U.S. in African Politics

Another project for history class!

“War does not determine who is right – only who is left.” ~ Bertrand Russell

 

            War has been a perpetual state of human society. Throughout history there have been famous wars, bloody wars, reasonless wars, and corrupt wars. No matter where you look, war has been a part of the human psyche and frame of mind from the very beginning of history. Up until the past several hundred years, wars have been ignored when they are continents away, and many people didn’t bother themselves with thinking of the thousands dying in them. However, with the advance of technology and the world becoming interconnected, wars that were once ignored are now seen in full light.

            Africa has always been a place of strife, starting from the moment that people inhabited it and saw that their neighbor’s land or woman were better than their own. And so war was started, and grudges that have lasted through the centuries have exploded into genocide and massacres. It doesn’t help matters that guns and advanced arms have been pouring in from both legal and illegal markets. Hundreds of thousands of Africans are now being killed thanks to advances in weapons, and the dealers who are willing to profit off of these civil wars.

            Even now, genocide in Darfur has claimed almost half a million people, with two and a half million losing their homes, and thousands of women and girls are being raped. America has acknowledged the genocide, but continues to sit by and do nothing. President Bush spends billions and of dollars a day in the Iraqi war, but can’t stop for a moment to even think of sending U.S. troops to stop the killing. The UN Security Council has signed a resolution stating that international peacekeepers can go into Darfur now, but the Sudanese government and its allies have stopped the implementation of the bill. However, should the U.S. be in the African countries governments and politics in the first place?

            It is my personal opinion that the U.S. should not be in Africa, but should extend its reach into African governments. We should not put people into power, but simply leave the open threat that any genocide and civil wars will be met with swift end at the military might of one of the most powerful countries in the world. We should create safe places for refuges and those displaced from their homes by war, so that they can feel and be at peace while they figure out what to do. We can also put the billions we spend in Iraq towards ending world hunger. We should not put certain parties into power, nor should we try to convert the government into a democratic one. A threat and a safe place for the defenseless to go is, in my opinion, one of the only things that we truly need to do. We should back up UN peacekeepers that are stationed in Africa, and if there was genocide and war, we should swiftly gather our armies and end it. Instead of sending in small batches of troops a little at a time, we should send in huge numbers, enough to destroy the peace breakers. We have to understand that there will always be war and fighting in a place like Africa, but we also have to understand that we can help to reduce it. Africa has always been a place of strife, but then most of the world has been that way too. We can help to end and even prevent war from beginning in the first place, and all we have to do is think logically and remember, “War does not determine who is right – Only who is left.”

 

Author's Note

Yay for history class projects. This is a small essay we had to do on whether or not the U.S. should be involved in African politics and countries.

Reviews

[*Kantola*]

Great paper!