Red Guard and Interahamwe

Those of you who really know me will be amazed at the fact that I have read 2 books in a week. Crazy! They have been 2 fantastic books that I just couldn't put down even when Emma was crawling all over me. I know...I'm horrible.

I must be honest that I don't know an incredible amount about Rwanda and the genocide. I watch Hotel Rwanda when it came out and cried through the entire thing but that was pretty much all that I knew about the country.

When we started the process to adopt Emma from China, I devoured every book I could get my hands on about Chinese culture, adoption, women, history, foot binding, the Cultural Revolution, etc. It was the only thing that I could do over the 2 years of waiting that made me feel like I was connecting to her and her birth family. I also wanted to be able to have a clear understanding of how things in China had gotten to where they are today. Reading the struggles of Chinese women made me have such love for Emma's birth mother. It made me feel like I could understand where she may be coming from or what may have led her to the point of placing Emma at the gate of the Xinyu Orphanage.

I want to be able to have that same connection to Jack's country and his birth family. So, I am trying to educate myself as much as possible on Rwanda, its history, and its people. This is difficult, however, since just about every book out there is about the genocide in 1994. I just don't know how many books I can read about this. I read about a lot of horrible things that took place during the Cultural Revolution in China but I don't think I can handle this in such volume. The details are just horrendous.

While reading, "Left to Tell," I found several similarities between the Cultural Revolution and the Genocide.

1. The radio was full of propaganda fed by the government.

2. The president of Rwanda was convinced that any Tutsi with family outside of Rwanda must be collaborating with the rebels. This is just like Mao saying that anyone with connections to foreign countries was considered a spy or a class enemy.

3. In Rwanda, President Habyarimana's political party organized a youth movement called the Interahamwe (means-those who attack together.) When reading this, I couldn't help but think about the Red Guards. This was a group of young students who followed Mao Zedong's every command. They destroyed temples and books. They mocked, tortured and killed anyone they deemed to be "black" or the enemy.

4. An unfathomable number of people were killed in both countries. It is estimated that 1,000,000 Tutsi and moderate Hutus were slaughtered during the genocide in 100 days. That's 1 MILLION people killed in 100 DAYS. That is 10 THOUSAND people per DAY! In China during Mao's 26 year regime, it is estimated that around 60,000,000 people were killed. That is over 6 THOUSAND people per DAY! Everyday...for...26 YEARS!!!

And the rest of the world did NOTHING in either situation! Did we learn nothing from Hitler? Do we really have to keep allowing this terror to happen over and over again before we learn? Why don't we see the signs? It's all there. We just need to stop thinking so much about ourselves and our lovely, comfortable lives in America and start opening our eyes to the rest of the world.

If you want to read an incredible story about the power of prayer and forgiveness, read "Lived to Tell." Immaculee's story of surviving the Rwandan Holocaust is unbelievable. She goes into detail what those 100 days were like as a Tutsi woman. You will cry through most of the book but you will not want to put it down. It will change how you pray and how you forgive.