A Problem from Hell

"A Problem from Hell": America and the Age of Genocide (Basic Books, 2003, ISBN 0060541644) is a book by Samantha Power, Professor of Human Rights Practice at Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government, which explores America's understanding of, response to, and inaction on genocides in the 20th century from the Armenian genocide to the "ethnic cleansings" of the Kosovo War. It won the Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction in 2003.

Summary

Preface

A Problem from Hell argues that American citizens, journalists, and policymakers traditionally refuse to imagine that genocides can take place, and once atrocities begin, expect that ordinary citizens will avoid persecution. Power argues that Americans would rather negotiate, use traditional diplomacy, urge ceasefires, and donate humanitarian aid than condemn, advocate, or use military action. The book details how American policymakers fail to take the lead on these conflicts, especially since not enough pressure from the public creates risks for inaction. When genocide occurs, policymakers tend to avoid the word "genocide" and argue that national interests trump interest in foreign conflicts, that U.S. response is futile, or that U.S response would amplify atrocities. (xvii-xviii)

Chapter 1: "Race Murder"

This chapter outlines the Armenian Genocide and international indifference.

Chapter 2: "A Crime Without a Name"

Chapter 2 describes Raphael Lemkin's efforts to lobby for American action against Nazi atrocities in Europe.

Chapter 3: The Crime with a Name

Power describes further the difficulties of individuals' efforts to convince Americans and other members of the Allied Powers to recognize the Holocaust, compounded by the focus on World War II and anti-Semitic indifference. Lemkin coins the word "genocide."

Chapter 4: Lemkin's Law

Power describes how Lemkin brought genocide to the forefront of foreign policy issues, leading to the 1948 U.N. Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.

Chapter 5: "A Most Lethal Pair of Foes"

This chapter focuses on Lemkin's mounting disappointments and multiplying adversaries until his death in 1959. Senator William Proxmire and others picked up the torch.

Chapter 6: Cambodia: "Helpless Giant"

The U.S.'s inaction in response to the Khmer Rouge's genocide in Cambodia.

Chapter 7: Speaking Loudly and Looking for a Big Stick

Power shows how Senator Proxmire and President Ronald Reagan worked to gain support for the ratification of the Genocide Convention.

Chapter 8: Iraq: "Human Rights and Chemical Weapons Use Aside"

Chapter 8 looks at the U.S.'s response to Saddam Hussein's crimes against the Kurds.

Chapter 9: Bosnia: "No More than Witnesses at a Funeral"

Power explores America's reaction to Serbia's "ethnic cleansing" in Bosnia.

Chapter 10: Rwanda: "Mostly in a Listening Mode"

Chapter 10 focuses on why President Bill Clinton and other American policymakers responded too late to the Hutu massacre of the Tutsi tribe in Rwanda.

Chapter 11: Srebenrica: "Getting Creamed"

This chapter focuses on the genocide in Srebenrica and the U.S.'s response.

Chapter 12: Kosovo: A Dog and a Fight

Power looks at the Kosovo genocide and the U.S.'s response.

Awards

• Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction
• Robert F. Kennedy Book Award
• National Book Critics Circle Award for General Nonfiction
• Raphael Lemkin Award (Institute for the Study of Genocide)

External links

• Reviews of "A Problem from Hell: America and the Age of Genocide

References

• Samantha Power: "A Problem from Hell": America and the Age of Genocide. Harper Perennial, 2003. ISBN 9780060541644