Exploring Genocide

Exploring Genocide

After World War I, the German economy was in shambles after having to pay reparations to the Allied nations. During this time of unrest and turmoil in Germany, Hitler rose to power and began to bring the country together and get it back on its feet once again. He created the Nazi party and shared his "Final Solution" with his people, which blamed those of Jewish faith for the misfortune of the country and used them as scapegoats, as Jews have been seen as throughout history. During World War II, Hitler began to create what would be known as concentration camps. In these camps, Jews and other peoples, that were thought to be "inferior" to the "racially superior" Germans, were to live under harsh and almost unbearable living conditions. As long as the people were not to young or old, were healthy, and were in line with orders, they lived but other wise, they were sent to the gas chambers in which showers produced poisonous gas that would suffocate and kill the people. After the gas chamber, the bodies were disposed of in incinerators. Some people who were even still alive were thrown into the incinerators and where burned to death. This is where the term Holocaust comes from which means burnt whole. While most were disposed of this way, others who misbehaved could be disposed of more quickly with the use of guns. As World War II was coming to an end, the German soldiers escorted prisoners on death marches in which the people were to march from one concentration camp to the next in usually very harsh weather. Many people died here from starvation and exhaustion. The purpose of these marches was to prevent the Allied troops from liberating large numbers of prisoners while they travelled across Europe in a series of attacks against Germany. The marches lasted until May 7, 1945 when the German armed forces surrendered to the Allies. World War II officially ended in Europe for the Western Allies on the next day, May 8, 1945. After the end of World War II, Allied forces found many more concentration camps and freed and helped take care of those found alive in them. The Holocaust was an event of great suffering and sadness. Overall six million Jews died because of it and it will forever be remembered in infamy.

Another tragic event that dates back to about 416 B.C. is the Athenian invasion of Melos. This invasion of Melos is said to have occurred during the second phase of the Peloponnesian War. In the summer of 416 B.C., the Athenians sent an army of over 3,000 soldiers to the island of Melos, led by the generals Cleomedes and Tisias. Athenian diplomats were sent to the Melians to negotiate surrender. In the terms of surrender the Melians would be spared if they joined the Athenian-dominated Delian League and paid tribute to Athens. The Melians listened to the negotiation but refused to surrender. In rebuttal, the Athenians laid siege to the city. For months the Melians were able to withstand the siege until the winter came. Starvation, traitors within Melos, and the reinforcements from Athens ultimately lead to Melians' downfall. After Athens had control over Melos, the Athenians started on a rampage enraged with uncooperative Melians. The Athenians killed all the adult men of Melos that they has captured while also capturing and enslaving the women and children on Melos. Only after these events did the Athenians settle on the soil of Melos.

After examining genocides and other killings, many people raise the question how does an atrocity qualify as an act of genocide? According to the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia and the International Court of Justice, for an act to qualify as genocide it must be the biological-physical destruction of a national, racial, religious, or ethnical group, in whole or in part. In the Holocaust, the genocide is defined as the persecution and mass killing of the European Jews by the Nazis and German military forces. In Melos, the genocide was defined as the mass killing of the Melian men by the Athenians and the enslavement and capture of the women and children. For each genocidal act, everyone has their own way of defining the genocide and its characteristics. Those who today determine if a genocidal act has occurred include historians, reporters and, countries themselves, while in the past historians and countries determined if a genocidal act had occurred.

Before the Holocaust began, Germany was recovering from a depression. Adolf Hitler helped to raise the hope of the Germans and helped lead them out of this depression. The people of Germany were so grateful to him and happy that he was able to free them from this depression that they would hang and follow every word he said. When he announced that the Jews were the reason they were suffering, the Germans did not question him and agreed with him using the Jews as a scapegoat. This led to the beginning of the Holocaust as the Germans thought it was fair to punish the Jews for the torment they put them through.

Before the Athenians invaded Melos, they had already been in a war with the Spartans for a few years. Melos was on the side of the Spartans but did not fight during the war and this might have been a cause of some hostility