American Troops Deserve Our Continued Respect
I had never seen the critically acclaimed film, "Hotel Rwanda" when it was released in theaters back in December 2004.
At the time this drama, based on real life events occurring in Rwanda, Africa ten years earlier, held little interest for me.
But when I recently stumbled upon the movie while channel surfing, I finally felt compelled and mature enough to experience the cinematic event.
As a reminder for those who've already seen the movie and an introduction to those who haven't, the film, which has been called an African Schindler's List, follows Paul Rusesabagina as he sets out to save the lives of his family and over one-thousand refugees by providing them shelter in the plagued hotel he managed.
During that period, Rwanda's population was comprised of two major ethnic groups: Hutu (85%) and Tutsi (14%).
Early in the 1990's, Hutu extremists and politicians blamed the Tutsi minority for the country's economic and political struggles, regardless of their legitimacy.
But after the president (a Hutu) was assassinated because of his proposed peace agreement, the genocide in Rwanda began with Hutu extremists vowing to destroy the entire Tutsi population.
Years later Paul was quoted as saying, "We saw the whole world closing their eyes and ears, leaving us alone to thugs and gangsters.
The genocide took away a million people in a 100 days.
" The film left me with an unsettling feeling as I watched the horror and torture other human beings were forced to endure.
In one scene I could almost feel the heart-wrenching despair Paul must have felt when he sent his wife and children away to safety, knowing there was a very good chance he may never see them again.
But what disturbed me the most was how the innocent refugees of Rwanda were completely abandoned by their own country, their own people and every other governing body in the world.
They were left to fend for themselves for food, for security and for survival.
It was as though everyone had forgotten about them and closed their eyes to the inexplicable violence going on in a part of the world they couldn't see.
The night after I watched the film, I did some reading on Paul Rusesabagina and discovered an interesting statement regarding the pictures coming out of Rwanda at that time.
"If people see this footage, they'll say, 'Oh my God, that's terrible,' and they'll go on eating their dinners.
" While we might think we're all above such behavior, that's essentially what Americans have done to our very own soldiers fighting an enduring battle over seas.
Whether you agree with America's involvement in the Iraq war or not, there's no arguing how the brave men and women standing on the frontlines on a daily basis have been forgotten.
A story, which used to appear prominently on nightly news programs, magazines, newspapers and the internet, has all but vanished - erased from the minds of everyday citizens whose priorities are often dictated by fantastical headlines.
As of February 2010, approximately 85,000 American troops were fighting in Iraq - which translates to 85,000 families who are without their sons and daughters; husbands and wives; friends and confidants.
To date close to 4,500 casualties have been reported with more than 31,000 serious injuries.
We look forward to holidays such as Memorial Day and Veteran's Day more for the time off than as days of remembrance.
Perhaps we've adopted the notion that if we ignore the problem long enough, it will simply go away.
But it doesn't, as I'm sure the families of our brave service men and women can probably attest to.
Too frequently our priorities drift to trivialities such as celebrities going to jail or "tweeting" about the lousy service we've received while getting our morning cup of coffee.
But it's much more difficult to stop burying our heads in the sand and focus on the realities of life, which you won't find on the pages of social networking sites many of us afford so much of our time to.
The refugees of Rwanda were abandoned and forgotten by a society that simply didn't want to face what was truly going on.
They hoped if they ignored the problem long enough, it would simply go away, and Americans are no different.
The Iraq war is very much a reality for every American living today and the last thing our brave soldiers over seas deserve is to be forgotten from our thoughts, our prayers and our lives.
At the time this drama, based on real life events occurring in Rwanda, Africa ten years earlier, held little interest for me.
But when I recently stumbled upon the movie while channel surfing, I finally felt compelled and mature enough to experience the cinematic event.
As a reminder for those who've already seen the movie and an introduction to those who haven't, the film, which has been called an African Schindler's List, follows Paul Rusesabagina as he sets out to save the lives of his family and over one-thousand refugees by providing them shelter in the plagued hotel he managed.
During that period, Rwanda's population was comprised of two major ethnic groups: Hutu (85%) and Tutsi (14%).
Early in the 1990's, Hutu extremists and politicians blamed the Tutsi minority for the country's economic and political struggles, regardless of their legitimacy.
But after the president (a Hutu) was assassinated because of his proposed peace agreement, the genocide in Rwanda began with Hutu extremists vowing to destroy the entire Tutsi population.
Years later Paul was quoted as saying, "We saw the whole world closing their eyes and ears, leaving us alone to thugs and gangsters.
The genocide took away a million people in a 100 days.
" The film left me with an unsettling feeling as I watched the horror and torture other human beings were forced to endure.
In one scene I could almost feel the heart-wrenching despair Paul must have felt when he sent his wife and children away to safety, knowing there was a very good chance he may never see them again.
But what disturbed me the most was how the innocent refugees of Rwanda were completely abandoned by their own country, their own people and every other governing body in the world.
They were left to fend for themselves for food, for security and for survival.
It was as though everyone had forgotten about them and closed their eyes to the inexplicable violence going on in a part of the world they couldn't see.
The night after I watched the film, I did some reading on Paul Rusesabagina and discovered an interesting statement regarding the pictures coming out of Rwanda at that time.
"If people see this footage, they'll say, 'Oh my God, that's terrible,' and they'll go on eating their dinners.
" While we might think we're all above such behavior, that's essentially what Americans have done to our very own soldiers fighting an enduring battle over seas.
Whether you agree with America's involvement in the Iraq war or not, there's no arguing how the brave men and women standing on the frontlines on a daily basis have been forgotten.
A story, which used to appear prominently on nightly news programs, magazines, newspapers and the internet, has all but vanished - erased from the minds of everyday citizens whose priorities are often dictated by fantastical headlines.
As of February 2010, approximately 85,000 American troops were fighting in Iraq - which translates to 85,000 families who are without their sons and daughters; husbands and wives; friends and confidants.
To date close to 4,500 casualties have been reported with more than 31,000 serious injuries.
We look forward to holidays such as Memorial Day and Veteran's Day more for the time off than as days of remembrance.
Perhaps we've adopted the notion that if we ignore the problem long enough, it will simply go away.
But it doesn't, as I'm sure the families of our brave service men and women can probably attest to.
Too frequently our priorities drift to trivialities such as celebrities going to jail or "tweeting" about the lousy service we've received while getting our morning cup of coffee.
But it's much more difficult to stop burying our heads in the sand and focus on the realities of life, which you won't find on the pages of social networking sites many of us afford so much of our time to.
The refugees of Rwanda were abandoned and forgotten by a society that simply didn't want to face what was truly going on.
They hoped if they ignored the problem long enough, it would simply go away, and Americans are no different.
The Iraq war is very much a reality for every American living today and the last thing our brave soldiers over seas deserve is to be forgotten from our thoughts, our prayers and our lives.
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