Paul Rusesabagina was the manager of two hotels in Rwanda during the 1994 Rwandan genocide. When the ethnic violence broke out between the Hutus and Tutsis, Rusesabagina protected over 1,200 refugees by hiding them in the hotel where he worked. Through bribery, clever negotiations, and perseverance, he was able to keep the refugees safe for 100 days until the violence ended, despite threats and lack of resources. After the genocide, Rusesabagina advocated for global awareness of such crimes against humanity to prevent future genocides. His actions during the Rwandan genocide inspired a film called Hotel Rwanda that brought attention to the atrocities.

1. Teacher: Mauricio Torres Name: ……………………………
Course: thEGB Section: ………………………..
Subject: Social Studies Date: ....., ……… 2012
Activity:
SOCIAL STUDIES - RWANDAN GENOCIDE
General Instructions:
Read the following text on the Rwandan Genocide and Paul Rusesabagina.
Afterwards, answer the questions at the end in a separate sheet of paper.
LIFESAVER HERO:
PAUL RUSESABAGINA
by Kathy Crockett, TheMy Hero Project
therebelgroupsamongthemcreated a ticking
OnApril 6, 1994, a 100-day run of terror and time bomb. Despitetheturmoil, Paul
genocidetookoverthealreadydividednation of wentthroughprimary and secondaryschool, and
Rwanda. Thetwoethnicgroups of Rwanda—the when he found he had a knackfor hotel
Hutus and the Tutsis—hadlongbeen at management, he wentontostudyit at
oddswithoneanother, and KenyaUtaliiCollege.
despitesomehelpfromtheUnitedNationto
control thefighting, the Hutu
extremistscontinuedtheirbattleswiththe Tutsis. Rusesabaginaworked as theassistant manager
WhentheUnitedNations’ peacekeepersbeganto of the Hotel des MillesCollines,
be amongthoseattacked, theywithdrewmost of beforebeingpromotedto manager of
theirtroops, leavingthebattlestorageon. Soonthe theDiplomate Hotel. At the time of the 100-
Tutsis hadveryfew outsiders day genocide, Paul wasmanagingbothhotels, as
tohelpthemsurvive; howeveroneRwandan— theBelgianowners of
half Tutsi and half Hutu—stepped in. Paul theCollineshadappointedhimtemporary
Rusesabagina, theacting manager manager so thattheycouldfleefor safety.
fortheluxurious Hotel des MillesCollines, took OneearlyAprilday in 1994, Hutu
in more than 1200 refugeesintothe hotel in militantsrounded up Paul, hisfamily, and other
efforttosavethemfromthemassacre. At theend Tutsis (whomthe Hutu guardscalled
of the 100 days, nearly a “cockroaches”), and putthemon a bus.
millionpeopleweremurdered, mostwith Oneguardhanded Paul a gun and
machetes, toldhimtoshootallthecockroachesonthe bus.
buttherefugesunderPaul’sprotectionwereunhar The idea of killingpeople, evenifitwould be
med. tosavehisownlife, wasunacceptableto Paul, and
so hismindracedtofind a
Paul Rusesabaginawasnotborn, raised, waytosavethepeopleonthe bus. He
noreducatedto be a heroor a humanitarian. In offeredtheguardsmoneyiftheywouldtakehim
fact, he stillbelievesthat he wasjustdoinghisjob, and theotherstotheDiplomate Hotel.
as hotel manager; yet, Paul’sbravery, Theyacceptedtheoffer and drovethe bus tothe
compassion, and quickthinkingduringthe 100- hotel. Paul tookmoneyfromthe hotel
day stand exemplifyheroism. Paul wasbornto a safetogivetotheguards. Theyleft, and Paul
family of farmerson June 15, 1954. tookoverdrivingthe van, reachingtherelative
Hisfatherwas a Hutu and hismotherwas a Tutsi, safety of the Hotel des MillesCollines.
and so Paul and hiseightothersiblings, were a Thatdaywasonlythestart of a dailyroutine of
blend of appeasing and bribingtheguards in ordertostave
thetwoethicgroupswhohadbeendueling in a off killings in his hotel.
frighteningrivalry, startingdecadesbefore Paul
wasborn. Notall Tutsis and Hutus Despiteeverydeaththreat, theloss of water and
lookedtodestroyoneanother; in electricity, and theconstantwatch of Hutu
factPaul’sfamilywasn’tunusual, as guards, Paul remaineddeterminedtocarefor and
manyfamiliesweremade up of protectthe 1200-plus peopleunderhiswatch.
thetwoethnicities. However, Whenthewatersupplywascut off, Paul
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2. resortedtothe pool toquenchthethirst of movieordocumentaryabouthisexperiences, but
thepeople. Whentheguardscutthephonelines, he didn’tsee Hollywood as
Paul foundone line thattheymissed. anappropriatevenuetodeliverhismessage. He
Fromthatphone, he changedhismindwhen he met director and
madedesperatecallstointernational agencies screenwriter Terry George. Paul
tohelpendthestay, buttolittleavail. He agreedtocollaboratewith George, whoisknown
neededtorelyonhisownintelligence, craftiness, and respectedforturningthestoriesfromdifficult
and charmtoappeasethemilitia and and controversial topicsintopowerful and
helptherefugeessurvive, eventhough he thought-provoking films. In 2004, Hotel
knewthathisschemingcouldbringabouthisownd Rwandawasreleasedtohighcriticalacclaim.
eath. Formanyviewers, itwasthefirst time
thattheyhadheardaboutthegenocide in Rwanda.
Theatrociousslaughteringcommitted in
Paul’s plan worked. Out of the 1200 Rwandaprovided a backdropfor a uniquehero,
refugeeswhospentthe 100 days in the hotel no and a lessontotherest of theworldnottoturnits
onewaskilledorbeaten. back onothercountriesthat are in need of help.
WhentheMilitiaretreated in advance of a team Itiseasytostay in ourowncorners of theglobe,
of Tutsi liberators, Paul, alongwithhisfamily, consumedwithourownday-to-daylives.
headedtoanofficialrefugee camp. Alongtheway Ittakeswork and passiontobecomeaware of
he saw, forthefirst time in 100 days, thescenes theworldaroundus; and
of unimaginablekillings. He whendevastatingeventsoccur, thosewho stand
smelledthehorrificstench of deadbodies— up againstit, savelives, and rally
roughly 8,000 peoplewerekilleddaily in that otherstohelpbringaboutchange are the true
time. Once at the camp heroes. Paul Rusesabaginaisone of thosepeople
thedeathscameevencloserto home. He and
hiswife, Tatiana, learnedthatmany of
theirfamilymembershadnotsurvived, Reading Comprehension
Tatiana’sfatherincluded. Answerthefollowingusingyourownwords:
Theyfoundtheirtwoyoungnieceshadbeenorphan 1. WhatisRusesabagina'sethnicbackgroun
ed in theslaughter. Paul and Tatiana
raisedthegirls as theirown, d?
alongwiththecouple’sfourotherchildren, and 2. He foundearly in hislife he had a
eventuallyadoptedthem.
Whenthefamilylefttherefugee camp, Paul callingfor a certaintype of business,
returnedtoRwanda and to hotel management; whatwasit?
but he
soonfoundthattheethnictensionsmadeitdifficultt 3. Whatdid he relyontosavethepeople at
ocontinue. He and hisfamily moved toBelgium the hotel?
and Paul startedhisowntruckingcompany,
based in Zambia, anAfrican country south of 4. The "Militia" were Tutsis or
Rwanda. Hutus?What do you thinkwastheirgoal?
Eventhough he lived and workedoutside of 5. He wasreluctanttoparticipate in a
Rwanda, Rusesabaginadidn’tturnhis back movie, in anywaypossible. Why do
onhisnative country. Despitethefactthatnearly
10% of Rwanda’spopulationhadbeenkilled, youthink he
therest of mighthavechangedhismind?
theworldseemedoblivioustothemassivegenocid
ethathadtaken place. He 6. Whattraitsdoes he have,
hadpersonallyexperiencedtheinaction of thatyoumaythinkmakehim a HERO?
theinternationalcommunityduringthe 100-day
genocide and he wantedtoraiseawareness of 7. Ifyouhadbeenone of therefugees at the
other terrible crimesto a global level so hotel, whatwouldyourfeelings be
thatgenocidessuch as theonethatoccurred in
Rwandawouldhappen no longer. towards Paul Rusesabagina?
Manymoviemakersapproached Paul
aboutdoing a
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