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A review by mschlat
A Problem from Hell: America and the Age of Genocide by Samantha Power
4.0
Not an easy read, due to both the content and the level of detail. But Power convincingly argues that the United States has regularly stood aside when genocides occur, and that the promise to "never forget" is often rhetoric. She covers the Turkish massacre of Armenians, the rise of Khmer Rouge in Cambodia, Saddam Hussein's actions against the Kurds, the killings of Tutsis in Rwanda, and - in the most detail - the deaths, rapes, and relocations carried out by Bosnian Serbs. In each case, she outlines what the United States knew, how the government often argued that the killings in question were not genocide, and where action was not taken. It is a sobering look at a frighteningly regular pattern.
A few notes of what stood out to me:
1) Power, in setting out the legal definition of genocide, spends a great deal of time on Rafael Lemkin, who originated the term. I first read about him in [b:East West Street: On the Origins of "Genocide" and "Crimes Against Humanity"|27068666|East West Street On the Origins of "Genocide" and "Crimes Against Humanity"|Philippe Sands|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1468087337l/27068666._SX50_.jpg|47111081], but this is a much more detailed account of his work and struggles (which were many).
2) I realized I knew next to nothing of Cambodian history and the Khmer Rouge. Power covers not only what the Khmer Rouge did, but how the isolation of Cambodia at the time made their actions both unknowable and unbelievable.
3) Looking at US foreign policy through the lens of responses to genocide makes for a fascinating read. Warren Christopher, one of Clinton's secretaries of state, comes off looking enormously ineffective when his pragmatism and emphasis on American interests before all leads to prolonged noninvolvement.
4) There's a common trope that genocides occur because of "ethnic tensions" (e.g., the Hutu versus the Tutsi, the ethnicities within the former Yugoslavia, the Kurds versus almost everyone else). But Power clearly argues that genocides occur because people in power amplify those tensions. The killings are not preordained.
A few notes of what stood out to me:
1) Power, in setting out the legal definition of genocide, spends a great deal of time on Rafael Lemkin, who originated the term. I first read about him in [b:East West Street: On the Origins of "Genocide" and "Crimes Against Humanity"|27068666|East West Street On the Origins of "Genocide" and "Crimes Against Humanity"|Philippe Sands|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1468087337l/27068666._SX50_.jpg|47111081], but this is a much more detailed account of his work and struggles (which were many).
2) I realized I knew next to nothing of Cambodian history and the Khmer Rouge. Power covers not only what the Khmer Rouge did, but how the isolation of Cambodia at the time made their actions both unknowable and unbelievable.
3) Looking at US foreign policy through the lens of responses to genocide makes for a fascinating read. Warren Christopher, one of Clinton's secretaries of state, comes off looking enormously ineffective when his pragmatism and emphasis on American interests before all leads to prolonged noninvolvement.
4) There's a common trope that genocides occur because of "ethnic tensions" (e.g., the Hutu versus the Tutsi, the ethnicities within the former Yugoslavia, the Kurds versus almost everyone else). But Power clearly argues that genocides occur because people in power amplify those tensions. The killings are not preordained.