Gender issues with the Tutsi arose because of the marriages between Tutsi and Hutu peoples. The Tutsi were considered inferior to the Hutu. When Tutsi women married Hutu men, their offspring would be legally Hutu. As a legal Hutu, they had the same privileges as the Hutu. Because the Tutsi women had the opportunity through marriage to change the social class of their offspring, they were the primary targets of genocide. By attacking Tutsi women, they could not obtain the rights of the Hutu. Since lineage was based solely on males, Tutsi men weren't really targeted. Few Hutu women would forfeit their rights by marrying a Tutsi male.
Tutsi women were framed by social media as the “enemy of the state.” They framed them as whores and prostitutes. They convinced the Hutu that their only objective was to seduce and marry all of the Hutu men. Propaganda convinced the Hutu that Tutsi women only married Hutu men solely for the benefit of the Tutsi community. As a result, the Hutu were enraged and resorted to sexual violence and genocide.
"Sexual
Violence and Genocide Against Tutsi Women." N.d. Sexual Violence and Genocide
Against Tutsi Women.
http://academic.udayton.edu/race/06hrights/georegions/africa/Rwanda01.htm accessed March 1, 2014.
My first reaction to this article is feeling bad for the Tutsi women. They must have felt really low to have to marry a Hutu man in order for her children to have a better life. These mothers sacrifice true love for protection and social status.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I do agree to some extent that Tutsi women were willing to do anything to marry Hutu men, I don't think they are the horrible people that propaganda portrayed them to be. Genocide is never a healthy solution to anyone. The attacks against Tutsi women were unjust. I'm sure Hutu men were just as attracted to Tutsi women as Tutsi women were attracted to Hutu men. It doesn't surprise me that many of the acts of violence against the Tutsi women were sexual. Categorizing Tutsi women as whores and inferior were simply excuses for Hutu men to have relations with Tutsi women without marrying them.
Much of the anger toward Tutsi women had to stem from Hutu women being jealous of the Tutsi women. The Tutsi women were regarded as "inferior" and yet Hutu men still were attracted to them. This probably angered Hutu women.
Darius. Thank you for your comments. I think you could also add something from lecture since we talked about framing and the news. And it is part of your post, but here in the reflective post, you might want to include some of that too. By the same token, look at the refs from the folks in your group. This is the first group that I find has it almost completely consistent in terms of references. So, change your references for the final eval by looking at your group mates, and asking them too. Good job. Thanks
ReplyDeleteMy first reaction to this article is feeling bad for the Tutsi women. They must have felt really low to have to marry a Hutu man in order for her children to have a better life. These mothers sacrifice true love for protection and social status.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I do agree to some extent that Tutsi women were willing to do anything to marry Hutu men, I don't think they are the horrible people that propaganda portrayed them to be. Genocide is never a healthy solution to anyone. The attacks against Tutsi women were unjust. I'm sure Hutu men were just as attracted to Tutsi women as Tutsi women were attracted to Hutu men. It doesn't surprise me that many of the acts of violence against the Tutsi women were sexual. Categorizing Tutsi women as whores and inferior were simply excuses for Hutu men to have relations with Tutsi women without marrying them.
Much of the anger toward Tutsi women had to stem from Hutu women being jealous of the Tutsi women. The Tutsi women were regarded as "inferior" and yet Hutu men still were attracted to them. This probably angered Hutu women.
As we learned and discussed in class, anthropologist have to be careful of how they frame their data and findings. Depending on how a group is framed could bring harm to them.Incorrectly framing a group can be deadly and dangerous. In the case of the Tutsi women, they were framed as prostitutes and whores and as a result they faced genoicde.
Good job Darius! Tomorrow, when you discuss this topic, you can also mention ethnocentrism, as the belief that our cultural groups are superior to any others. There are many factors for what happened here, but ethnocentrism is also one of them. Thank you!
ReplyDelete