Cambodian Genocide

I actually remember reading the memoir First They Killed My Father by Loung Ung in ninth grade. We studied a bit of the history, and (after doing a bit more research as a refresher) here is a brief background to the conflict:

Due to Cambodia’s proximity to Vietnam, Cambodia became involved in the Vietnam War. The Khmer Republic of Lon Nol backed the U.S. government and began harboring U.S. troupes and bases. Consequently, Cambodia was not acting as a neutral country and became a target in the war. 750,000 Cambodians died because of the Vietnam War, which caused more supporters to join Pol Pot’s army, the Khmer Rouge, in retaliation to Lon Nol’s support of the U.S. In 1975, Pol Pot took over the government of Lon Nol and wanted to create an independent country which was founded on farming and military.  They even restarted the calendar, calling the year the Khmer Rouge came to power (1975) “year zero.”

The purpose of the Khmer Rouge regime was to eradicate western influence and create a self-sustained country; however, Pol Pot’s ideals backfired since many of the farm laborers were forced from their homes, lived in constant fear of the military, and were starved to death. Pol Pot exported most of the food and rice to China or gave the military priority for the rations. I remember reading in Loung Ung’s memoir that one day rations were so short in her farming village that she was given soup with only 11 grains of rice.

The Khmer Rouge viewed its citizens as expendable. One of the famous lines which illustrates the mentality of Pol Pot’s regime is this: “To spare you is no profit, to destroy you is no loss.” As the farm laborers weakened because of malnutrition, the military killed people who were no longer viewed as useful. Eventually, because resources for the military became so scarce, soldiers no longer were able to use bullets or ammunition to kill people. Instead, they began executing people with shovels, hammers, or axes.

Many of the Cambodians who were executed in this manner were buried in mass graves together. It is estimated that between 1.2 million and 3 million people were killed during the four years Pol Pot was in power.  That was about a quarter of Cambodia’s population. Today memorials can be found at killing fields were mass executions occurred. There is a tower where skulls are piled onto shelves.

I think this event connects to CRT tenet 3: Racism is a social, not a biological construct. It was a genocide of class. Those who were middle or upper class were targeted first, followed by those who were less able to contribute to society – the elderly or the sick. I think this makes the Cambodian Genocide one of the hardest things to reason with. Fellow countrymen were turned against one another. It was not a genocide between races – there was no physical or biological distinction between those who lived and died.

Here are some pictures of the memorials today:

                         The Killing Fields                                                           Memorial 

               

     

Works Consulted:

Walker, L. (2012). Cambodian genocide. World Without Genocide. Retrieved from http://worldwithoutgenocide.org/genocides-and-conflicts/cambodian-genocide 

On a String

The short story “Beetle on a String” by Vince Gotera, narrates the capture of a scarab beetle. Gotera ties the insect on a “two foot long lasso” and watches it fly. At night he states he would tie his beetles to round knobs and be soothed to sleep by a “lullaby of buzzing” (BW 120) however by morning, the beetles would always be dead, weights hung on a string. At the end of the short story, Gotera raises the question “to wonder what thoughtless boy holds my string.” We live our lives throughout the day, going through routines that become a part of who we are. Like the beetle caught on the string, I feel sometimes we are always held to something that we cannot escape. Our bodies can shift and swoop however we are unable to evade the “predators” of our own. No matter how far we “run” from something, such as a country or culture we try to escape, a part of it will always be a part of us.  

Pa

         While I was reading Pa, the excerpt from Loung Ung's memoir, all I could think of was how well it depicted life in Cambodia during the government unrest. Prior to this reading I had little knowledge of the political history and conflict in Cambodia, or any of Southeast Asia for that matter, but after reading Takaki as well as the literature, I really gained a deeper understanding of what life would have been like living there at the time. The Takaki reading provided the facts but I feel as though the literature, especially Pa, provided me with a deeper and more personal understanding of the suffering that the people endured. Being told from the perspective of a little girl, the story really enables us as readers to gain greater insight into the lives of the everyday people as well as the tremendous effects that the events had on their lives. I could really see the suffering that they endured as the child described their daily lives after the loss of her father. It also surprised me that the reader presents the events in such a way that suggests that they were actually quite common. The only life she really remembers is one that includes suffering and hardship and that really opened my eyes to see how blessed we are to live in a country where we have freedom and where, for many of us, suffering includes not being able to watch a favorite television show. This memoir really just helped me to relate the information that was in our reading to my everyday life and made it more real and understandable to me as an individual living in twenty-first century America.

What Makes an American

      Coming to the end of this course I still have one question: what makes an American? We talk about the Asian immigrants assimilating into "American" culture and how the "Americans" did not accept the Asians because they were different than themselves. However, since the "Americans" were are talking about are not the Native Americans, they are all immigrants and therefore all have their own unique identities and heritage. Yet, they seem to ban together and discriminate against other immigrant groups because they come from a different continent. Since the majority of "Americans" are immigrants, shouldn't they be accepting of other immigrants instead of fighting against one another for superiority? I just never really understood why some people who call themselves "Americans" are so intolerant of other "Americans" who look or sound different than themselves since both can trace their family history back to an origin other than the United States.

Reflection on "Pa"

At first, it was difficult to comprehend this story. Not because it was complicated or anything, but because I have little background knowledge of Cambodia's history. I couldn't believe that it was just accepted that men would come into people's houses, and take away fathers like that. What is the reasoning behind that? Why would they have orders to do such things? Her family, like so many others, would be starving. To take away the father, the head of the household, would be the worst possible thing. I can understand her anger and her desire for vengeance at the end of the story. Of course she would feel that way towards Pol Pot. Sometimes, people make me sick. I apologize for the depressing nature of this post.

Rice That Doesn't Taste like Rice

       "AAAAARRRRGGGHHHHH!!!(spits out rice) This isn't rice! It looks like rice, but it is not rice! It has no taste!"(Bold Words 397). This is my exact same reaction upon my arrival in Washington. In Hawaii, I grew up with rice for breakfast, rice for lunch, and rice for dinner. Due to the huge Asian influence in the islands, I was raised with the culture of eating rice everyday. As a result, the art of cooking rice has been brought to a higher standard of perfection within our community. So, in coming to the mainland, probably one of the greatest disappointments I experienced was upon the discovery of the land's deficiency in the quality of rice. I can relate with poor, young Alex's shock once he uncovers the terrible truth about America's rice. That it doesn't taste like rice. It has no taste.

           However, within the context of the Alex Luu's play "Three Lives", the writer might be trying to get at something much deeper than merely the disappointment of flavorless rice. He describes how "Alex wolfs down rice" (Luu 397), after starving for so many nights, but effectively spits it out immediately after tasting it. This portrays a sense of how the Southeast Asian have a hunger for a type of culture that America is unable to provide. Alex's "first taste of America," (Luu 397), is one that is completely unsatisfying and it turns out later that his "second" taste is just as disappointing, but instead depicts the sense of how every man is for himself. Luu uses taste to symbolize the Southeast Asians first experiences with the American lifestyle, and how they find that it is one they are not used to. 

Literally Separated by An Ocean

Just like Sophia, the transition from Hawaii to Washington has not been an easy one for me.  The whole "culture shock" was very big for me as well.  Although I was expecting to be home sick to a certain extent, I didn't expect it to be as hard as it was/ is.  Like she mentioned, the handshakes were very unusual for us. In our culture, we always give a hug and/ or a kiss on the cheek when meeting somebody.  Similar to her, my homesickness has not gone away, and is always there.  When I came up in the first week of August for football, it still did not fully sink in that I would be away from home for over four months.  However, when the rest of the students began making their way to campus, it really hit me that I was literally separated from home by an ocean.  Although I have been able to deal a little better with it as time has gone on, there are times when the homesickness weighs me down and all I can think about is my family, friends, and sweet home Hawai'i Nei.  The food is definitely different, back home, we are accustomed to pretty much having rice with every meal. Although we do have rice here at Whitworth, it just isn't the same as the rice we have back home.  The communication with other people is also different.  Although, I do not speak hardcore pidgin, there are many words in my vocabulary or phrases that come out without thinking such as; "pau" (finished), "da kine", "bocha" (take a shower), "shoots", etc.  As hard as it has been for me, I do not regret venturing of the island, it's a great experience to see what lies beyond the islands.