Before the Killing Begins: The Politics of Mass Violence

The phrase never again has been used for decades as a symbol of international resolve to never allow an abomination like the Holocaust to happen again. All nations seem to recognize an obligation to stop future genocides and mass atrocities, even if it means violating the near-sacred sovereignty of another country. That resolve has been tested many times, and too often it has failed.

Since the Holocaust we have seen mass killings take place the world over. In some cases the slow, deliberate killing of innocent people may have only captured the news media's attention on occasion, leaving us with the impression that mass killings only happen in the context of war. What might have seemed like isolated incidents are symbolic of a larger epidemic.

Mass violence is a political tool used by those with power for their own strategic objectives. It is not an unpreventable and unmanageable explosion of existing tensions. Ethnic and other social divisions can be manipulated by the powerful, but genocide and mass atrocities don't occur spontaneously. And that means they can be prevented.

Now Showing Before the Killing Begins: The Politics of Mass Violence considers how early preventive strategies by governments and the international community should build much-needed capacities within countries, and make it harder for leaders to resort to violence. It aims to encourage discussion of how future efforts might better protect populations under threat, giving new meaning to never again.

With event planner and moderator guides chock-full of helpful tips and resources, the toolkit has everything needed to put together a successful event. Discussion guides are provided to facilitate group discussion on the issues raised in the video. Also, the toolkit includes materials that provide further background on the discussion topics. http://ow.ly/5BKhO

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Nonprofits & Activism

Tags:

• genocide
• mass
• atrocity
• prevention
• UN
• r2p
• peacebuilding
• rwanda
• libya
• holocaust
• stanley
• foundation