Genocide Quote by Philip Gourevitch
““The pygmy in Gikongoro said that humanity is part of nature and that we must go against nature to get along and have peace. But mass violence, too, must be organized; it does not occur aimlessly. Even mobs and riots have a design, and great and sustained destruction requires great ambition. It must be conceived as the means toward achieving a new order, and although the idea behind that new order may be criminal and objectively very stupid, it must also be compellingly simple and at the same time absolute. The ideology of genocide is all of those things, and in Rwanda it went by the bald name of Hutu Power.””
About This Quote
Source Book: We Wish to Be Here by Philip Gourevitch, 1999
Genocide is portrayed as a deliberately organized, ideologically driven violence that appears simple yet is rooted in ambition for a new order.
In simple terms: Genocide is a planned, ideologically driven violence seeking a new order.
Key Takeaway
Recognize the organized nature of mass violence.
Themes
violence
ideology
genocide
political ambition
Mood
somber
reflective
Type
historical
political
educational
When to use this quote
- human rights work
- conflict analysis
- policy making
Key Concepts
mass murder
social engineering
political movements
Questions to Reflect On
- How do societies prevent organized mass violence?
- What role does ideology play in justifying atrocities?
A Different Perspective
Simplifying genocide can obscure its complexity and moral horror.
![“Just as a state's police swear to prevent and punish murder, so the signers of the Genocide Convention [in 1948] swore to police a brave new world order. The rhetoric of moral utopia is a peculiar response to genocide. But those were heady days, just after the trials at Nuremberg, when the full…” quote by Philip Gourevitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/41e/philip-gourevitch-17484_brave-new-world_just-as-a-state-s-police-swear-to-preven_403389.jpg)
