THE ARMENIAN MASSACRE. THE HOLOCAUST. CHERNOBYL. Hurricane Mitch. The Kashmir Earthquake. All were acts of extreme violence committed by the hands of man or the whims of nature upon an innocent populace. As global citizens, it is imperative we visit the memorial sites, however shattering, so that they are not forgotten—or repeated.
• In the early morning of August 6, 1945, a U.S. B-29 bomber named
Enola Gay (after the pilot’s mother) hovered above Hiroshima, Japan. World War II had been raging for years by that point, but at 8:15 A.M., it radically changed course when the plane dropped an atomic bomb carrying 13 kilotons of TNT over the city. Some 75,000 people perished instantly, and another 65,000 died from its effects soon after. Three days later, the United States dropped a second bomb over Nagasaki, killing roughly 74,000. Japan promptly surrendered (and the war ended thereafter) but the bombings still haunt its people—especially the 260,000-plus surviving
hibakusha, or “explosion-affected people” (many of whom face grave discrimination due to societal ignorance about radiation).
In Hiroshima, you can witness the bomb’s frightful force at the Atom Bomb Dome, a former industrial building that stood almost directly beneath the explosion. A skeleton of its former self, it has been preserved in its ruined state and is floodlit at night. Across the river, Peace Memorial Park contains shrines as well as an eternal flame that will not be extinguished until the last nuclear weapon on earth has been destroyed. One statue is based on Sadako Sasaki, a little girl who believed her radiation sickness would fade away if she folded 1,000 paper cranes. Millions have since been folded in her honor and sent here from schools around the world.
In Nagasaki, visit the Atomic Bomb Museum, which shows live footage of the blast as well as testimonies from survivors. It ends with a sobering tally of the world’s nuclear weapons, plus predictions on the mass destruction they could bring. Join locals in their annual anti-nuclear protest on August 9.
• Relations between the Hutu and Tutsi in Rwanda, Africa had always been fiery, but in early 1994, they ignited. During the horrific 100 Days of Madness, Hutu death squads, militia groups, and common citizens went on a rampage, massacring every Tutsi (and moderate Hutu) in sight and then looting and burning their neighborhoods and businesses. Corpses—hacked to bits by machetes—quickly piled up under the watchful eyes of the media, but the international community did shamefully little to stop the violence (as in 2006 Darfur). By the time Tutsi rebels finally overthrew the Hutu regime in mid-July, 1 million people had been slaughtered. Two million Hutus then fled the country, fearing retribution.
Capital Kigali is a remarkably functional city, considering how recently this occurred. Viewers of the 2004 film Hotel Rwanda will appreciate a visit (or stay) at the four-star Hotel des Mille Collines, where a sympathetic Hutu manager protected more than one thousand refugees by bribing militia officials. Then spend an afternoon at the Kigali Memorial Centre, which screens video testimony from victims’ families. The museum’s upper level documents survivors of other genocides, including Armenians, Jews, and Cambodians. Outside, pay respects at the rows upon rows of mass graves, where families leave fresh flowers and other mementos. “It is powerful beyond words,” says Neda Farzan, a medical student in San Francisco. “From the room filled with victims’ family photos and wedding pictures, to the personal items at the mass graves, like Superman bedsheets and little kids’ t-shirts—it is just gut-wrenching.”
• One of modern history’s deadliest disasters occurred the day after Christmas in 2004. Just before eight that morning, the earth began to rumble beneath the sea off Sumatra, triggering tsunamis that destroyed coastal communities throughout Southeast Asia, including Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, and Thailand. Thousands of homes and hundreds of hotels got swept out to sea, and nearly 230,000 people vanished—tens of thousands of whom have yet to be found. Due to their lesser ability to hold on tightly to trees and other structures, four times more women died than men, and approximately one-third of the victims were children. Because many of the regions were poor to begin with, recovery has been exceedingly slow: in some parts of rural Sri Lanka, it seems that the waves just washed through.
A few heroines emerged from the calamity, including a ten-year-old British girl who was vacationing with her parents on Mikhao Beach in Thailand when the tsunami struck. Thanks to a recent geography lesson, she recognized the rapidly receding seashore as a sign of impending doom, and her family helped evacuate the beach of nearly one hundred people. The tsunami has also been credited with inspiring the peace agreement between separatists and the military in Aceh, Indonesia, a highly volatile region.
The most profound way to assist with recovery efforts is to plan your next vacation here. Cram extra clothes, toys, medicine, and tools into your suitcases and contact local schools, hospitals, or non-governmental organizations to see who needs them. In the Thai tourist hub of Khao Lak, where sixty hotels got sucked into the sea, try the Tsunami Volunteer Center. Created with the objective of “restoration through empowerment,” they need helping hands in such areas as childcare, small business development, and environmental restoration.
