In his recent New York Times op-ed column, “The World Capital of Killing,” Nicholas Kristof takes a close look at the war in eastern Congo, and compares it to the Holocaust. He states that an estimated 6.9 million people have been murdered in the Congo’s war. The war “in eastern Congo has not only lasted longer than the Holocaust but also appears to have claimed more lives,” Kristof writes. But, he goes on to explain, “what those numbers don’t capture is the way Congo has become the world capital of rape, torture and mutilation, in ways that sear survivors.” What can be done to stop this genocide? “Unless we see some leadership here,” Kristof writes, “the fighting in Congo—fueled by profits from mineral exports—will continue indefinitely.”
Facing Today
Facing Today helps educators connect the study of history to issues in our world today. We select current websites, articles, films and blogs that reflect universal themes, such as identity, membership and participation, represented in our scope and sequence. Each media resource is linked to related Facing History materials, including study guides, videos and lessons.
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February 8, 2010
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February 5, 2010
Colorado State Senator Suzanne Williams introduced a bill in January 2010 that would require public high schools or charter high schools in the state of Colorado “that use an American Indian mascot to either stop using it or gain approval of its use from the Colorado Commission of Indian Affairs,” ReporterHerald.com writes. The Denver Post quotes Williams as saying that she “introduced this bill because [she] feel[s] very strongly that we need a conversation about the subtle discrimination between races and cultures.” Her proposal met great resistance from a number of the 36 schools the bill would affect. Loveland High School’s Indian mascot was originally chosen based on the results of an essay contest in which the winner said Indians stood for “ ‘bravery, loyalty, patriotism and dauntless pride,’ ” ReporterHerald.com states. The high school’s athletic director, Devin Anderson, said “ ‘we feel we can use [the Indian mascot] to the point of teaching diversity and tolerance.’ ” One newspaper sided with Williams, stating that “ ‘It’s time for the Red to go,’ adding ‘It’s unfortunate Williams even had to introduce the legislation,’ ” The Denver Channel reports. According to The Denver Post, Williams recently announced that she plans to withdraw the bill, “saying she has already achieved her goal of igniting community discussions over whether the mascots are appropriate.”
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February 3, 2010
Just over two months ago, Switzerland banned the building of new minarets. “A poster was widely cited as having galvanized votes for the Swiss measure but was also blamed for exacerbating hostility toward immigrants and instigating a media and legal circus,” Michael Kimmelman of The New York Times reports. The poster depicted minarets rising like missiles from a Swiss flag with a woman wearing a niqab glaring next to it, and the word “stop” written below. Kimmelman states “the obvious message: Minarets lead to Sharia law.” Alexander Segert, who designed the Swiss minaret poster, told Kimmelman “ ‘if what we do stirs up controversy, then we’ve already won the election.’ ” Political scientist Marc Bühlmann agreed, explaining that “ ‘the aim in making the posters is to be as racist as possible, so then when critics complain, the populists can say elites don’t want ordinary people to know the truth. And the media fall for it every time.’ ” Designers like Segert are successful because, as Segert put it, “ ‘we know how to reduce information to the lowest level, so people respond without thinking.’ ”
