Gregory H. Stanton's "The 8 Stages of Genocide"

Today, we mark International Holocaust Remembrance Day, as appointed by the United Nations and its scribed tenets. On January 27, 1945, Auschwitz-Birkenau was liberated, the largest extermination camp where over one million people were murdered. This day is a commemoration of  that liberation as well as the lives that were so undeservedly taken and devastated under the Nazi regime. This tragedy has affected generations and generations of people, and the patterns and political formulas by which this humanitarian catastrophe arose can be seen in other genocidal disasters. Look at Rwanda, for a recent example, it began with oppression, hatred, and the subordination of one group of people by another. There is a distinct sequence of events that occurs when any such tragedy materializes, and it is a series of developments that we must all remain aware of to prevent, and ultimately stop, a genocide from unfolding in our midst. In Gregory H. Stanton's "The 8 Stages of Genocide," genocide is defined, categorized, and identified with a subsequent outline of preventative measures against such atrocities. I am choosing to write about these stages today, not only to memorialize each and every victim of genocide, but to inform some of my readers of crucial knowledge that should be as natural to them as the Bill of Rights. So here it is...

According to Stanton, the eight stages of genocide include classification, symbolization, dehumanization, organization, polarization, preparation, extermination, and denial.

But first, he incorporates the definition of genocide as specified by the International Convention for the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide declaring:

"In the present Convention, genocide means any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such: 

(a) Killing members of the group; 

(b) Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group; 

(c) Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part; 

(d) Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group; 

(e) Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group."

According to the Convention, the following acts are punishable:

"(a) Genocide; (b) Conspiracy to commit genocide; (c) Direct and public incitement to commit genocide; (d) Attempt to commit genocide; (e) Complicity in genocide." 

Additionally, there must be intent, which is proven by the perpetrators' consistent acts, statements, and patterns of behavior against their victims. Intent is not the same as one's motives, differentiated solely by the specific purpose pertinent to intent. Did the perpetrator commit an act of murder, for example, to achieve the over-arching objective of wiping out a specific ethnicity or race? If so, the perpetrator's specific purpose shows pure genocidal intent. A motive does not necessarily denote genocidal intent.

Now that I've informed everyone about the definition of genocide and genocidal specification as proposed by Stanton, I will get into the meat of my post, his eight stages:

Classification

This is the notion that all other cultures or groups of people require a specific type of classification. They are identified through various categories differentiating one group into an 'us' and another group into a 'them.' In the early stages of genocide and within its later periods, classification is clear among these particular groups of people, through its inherent characteristic of distinguishing one another by race, religion, or ethnic background. 

Prevention of Classification

Actively campaigning against racial or ethnic classifications is the best way to prevent the occurrence of this type of genocidal classification. Additionally, refraining from feeding into the stereotypes often associated with various groups of people and devaluing their stereotypical features is another means through which classification is avoided.

Symbolization

Symbolization directly correlates with classification, as genocidal entities use symbolization to signify those they classify. In the later stages of genocide, the oppressive group of people will likely force their 'subordinates' into wearing a distinct material of identification, or a symbol to distinguish themselves from their respective oppressors.

Prevention of Symbolization

This is prevented by sternly refuting the use of degrading verbiage against a group of people or by rejecting any type of symbolization or distinct figure that signifies any group of people, ethnicity, or race that we might classify.

Dehumanization

Dehumanization occurs when the oppressive genocidal entity ascribes inhuman, sometimes animalistic traits to their supposed inferiors to justify their poor and horrific treatment. In various pieces of propaganda, the suppressed party is usually described with such terms comparing them to vermin or other undesirable, subhuman characterizations.

Prevention of Dehumanization

In order to prevent dehumanization, evil propaganda must be banned, openly rejected, opposed, and outlawed. Failure to prevent dehumanization of any kind ultimately breeds impunity, and any such atrocious oppressor must be stopped immediately.

Organization

Whenever there is genocide, there is always organization behind it. There is planning, there is deliberation, and there is intent. Whether it is a political body or a terrorist group, they discuss and ultimately organize the genocide, deciding when, how, and even where their intended victims will be taken.

Prevention of Organization

Any type of organization that commits an act of genocide, or holds an intent to commit an act of genocide, should be banned and stopped immediately. Additionally, membership to any such organization should be deemed criminal. It is the responsibility of the UN and true democratic governments to ensure that these organizations are obliterated and denied any type of commencement.

Polarization

Polarization occurs when any type of negotiations within a government or political body to end the genocide becomes impossible. The moderate speakers of these governments are often killed first, leaving only the voices of the extremist parties to dominate, with little to no outside intervention.

Prevention of Polarization

Polarization can be prevented by providing the necessary aid to the moderate political voices within these genocidal governments and entities, while weakening the resources of their politically respective, radical extremist parties.

Preparation

Preparation for any genocide includes identification. Yes, the victims must identify themselves, often mandated by the genocidal government to quicken the extermination process. Whether by ID papers, by forced exclusion into a ghetto, or even by the forced placement into a concentration camp, the victimized party is identified by their ethnic or religious group to ultimately accelerate the 'ethnic cleansing' that is being prepared by the authoritarian body.

Prevention of Preparation

Whenever or wherever identification occurs during the preparation stage, a Genocide Watch should be mandated and the international community must place pressure on their diplomatic leaders to address the circumstance. Those who have been 'identified' must be given the appropriate relief and assistance when fleeing their persecutors.

Extermination

Extermination is the seventh stage of genocide, and it includes the mass deaths of the victimized population. These populations are considered 'inhuman' and are not provided adequate burial proceedings, dignity, and/or humanity during this stage.

Prevention of Extermination

Armed intervention is the only force that can stop and/or prevent the extermination stage. Areas of safety should be established and protected by an armed force, promoting the welfare and security of the victimized party.

Denial

Denial is the final stage of genocide. It is the stage in which the perpetrators refuse to speak the truth of the genocide, denying that they did anything beyond the scope of their duties or that they committed any wrongful acts. For example, some will often try to burn down the mass graves in which a number of bodies were discarded to disguise the indignity of the victimized party's deaths. There are many actions the perpetrators will take to refrain from taking accountability for their crimes against humanity, and they do so through denial.

Prevention of Denial

Education is the strongest preventative measure against the denial phase, in addition to public trials and lengthy court proceedings. Education reigns supreme because it is the most essential when ameliorating the damage done to the youth of the nation by the influence of its perpetrating party. The psychological effects of conforming to a genocidal regime are long lasting, and the younger generations must suffer the subsequent backlash. In a sense, they must rewire their brains against the evil propaganda and information they were fed under the authority of the oppressive entity, and must do so as soon as the phase of denial prevention begins. 

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