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Dr. Alex Hinton: Genocide and Perpetrators

44 min • 27 augusti 2024

In this episode, Therese Markow and Dr. Alex Hinton discuss the complexities of genocide, its definitions, and the role of perpetrators. Dr. Hinton gives us the conventional, legal, and social scientific definitions of genocide and gives examples of how these affect the legal battles and social impact of different incidents, highlighting the Khmer Rouge mass killings in Cambodia. They also discuss the moral and legal implications of perpetrators and why none of us can be complacent in our understanding of genocide.

Key Takeaways:

There are three main definitions of genocide. Most recognize it as mass deaths, often perpetrated by a state figure. The UN legal definition requires intent. And the social scientific definition expands beyond the UN definition.
While genocide is an atrocity, not all atrocities are genocides. Similarly, not all mass murders are genocides.
When legally looking at the genocide perpetrators, the courts typically go after the architects and lower-level individuals are often brought in as witnesses. However, the question of who the perpetrators are is a moral and ethical question still being debated.
Education is key - the dynamics that gave rise to Auschwitz are all around us and we are all part of them. We must be self-critical, reflexive people as a first step to make sure that we don’t have a recurrence.

"It's a potentiality that exists for ourselves and for our societies. You know, it's not comfortable. Many people will say ‘no,’ but that's the starting point of prevention, because only when you have that realization can you effectively begin to take action to stop genocide from taking place." — Dr. Alex Hinton

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