The images are horrific. Who can forget the video of masked Islamic jihadists on a beach beheading Christians -- executing them on-camera for the world to see?
And while there has been condemnation of the massacre of Christians and other religious minorities in the Middle East, there’s an important step the Obama administration must take to address this ongoing tragedy that has resulted in the slaughter or displacement of nearly one million Christians.
Words matter. And how we describe these atrocities is critical. Sure, these acts are barbaric, horrendous, and even monstrous.
But there’s one word the Obama administration will not use to describe these atrocities. The White House – as well as the State Department – refuses to call these acts “genocide.”
The United Nations (UN) Genocide Convention defines genocide as acts committed “with the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group.” That is certainly what is happening to Christians being executed by ISIS – the Islamic State – around the world.
And while there has been condemnation of the massacre of Christians and other religious minorities in the Middle East, there’s an important step the Obama administration must take to address this ongoing tragedy that has resulted in the slaughter or displacement of nearly one million Christians.
Words matter. And how we describe these atrocities is critical. Sure, these acts are barbaric, horrendous, and even monstrous.
But there’s one word the Obama administration will not use to describe these atrocities. The White House – as well as the State Department – refuses to call these acts “genocide.”
The United Nations (UN) Genocide Convention defines genocide as acts committed “with the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group.” That is certainly what is happening to Christians being executed by ISIS – the Islamic State – around the world.
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