Conversations with History: Institute of International Studies, UC Berkeley

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This interview is part of the Institute's "Conversations with History" series, and uses Internet technology to share with the public Berkeley's distinction as a global forum for ideas.

Welcome to a Conversation with History. I'm Harry Kreisler of the Institute of International Studies. Our guest today is Samantha Power, who is a journalist, lawyer, and human rights activist. Formerly executive director of the Center for Human Rights at Harvard University, she has just published "A Problem from Hell": America and the Age of Genocide.

1. Background ... influence of parents ... love of sports ... seeing Tiananmen Square in real time ... education
2. Writing ... heeding Orwell's maxims ... focusing the information ... relentless persistence ... framing the question ... inclusion and exclusion
3. The Problem of Genocide ... working for Abramowitz ... seeing Bosnia in a new light ... becoming a reporter ... defining genocide ... association with the Holocaust
4. U.S. Foreign Policy ... "remembrance" as a substitute for action ... lack of political will ... Clinton's failure on Rwanda ... burden of history ... moral imperative insufficient in Washington ... no political cost to doing nothing ... bystanders versus upstanders ... successful intervention precludes understanding of failure ... role of political interests ... unique position of the United States ... role of international organizations ... the case of Bosnia ... the "mistake" of not looking away
5. Lessons Learned ... the upstanders ... mobilizing public opinion for action ... hypotheticals ... prevention ... advice to students ... learning to fail and get up again
   

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