At some point, there needs to be an understanding that calling all modern/recent genocides or atrocities a CIA conspiracy is beyond just unhinged and is actually rooted in chauvinistic and often orientalist perceptions of foreign countries.
I just saw a thread in which not only was the Bosnian genocide denied but also Rwandan, and with that, of course, the genocide in Myanmar too alongside the denial of any mistreatment of Uighurs. Of course this basically says that nothing bad ever happens to people outside of USA.
And I’m not quite sure why Americans on the left in particular have such a strong need to deny genocide and atrocities committed by anyone who isn’t the USA. Is it naivety? Do you all truly believe that only the US is capable of evil? How do you justify denying all genocides?
But also, what do you get out of it? What do you achieve by denying that which has already been proven and is also backed by survivors testimony too? So, what’s the end goal? You cannot actually believe US will go to war w/ China or Myanmar, certainly not Serbia so...what?
To add...leftists have always seemingly prided themselves on their ability to discern propaganda, question the narrative, do the reading and research. Why is this only relevant for the US? Why is anyone on the left stanning & defending any modern state from their crimes?

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More from @Rrrrnessa

7 Jan
The point of talking about the Bosnian genocide or the Holocaust is so that other people, particularly in the (often privileged and safe) West, will come to understand that the things that happened to Jews or Bosniak-Muslims can happen anywhere.
But these acts of violence, rise of the far right, that leads to genocide does not occur in a vacuum. It does not happen suddenly and it does not only happen to certain countries and certain people.
The violence we are seeing in America is not exported from the Balkans or exYugoslavia. It is its very own brand of violence that stems from its own history that is very much rooted in violence and the fact that has continually been ignored in hopes it will go away.
Read 8 tweets
3 Jan
Thanks. What is your evidence that a few weeks/months of missing school will have horrific consequences on children? What is your evidence that in 15 years time, kids that missed a couple months of school socialisation (they still have online learning) will not be fine?
Anyway, I did not have drive or motivation when I started school after the war or even when I moved to the US. It was just school. I came. I showed up. I learned. I did my homework. The same way millions of kids do each day. It’s about the fact that kids still learn and persevere
The frustrating argument about “well what about all these other issues” is that all the other issues they mention (familial issues, poverty, lack of social safety nets) will continue to exist and kids will still be impacted them even if in school during covid. But they wont die.
Read 4 tweets
3 Jan
Hello @ the entire United Kingdom, I missed my early years of education due to war and genocide. I had to be stuck inside and wasn’t able to play. I caught up! When schools did open, I absolutely kicked ass at school and so did most of my classmates. Your kids will be fine.
I’m also one of the most sociable people out there. I also moved to the US and missed some school there and didn’t speak a word of English when I started and still....I was fine! Straight A student, college, career....etc. Your kids will be fine!
Your kids and their teachers and your families deserve to be safe above everything. Yes, it is tough being inside on children and parents and yes, everyone wants kids in schools. But take care of them now and we can return to normal soon.
Read 8 tweets
9 Nov 20
My perspective on the “healing and reconciliation” with Trump supporters as a Bosnian genocide survivor:

For healing and reconciliation to take place, you must have first admittance by the offending party and above all that party must be the one to ask for forgiveness.
As humans, we are taught that forgiveness and the ability to forgive is a virtue. But we are rarely, if ever taught, how to actually take that step, admit our wrongdoing, and ask for forgiveness. Most people are, people that have deeply fallen to propaganda even more so.
I am of the strong belief that we can and should work with people who have differing opinions than ours, political ones and personal ones. I also know that believing “Jews will replace us” and “Immigration are all rapists” is not a matter of political difference.
Read 15 tweets
8 Nov 20
Immigrants have a complex relationship with the United States, while I think it’s easy for people to laugh how “corny” some messages may be I also don’t think many understand the sheer pressure of assimilation in the USA that makes immigrants work so hard to prove themselves.
Some empathy would be good in understanding why many immigrants laud themselves as “proud Americans” and why they work so hard to prove that. It’s because at every turn they are told they have to and that nothing they do is good enough.
Patience is something I think more radical people tend to lack. The road to disconnect from American exceptionalism is immensely long. It used to bother me too, but it’s a deeply ingrained message that takes a lot of work to unearth.
Read 4 tweets
8 Nov 20
I respect Biden’s stance on Bosnia in the 90s, truly. But here is also where I disagree with many of my fellow Bosnians. I can’t be a single issue citizen. Even if he manages to save Bosnia from ruin, I still shudder at his other domestic and foreign policies.
The ongoing disagreement with me and my Bosnian friends isn’t that Biden wasn’t a good advocate for Bosnia. It’s that it’s not the 90s anymore, America is in turmoil, Bosnian-Americans exist and will be impacted by a lack of progressive policies too. Dayton will still exist.
And yes, I am hopeful that I will be wrong. But Biden is a fairly conservative Democrat and while I hope the left does push him on both domestic and foreign policies, his stance on many things of importance to Americans and beyond is worrying.
Read 6 tweets

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