BY GERRY CHIDIAC
Lessons in Learning
“Know thy self, know thy enemy. A thousand battles, a thousand victories.”
This concept, taught to us by the Chinese philosopher Sun Tzu, is the key to overcoming all challenges.
At this point in my life, I have interacted with more people than I can calculate. I believe that the vast majority of these individuals are decent people who want to do good in the world. Unfortunately, those who harbour nefarious intent also walk among us.
Genocide is the ultimate evil, and while we promised to make “never again” a reality after the Holocaust, humanity has continued to fail in achieving this goal. Why does genocide happen if most people are good?
Decent people tend to assume that others are also good and honest. Perpetrators of genocide, like all who harm and manipulate others, take advantage of this blind spot in our thought process. They succeed by convincing others to be active or passive participants in genocide. Whether the genocidaire does this consciously is not important. If we are aware of their methods and respond mindfully, we stand a chance of eventually achieving “never again.”
One of the most common tactics of the genocidaire is Accusation in a Mirror (AiM), or “accusation en mirroir”, as it was first coined by French Psychologist Roger Mucchielli in 1970.
Essentially, AiM means accusing one’s victim of doing what one is already doing or plans to do. It is a form of projection, and it is similar to an unfaithful and abusive spouse accusing their partner of having an affair.
When we look back on history, we see many clear examples of AiM. Nazi leader Josef Goebbels often stated that Jews were out to destroy Germany and called on Germans to act “in self-defence”. The rhetoric of Hutu leaders before and during the Rwandan Genocide stirred up fear in their listeners and convinced them to “defend themselves” against the Tutsi before it was “too late”.
White slavers in the United States regularly sexually assaulted women whom they saw as their property. Accusation in a mirror is the twisted thought process that resulted in countless attacks on black men in the Jim Crow South. White men were the rapists, and black men were lynched after simply being accused of desiring white women.
Craig Mokhiber specializes in international human rights law and directed the New York office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. He cites numerous examples of Israel using AiM, especially in its claim that Hamas is using civilians as “human shields”. He states, “Israel should carefully consider the implications of its repeated claims…, given that it maintains its military headquarters in a busy section of the city of Tel Aviv.”
Mokhiber, it should be noted, always addresses accusations through the lens of international law.
This is where the critical thinking skills of decent people become essential in preventing genocide and other crimes against humanity. We know that AiM is a tactic. We know that genocidaires lie to generate fear and get people to comply with their nefarious goals. When we hear accusatory statements, therefore, we need to step back and ask, “Is this true? Is there legitimate evidence to back up this claim? Is it an accusation or a confession? What does international law say about this issue?”
We know our enemy, we know the tactics of the genocidaire, and we know how to respond.
Unfortunately, we have no system to enforce international law. The International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court regularly issue statements that have little or no impact.
If we are ever to make “never again” a reality, decent people need to recognize and address the fatal flaws within our system of international justice.
We know our enemy, and we know ourselves. If we resolve our weaknesses, we will win.
Gerry Chidiac is an award-winning high school teacher specializing in languages, genocide studies and work with at-risk students. Check out his website here. Find him on Facebook. Or on Twitter @GerryChidiac
2 thoughts on “OPINION: Understanding the mind of the genocidaire”
There is no comparison between Hamas’ use of human shields and Israeli practices. True, IDF headquarters is in a populated area, but it is nonetheless a distinct facility, as are the great majority of Israeli military installations. An enemy that observes international law and wishes to attack only military installations in Israel will have little difficulty in distinguishing them from civilian facilities. In contrast, Hamas does not merely situate military installations in civilian areas – it situates them IN houses, apartment buildings, businesses, hospitals, mosques, and schools.
Furthermore, and again Hamas has explicitly admitted that this is its policy, Hamas makes no attempt to attack only military targets and avoid non-combatants. It fires rockets indiscriminately into Israel and deliberately attacks homes, restaurants, music festivals and other non-military targets. In contrast, the IDF is well known for the extensive measures it takes to avoid killing non-combatants. The recent war in Gaza exemplifies this beautifully. The fact that only 60,000 Gazans have died in two years of street-to-street and house-to-house combat that has resulted in massive destruction of infrastructure is a testament to the care that Israel has taken to minimize civilian casualties.
The feeble attempt to accuse Israel of violation of international humanitarian law in defense of Hamas, an explicitly genocidal fascist organization, is a perfect example of the Accusation in a Mirror tactic.
It’s funny how you don’t mention Hamas as an aggressor, as a genocidal, jihadic organization, recognized for many years as such by numerous western countries including Canada, even some progressive middle eastern countries see the truth. Hamas’ 2017 charter was cleverly sanitized from its vile black and white anti- Jew, ant-infidel jihad, blood thirsty charter of 1988.
Israel, on the other hand has never wanted war, it has never started one. Israel has never started a war, only defended itself from literal annotation, usually by multiple actors at the same time. The author of this article knows this very well.
Hamas, along with every other terrorist organizations explicitly call for the murder or takeover of Jews and infidels-they proudly write it, scream it, sing it, promote it. There are several well known sayings that describe this type of behaviour…”if it walks like a duck…..”
American poet and activist Maya Angelou, writes “When someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time”. Jews have learned this the hard way but never again will we fall for it. I hope the author will recognize his biased rhetoric, just like many people reading his articles do.