Hotel Rwanda is a poignant work that touches on the simultaneous cruelty and humanity of the Rwandan genocide. I had previously heard of the Rwandan genocide through Humans of New York, who did a series telling the stories of Tutsi survivors who had seen and lived through horrific acts of violence during the genocide, which took place from April 7, 1994 to July 15, 1994. Hutu extremists advocated for extreme cruelty, massacring any Tutsi they could find and massacring any Hutu that refused to participate in committings acts of violence as well. Machetes were the most common weapon used to murder the Tutsi, resulting in an especially painful and violent death. Rape was also extremely common during the civil war and the massacre of the Tutsi, with women being publicly raped and sexually assaulted constantly- in front of family, friends, and Hutu soldiers. “Breaking” the Tutsi and more moderate Hutu women was supposed to weaken the spirit of the Hutu’s enemy, and cripple their morale and will to fight back during the genocide. Women were subjected to genital mutilation frequently. These actions really truly make me wonder how people could become so cruel. How is it possible that other Hutu allowed this to happen? I guess it comes down to the whole idea of peer pressure, where once one person starts, fear starts to keep other people from stepping out of line. No one can truly say that they know what they would do in a situation as terrifying and extreme as the Rwandan genocide… I guess that the people who did not come up with the idea of committing violence may not have agreed, but chose to commit these acts for the sake of protecting themselves from being subjected to that same violence. The human soul has a great capacity for evil, just as it also has the capacity for great acts of courage and kindness, like Paul Rusesabagina.