In 2015 , I traveled to Guatemala with a small team from USC Shoah Foundation to train staff from a local organization called the Fundación de Antropología Forence de Guatemala (FAFG) to begin collecting voices from survivors to the Guatemalan Genocide.
From April to July 1994, one of the most brutal genocides in human history occurred in Rwanda. It claimed the lives of 800,000 men, women, and children, most of whom were of Tutsi descent. Kwibuka, the official anniversary of the Rwandan Tutsi Genocide, is observed every year on April 7. Explore this selection of testimony clips of survivors and eyewitnesses to the genocide from the Visual History Archive.
On April 6, 1994, an aircraft carrying Rwandan President Juvénal Habyarimana was shot down by a surface-to-air missile as it was about to land in Kigali airport. Everyone aboard the plane was killed: Habyarimana; president of Burundi, Cyprien Ntaryamira; and a three-man French crew. While it remains unclear who fired the missile, the event is viewed as having ignited the 1994 Rwandan Tutsi Genocide.
Live Wesige remembers hearing the news about the president’s death and describes the violence that ensued in his neighborhood the next day, April 7, 1994.
Rose Burizihiza describes how the Hutu leaders in her town met to plan how they would kill the local Tutsis.
Roméo Dallaire describes how quickly violence escalated in Rwanda in 1994 and his disappointment in the lack of support from the international community.
Valerie Nyirarudodo says she has forgiven the perpetrators of the genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda who have asked for it, and encourages others to follow the same path.
Alphonse Kabalisa recalls listening to anti-Tutsi propaganda on the radio with his father, after the death of Rwandan President Juvénal Habyarimana. Alphonse’s testimony is featured in the IWitness activity, Information Quest: The Genocide Against the Tutsi in Rwanda
Carl Wilkens, an aid provider during the Rwandan Tutsi Genocide, describes the courageous acts of his neighbors.
Rwandan Tutsi Genocide survivor Kizito Kalima shares his hope that people take action to prevent future genocides. He vows to do anything necessary to ensure the world is a safe, peaceful place.
Rwandan Tutsi Genocide survivor Edith Umugiraneza describes her first contact with the Interahamwe militia, which was threatening violence against Tutsis.
Never forget. Never again. These are common phrases used in Holocaust and genocide education. These are important statements especially when they evoke the real reason to study, learn, and teach about genocide. We must bring this content to students to empower them and encourage them to see beyond themselves. If done right, students become aware of the steps that lead to such atrocities. Teaching about genocide is the only way to have a lasting impact on our students, to affect their worldview, to help them understand that they can make a difference.