown, Jane. "Rwanda—Gacaca." Center for Communication Programs, John Hopkins University. 2005. Accessed January 19, 2009. http://www.jhuccp.org/africa/rwanda/gacaca.shtml
"Human Rights Watch World Report 1993—Somalia." January 1, 1993. Human Rights Watch. Accessed January 20, 2009. http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/467fca601e.html
"Rwanda: Accountability for War Crimes and Genocide." Special Report, January 1995. United States Institute of Peace. Accessed January 20, 2009. http://www.usip.org/pubs/specialreports/early/rwanda1.html
"Somalia—UNOSOM I." United Nations Operations in Somalia I. March 21, 1997. Accessed January 23, 2009. http://www.un.org/Depts/DPKO/Missions/unosomi.htm
"Timeline: 100 Days of Genocide," BBC News, April 6, 2004. Accessed January 21, 2009.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/3580247.stm
Wilson, Tamsin. "Microfinance during and after Armed Conflict: Lessons from Angola, Cambodia, Mozambique and Rwanda.” Concern Worldwide and the Springfield Centre for Business in Development. March 2002. Accessed January 22, 2009. http://www.microfinancegateway.org/files/14563_14563.pdf
20100426
Being an American 2
Hannah Deindorfer, Great Lakes Region
Saranac High School, Saranac, MI; Teacher: Cynthia Sanford
No one expected that creating a country would be easy. From the Mayflower Compact, to the Declaration of Independence, to the Bill of Rights, America's Founders had to fight against every imaginable odd to create the country that I know and love today. Without the civic virtue of perseverance, America would be nothing more than a British colony. Perseverance is defined as a steady persistence in a course of action, in spite of difficulties, obstacles, and discouragement. Americans have truly faced all of the above, but it is equally true that members of this nation have displayed, without falter, the perseverance necessary to overcome any
difficulty, all obstacles, and every discouragement imaginable. In December of 1776, Americans were in the midst of the Revolutionary War, and facing the largest obstacle
to the freedom and existence of this country that has ever existed. At first, patriot soldiers were buoyed with confidence, especially after the Battle of Bunker Hill, and the quick response of minutemen at Lexington and Concord. But when December came, it was a different story. Washington's troops were on the run, lacking
basic supplies, and the outlook for victory was bleak. In this dark time, no document embodied what it means to be an American more than Thomas Paine's The American Crisis. This pamphlet, written on a drum, declared to all that, "These are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will...shrink from the service of the country, but he that stands now, deserves the loved and thanks of man and woman." General George Washington was so moved by Paine's patriotic rhetoric that he read The American Crisis to his troops just before their enlistments were up, and many were encouraged to persevere and eventually win the war for independence. The spirit of Thomas Paine's famous series of articles lived on through the end of the victorious Revolution to the 1800s. An African American woman named Harriet Tubman was faced with adversity from birth. Harriet was born a slave in 1820, and by the age of thirteen, she was used as a field hand by her cruel master. In 1849,Harriet resolved to run away. She left the plantation where she was raised and abused, and followed the North Star all the way to Philadelphia. What truly makes Harriet an American hero was that she persevered into slave country nineteen times. Harriet escorted over three hundred slaves to freedom, and as the most wellknown conductor of the Underground Railroad, she "never lost a passenger." By 1856, the price for the capture of Harriet Tubman was $40,000. On any of her dangerous journeys, she could have been easily caught or killed, but to Tubman, persevering to secure the freedom of others was worth more than her own life. Though I haven't found myself leading slaves to freedom, I have persevered through adversity in my own life. When I was thirteen years old, my father was diagnosed with a serious illness. This disease threatened to tear my family apart. For the next year, I faced the most difficult time of my life. As the oldest child, I had to set an example of courage for my younger siblings. Though I wanted to break down, I had to stay steady for them. In the midst of this personal crisis, I found my own strength and sense of perseverance. Today, my dad has his disorder under control and my family is closer than ever. I thank God every day for giving me the will to persevere. Thomas Paine said, "What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly; it is darkness only that gives everything its value." The history of the United States has been built on fighting for what we hold dear. In the face of
darkness, persevering to reach our goals is the only thing that matters. To me, being an American means always striving for something better and never giving up. "Tis the business of little minds to shrink, but he whose heart is firm...will pursue his principles unto death." Thomas Paine believed, like me, that nothing is
more important than aspiring to bring one's own ideals to realization. In a moment of adversity, it is easy to give up, but a true American has the strength to persevere.
Saranac High School, Saranac, MI; Teacher: Cynthia Sanford
No one expected that creating a country would be easy. From the Mayflower Compact, to the Declaration of Independence, to the Bill of Rights, America's Founders had to fight against every imaginable odd to create the country that I know and love today. Without the civic virtue of perseverance, America would be nothing more than a British colony. Perseverance is defined as a steady persistence in a course of action, in spite of difficulties, obstacles, and discouragement. Americans have truly faced all of the above, but it is equally true that members of this nation have displayed, without falter, the perseverance necessary to overcome any
difficulty, all obstacles, and every discouragement imaginable. In December of 1776, Americans were in the midst of the Revolutionary War, and facing the largest obstacle
to the freedom and existence of this country that has ever existed. At first, patriot soldiers were buoyed with confidence, especially after the Battle of Bunker Hill, and the quick response of minutemen at Lexington and Concord. But when December came, it was a different story. Washington's troops were on the run, lacking
basic supplies, and the outlook for victory was bleak. In this dark time, no document embodied what it means to be an American more than Thomas Paine's The American Crisis. This pamphlet, written on a drum, declared to all that, "These are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will...shrink from the service of the country, but he that stands now, deserves the loved and thanks of man and woman." General George Washington was so moved by Paine's patriotic rhetoric that he read The American Crisis to his troops just before their enlistments were up, and many were encouraged to persevere and eventually win the war for independence. The spirit of Thomas Paine's famous series of articles lived on through the end of the victorious Revolution to the 1800s. An African American woman named Harriet Tubman was faced with adversity from birth. Harriet was born a slave in 1820, and by the age of thirteen, she was used as a field hand by her cruel master. In 1849,Harriet resolved to run away. She left the plantation where she was raised and abused, and followed the North Star all the way to Philadelphia. What truly makes Harriet an American hero was that she persevered into slave country nineteen times. Harriet escorted over three hundred slaves to freedom, and as the most wellknown conductor of the Underground Railroad, she "never lost a passenger." By 1856, the price for the capture of Harriet Tubman was $40,000. On any of her dangerous journeys, she could have been easily caught or killed, but to Tubman, persevering to secure the freedom of others was worth more than her own life. Though I haven't found myself leading slaves to freedom, I have persevered through adversity in my own life. When I was thirteen years old, my father was diagnosed with a serious illness. This disease threatened to tear my family apart. For the next year, I faced the most difficult time of my life. As the oldest child, I had to set an example of courage for my younger siblings. Though I wanted to break down, I had to stay steady for them. In the midst of this personal crisis, I found my own strength and sense of perseverance. Today, my dad has his disorder under control and my family is closer than ever. I thank God every day for giving me the will to persevere. Thomas Paine said, "What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly; it is darkness only that gives everything its value." The history of the United States has been built on fighting for what we hold dear. In the face of
darkness, persevering to reach our goals is the only thing that matters. To me, being an American means always striving for something better and never giving up. "Tis the business of little minds to shrink, but he whose heart is firm...will pursue his principles unto death." Thomas Paine believed, like me, that nothing is
more important than aspiring to bring one's own ideals to realization. In a moment of adversity, it is easy to give up, but a true American has the strength to persevere.
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