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When I consider all the suffering in the world—suffering from which I am usually far removed because of my great good luck in being born an American—I tend to react in one of two opposite ways. Either I remain far removed and quietly indifferent, because I know the world has always been and will always be full of cruelty and suffering or there is nothing I can do about it. Or I get all choked up, especially when children are involved, and wish that people could be better, and think that perhaps I should do something about it. But then I conclude there is nothing I can do about it, so I just go on with my cozy, comfortable, and mostly very safe American life. As the reporter says in Hotel Rwanda, people will watch footage of the genocide occurring in far away Rwanda, and they’ll say that’s terrible, and they’ll go on with their evening meal.
Having watched this movie several times, I’m still not sure what my reaction to it is or should be. At times I find it hopelessly depressing. I feel that the film reveals the true nature of humans—that we are vicious, selfish, uncaring, and stupid. At other times I am inspired by the courage and selflessness of some of the characters. These are by and large the more educated (some might say “westernized”) people portrayed in the film. I feel that if such people exist, there is hope for humanity.
My reaction to the film is further complicated by what I’ve read from people who were actually in the hotel at the time this happened. The real Paul Rusesabagina says that he witnessed many of his friends; people he thought were decent, civilized people commit savage acts. He says that now that the Tutsis have taken over, they are oppressing the Hutu, and he further observes that the world is once again turning a blind eye to genocide, this time in Darfur.


Paul, a Hutu, is married to a Tutsi and his children are considered mixed. When the mass killings begin, Paul's Tutsi neighbors rush...