Genocide
By: Daelin Bright
Cambodian Genocide
Cambodia got their independence in 1954 after being under French control for over 100 years, this then began their 16 year rule under Prince Norodom Sihanouk. Prince Sihanouk ruined their relationship with the United States for a while. A man by the name of Saloth Sar returned to Cambodia after he learned about Marxism. He joined the underground communist movement, they organized an army and then in 1970 took out Prince Sihanouk, he then joined Pol Pot to try and resist the new government. The United States invaded Cambodia and bombed certain areas, more than 100,000 peasants were killed, because of these deaths it pushed more people to join the movement lead by Pol Pot. Pol Pot led an army with mostly teenage boys, he led his army and got control of Cambodia ("Cambodian").
Pol Pot then began his mission, he want to create the “perfect utopian society.” He expels ideas of capitalism and the life of the city, all religion and foreigners were terminated. He shut down embassies, foreign languages were not allowed. Media is taken away and communication was very limited. Education was gone, healthcare too, same with businesses, they were all shut down. Any parental authority was banished, foreign economic and medical assistance was rejected. Cambodia was no longer in contact or in sync with any one from the outside. Two million people in Phnom Penh were forced to leave at gunpoint, an estimated 20,000 people died on the way. The people were forced to become slaves and work in rural areas, most of them died from diseases because they were overworked and had no nutrition, this began what is known as the “killing fields”. The killing fields was where they took people when they were no longer able to work and they would kill them all. Cambodia was then hit with a variety of “cleansings” these cleansings were there way of getting rid of the “old society.” The people who were executed were based off occupation and wealth, or their level of education. Ex soldiers were killed , as was their families, anyone who was suspected to not being loyal to Pol Pot, was killed. Vietnamese, Chinese, and Cham Muslims, were targeted. An estimated 1.7 million people were killed during this genocide, this was 21% of the population at the time ("Cambodian").
Troops
Soldiers
Evacuation
Holocaust
The Holocaust, is the most well known genocides ever, and for many reasons. It began when Adolf Hitler was appointed Chancellor of Germany in 1933, the Jewish population being 566,000. February, a month after he is appointed this position the Nazi’s burned down Reichstag building to create a chaotic atmosphere. After that in March was when they set up the first concentration camps, after this everything else just followed. The end of 1934, Hitler had complete control of Germany and his mission to get rid of the Jews was in full force. The Nazis believed that the Jews had created a corrupted environment and ruined German culture with their influences. Hitler restricted Hews with legislation and terror, this included burning books they wrote, removing jews from their professions and schools, confiscating their businesses and property and excluding them from public events. The Nuremberg Laws were put into effect in 1935, these formed the legal basis for the Jews’ exclusion and laws from the German society. After all this began many jews tried to leave Germany, thousands succeeded by leaving Germany, but leaving Europe was much more of a challenge (Introduction).
In 1938, the attacks became more violent. A night of destruction, known as Kristallnacht, came about. They looted and destroyed Jewish homes and business and burned synagogues, many jews were beaten and killed, 30,000 were arrested and sent to concentration camps. The Germans invaded Poland in 1939, and then began establishing ghettos for the Jews, this is where they were forced to live, isolated away from everyone and everything. The ghettos lacked food water, space, and were not clean, this caused many deaths. They all had to wear a patch so they could be easily identified. In 1941 the “Final Solution” began. The “Final Solution” was the plan to exterminate all Jewish people. It began in the Soviet Union, they gathered jew, marched them together, dug huge pits, lined them up and shot them. 30,000-35,000 Jews were killed in 2 days and by the end of 1942 and estimated 1.3 million jews were murdered. They then established death camps, this made the killing much easier. The purpose of each camp was different, some being slave labor, some transit, others are concentration and sub camps, they also still had the famous death camps, all of which were insanely harsh on all the people. This genocide, took out an estimated 7 million people, most of whom were Jewish (The History).
Camp
Ghetto
Adolf Hitler
Cambodian Genocide and The Holocaust
Holocaust
Rulers
Cambodia
A Survivor's Story
Elie and his father undergo a certain amount of pain that is unforgettable. The Nazi's striped them of who they were, they took away all pride, their identity was snatched away. Elie was moved from camp to camp and witnessed many different things. He has surgery on his foot, he was also involved in many different beatings. He was beat for the smallest of things, he would not give up his gold tooth, so he was beaten. Elie and his father stuck together for the whole journey. His father could not bear the suffering he was under. Elie did not give up on him, he gave him food and did everything he could to take care of him. Nature took over and his father's time had come. His father knew it was better for Elie, if he was to pass, so he told Elie to no longer protect him. He got very sick and was tired, he passed away (Wiesel).
Why do Genocides continue to happen?
Works Cited
"Cambodian Genocide « World Without Genocide - Working to Create a World Without Genocide." Cambodian Genocide « World Without Genocide - Working to Create a World Without Genocide. World Without Genocide, n.d. Web. 24 May 2016. <http://worldwithoutgenocide.org/genocides-and-conflicts/cambodian-genocide>.
"Introduction to the Holocaust." United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. United States Holocaust Memorial Council, 29 Jan. 2016. Web. 24 May 2016. <https://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005143>.
"The History Place - Holocaust Timeline." The History Place - Holocaust Timeline. The History Place, 1997. Web. 24 May 2016. <http://www.historyplace.com/worldwar2/holocaust/timeline.html>.
"The Holocaust Wing | Jewish Virtual Library." The Holocaust Wing |"The Cambodian Genocide - United to End Genocide." United to End Genocide. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 May 2016. <http://endgenocide.org/learn/past-genocides/the-cambodian-genocide/>.
Washington State University." Spring 2015 Cambodian Genocide Comparing It to the Holocaust with Political Targeted and Similarities Comments. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 May 2016. <https://history105.libraries.wsu.edu/spring2015/2015/01/19/human-trafficking-2/>.
Wiesel, Elie. Night. New York, NY: Hill and Wang, a Division of Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2006. Print.