Bookshelf Recommendation: Making and Unmaking Nations: War, Leadership, and Genocide in Modern Africa
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FOR YOUR BOOKSHELF | Scott Straus’s Making and Unmaking Nations: War, Leadership, and Genocide in Modern Africa (Cornell University Press, 2015)
In his Grawemeyer Award-winning book, Making and Unmaking Nations: War, Leadership, and Genocide in Modern Africa, Scott Straus addresses a key world-order question: why do some crises escalate to genocide, while others, with similar features, do not? What pushes decision makers toward genocide in some situations, and away from it in others? Strauss defines genocide as a large-scale, selective, purposive, terminal killing of a group in society. Genocide is a deliberate act to cripple permanently and irreparably an entire social group. And yet, genocide is rare. Most wars end without genocide. Straus writes: “Genocide is hard to explain. …Genocide is deliberate…and…requires planning and perseverance. It is costly and difficult to sustain…for long periods of time across multiple locations.” So why, then, does genocide occasionally occur?
Straus theorizes that for a genocidal response to occur, authorities must perceive three core characteristics. First, they see the target population as unwinnable. Second, they do not believe the threat the target group poses can be contained. Finally, they view the group as inherently very dangerous with interests diametrically opposed to those of the perpetrators. The rationale for extreme violence is necessary, the perpetrators believe, in order to protect the country and the dominant group from imminent and catastrophic danger.
This stellar book greatly advances our understanding of the causes of genocide, and its findings are especially valuable to foreign-policy makers. Straus writes: “In the fast-paced rhythm of the policy world, assessments that clearly and quickly sort cases into genocide-likely and genocide-unlikely are very valuable. However, …current models lead to a large number of ‘false positives’ or cases that appear to risk genocide but that do not result in genocide.” This book offers an excellent first step toward developing a better understanding of this horrific phenomenon. The book is wholly accessible to the lay reader. It is lively, fascinating, and deeply valuable.
Recommended by Julie M. Bunck, PhD, professor of political science at the University of Louisville.
Dr. Bunck lectures for the McConnell Center's Strategic Broadening Seminar for the U.S. Army.
Views expressed here are those of the author and not necessarily those of the McConnell Center. This recommendation is part of the McConnell Center's Meditations publication series for soldiers and students in our Strategic Broadening Seminar. SUBSCRIBE to our newsletter.