Political activities of Heather A
Last night we drove to Boulder for a special international event. Paul Rusesabagina, the hotel manager that saved hundreds of lives during the Rwandan genocide, delievered a compelling speech. "History should be our greatest teacher but we never learn from history!" Paul encouraged us to remember the horrors in Rwanda but look to the burning villages in Sudan. Africa is in flames, can't we find a moment to remind our leaders not to abandon Africa?
Go here http://www.amnestyusa.org/countries/sudan/hotelrwanda.html for more information on how to increase awareness in your community!
posted by Staarkidd at
11:25
8 Comments:
NEVER learn from history? huh. pretty all-encompassing statement. SOME of us NEVER learn from history, others of us ALWAYS pay the price for history. Why should all whites continue to pay for the suffering of the descendents of slaves? ok, im picking one tiny point of what Paul probably said, but its the one quote you took from him, so it's powerful in the way that youve used it.
By
Anonymous, at 2:17 PM
i'm curious why (and how) you think white people are paying "for the suffering of the descendents of slaves."
By
Anonymous, at 3:27 PM
in the way they have to continually defend themselves against supposed racism (and, there IS racism, but not in the doses that are alledged), in the way they have to modify behaviour to not offend sensibilities. its just one example of a point i was trying to make, namely that, when talking about such large numbers of people, one must be very careful about making statements of such general scope. 'NEVER learn from history'? come on. we're ALWAYS learning from history, but make the same, and different, mistakes.
By
Anonymous, at 6:11 PM
first, i love that we are having this conversation on my blog!
i see what you are both (all 3) saying. Yes, we all CAN learn from history. some do, some don't. And yes, every situation is different. The situation in Sudan is very different from the situation in Rwanda. I think Paul's statement was not that we are repeating the exact history, but we haven't done anything to change our posture with issues that do repeat in history. If we have only looked back at the autraucities in Rwanda with regret but without discovering what we should or could have done, then we will be in no better place.
now on to "racism". racism is not about likes or dislikes of another race. it is about power. the structure of our western world continues to support the power of the white man. things are changing and certainly, not ALL white men have power. Many times they have less power than women or "minorities". In light of the hegemonic structure of our society, racism continues irregardless of our feelings or good will or kindness or whatever. This is a bigger issue for minorities than any bigotry that might occur.
On a daily basis, i have to "Use" minorities in my filming, not because of who they are, but because i must show diversity. This is necessary for change but it smells of offense to both me and those i "use". Until we can get to a place where it doesn't matter what images i use, then i know racism is still very prevelent in my culture, if i like it or not. did i make any sense?
By
Staarkidd, at 10:09 AM
katie! i love that you are here! thanks for the link to the documentary. i am curious to see it.
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Staarkidd, at 10:11 AM
LOL. Kaite, are you a black feminist? if only you and tomago could become one person! Thanks for the book recommendation!
By
Staarkidd, at 2:34 PM
We're allowed to sleep at Chipotle? why hasnt anyone told me this before?
By
Anonymous, at 10:42 AM
LOL. If YOU were allowed to sleep at Chipotle's there'd be no more guac for the rest of us!
By
Staarkidd, at 9:56 PM
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