First They Killed My Father Analysis

In First They Killed My Father, Loung Ung talks about the downfall of Cambodia when the country is being taken over by the Angkar soldiers and Khmer Rouge during war. Loung Ung’s childhood wartime experiences in Cambodia impacted her life in multiple ways.

Between the years of 1975 and 1979, an estimated 1.5 to 3 million people were killed by the Khmer Rouge during the Cambodian genocide. First They Killed My Father is the story from the perspective of a five year old girl, Loung Ung, and how her life was changed by the Khmer Rouge. Her and her family were forced out of their home, and into labor camps where they were to work for food in order to survive. They relied on each other, and pushed through the Hell that they were unfortunately placed into. In the memoir, First They Killed My Father by Loung Ung, the author demonstrates how the Khmer Rouge use the techniques of confiscation, dress regulations, and food rations in order to remain in control of the citizens.

For an organization whose motto is “speed saves lives,” it makes sense that there are a vast array of costs that come with the unique efficiency of MSF. After reading the section of Peter Redfield’s Life in Crisis entitled “Vital Mobility”, I was amazed by what MSF has been able to accomplish. All semester long I have learned of the intricacies of humanitarianism, how nothing is as simple as it seems. Often, I wonder why can’t it be simpler? Why do we let politics get in the way of good? Is there not a more effective way of helping distant strangers? Redfield’s focus on the mobility and efficiency of MSF seems to counteract how the rest of the humanitarian world works. No other organization can “[boast] of its ability to mobilize emergency aid to almost any part of the planet within forty-eight hours” (71). In no other way is foreign aid made to look so simple. MSF’s focus on efficiency, their

During the second Chechen war, Fred Cuny, a disaster-relief specialist and his three colleagues had disappeared, leaving friends and family clueless. For twenty-five years through the harsh obstacles, he had managed to go to different cities and take care of those who needed aid. Putting other’s lives before his, he worked.passionately, rescuing those in broken buildings and rape camps, until he vanished without a trace.

Loung Ung 's First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers follows her struggles as a child during the Angkar rule. Children in Cambodia directly suffered from trauma, which obviously dismisses the myth that children experience less pain than adults. The importance of Ung 's book is the emotional impact she has on the reader because she gives a voice to the victims and to the dead. As Americans, this topic, the Cambodian genocide does not get taught commonly in education. It shows the trauma that the citizens went through and how it affected the country.

In 1997 in the Democratic Republic of Congo, MSF fights for access to Rwandan refugees and denounces massacres and human rights violations by North Korea. In the same year in Afghanistan, MSF teams in Kabul are fighting for the law that prevents women from accessing health

Imagine seeing a person being stripped from their home and the family members who love and care for them being separated into different camps. Only to be brutally treated and killed for the religion they believe in. This is what happened to almost the entire Jewish population in Europe in the 1930’s to the early 1940’s. The Holocaust was led by German Nazi party leader Adolf Hitler to create one perfect population called the "new order" by exterminating the Jewish population,which lead to the killing of nearly the entire Jewish population in Europe and the destruction of German ties in European countries; this is similar to Pol Pot's terrible reign during the Cambodian genocide written about in the story First They Killed My Father written by Loung Ung.

In the coverage of the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize winner throughout the news outlets, the visual narrative, or story told through “still photography, illustration, or video,” ascribes meaning to the prospect of a world without nuclear weapons (Ron, 2017, para. 5). On the three websites, optimistic images depicting ICAN members smiling and expressing hope, as well as deliberate sanguine phrasing like “the group was honored for its ‘ground-breaking efforts’” contribute to the inspiring commentary (Adomaitis & Miles, 2017). Whether the articles disagree with The United States’ or Australia’s government, they demonstrate mainstreaming, or the influencing of the readers to align with the anti-Nuclear weapon viewpoint. Phrases such as “huge disappointment” throughout the articles bring awareness to the audience in that their governments need to take peaceful action (Jacks, 2017, para. 16).

When you are a child attempting to make friends, one of the most essential “get to know you” questions is what is your favorite color? For most of us, this is an easy question to answer and does not require deeper thinking. In the case of Loung Ung, it would have been that way too. That is, if she had gotten to remain a child who continuously loved red with no strings attached. In the memoir First They Killed My Father by Loung Ung, the color red symbolizes different stages of the author’s life. Loung grew up in Cambodia and until she was five she led a spoiled, upper-middle class life with her eight family members. Then the tyrannical Khmer Rouge and their leader Pol Pot came to power, forcing the Ungs into a life of labor and suffering. Over the torturous next four years Loung lost two of her sisters and both her parents. After the Khmer Rouge’s defeat, she left for America, never truly leaving Cambodia behind. In the novel, the color red’s symbolism shifts from Loung’s culture and personality, her hatred for the Khmer Rouge, and lastly, her love for those she could never let go of- her family.

First They Killed My Father is first and foremost a memoir about the horrific genocide of the Cambodian people under Pol Pot’s regime. In regards to the emotion love, there’s hardly any evidence of romance to be found. However, with that in mind, it’s not hard to see aspects of a love story hinted at several parts throughout it. These hints are often not shown in the way most people associate love stories but alongside Ung’s description of the struggles and hardships she faced under Pol Pot.

For people living in a world filled with violence, it is essential to act as kind and compassionate individuals in order to develop more peaceful communities. According to Orbinski, “[they] are not sure that words can always save lives, but [they] know that silence can certainly kill” (Médecins Sans Frontières - Nobel Lecture). They use language to define a problem and come up with a call of duty. Even though no humanitarian can make peace, the more people that respond to a certain call of duty, the closer they get to a more peaceful community. As a civil society movement, they demand change, not charity. Campaigning for a change in the cost of medicine needed to treat some of their patients is seen as one way that Doctors Without Borders demand change. Members of Doctors Without Borders remain outspoken about the injustice towards humanity by the means of media or speeches, such as the one given by Orbinski 16 years

Over thirty years Cambodia has been a country stripped of basic human rights. To this day the government is run by corrupt political leaders whom were to blame for the 2.8 million civilian deaths during the 1970’s (Heuvenille, 2015). Although genocide and ethic minority persecution is part of Cambodia’s past there are many other human rights issues that are on-going from the Khmer Rouge regime in Cambodia.

Paul Jefferson, an early humanitarian deminer once said: “a landmine is the perfect soldier: Ever courageous, never sleeps, never misses” (Khamis par. 1). Jefferson’s quote can be interpreted in two ways: that a landmine is a great weapon and all countries should use it, or that a landmine is too dangerous for one’s own good. For years, landmines have been affordable, yet dangerous killers that countries use to defend their borders in war. But as wars end, countries often forget about their rural parts and the destruction left from war, leaving citizens in the danger from landmines. The immoral and unethical use of landmines in West Africa will continue to create an impoverished and uneconomic society for thousands of innocent people due to

I grew up in an environment where I was sensitive to the needs of those immediately around me; my family, my neighbors, my classmates but my world was a very narrow one. This course has taught be to look at the world as my neighbors and feel a responsibility to the health, safety and welfare of all. I used to believe there was nothing I could do about the famine in Africa or the genocide in Croatia but I now realize that ANY small step I take is a step toward a path leading to action and understanding. One of my closest friends is a Major in the U.S. Army and she has been to Croatia, Iraq and Afghanistan; I am blessed to have her in my life because through her eyes and her stories, I am more in touch with the trials of our modern day world. “Lao Tzu said, “The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step” (Loeb, 2010).

Sydney Robinson Mrs. Ball English 12 24 February 2016 ICRC Effect Introductory Paragraph My opener: In a situation of life or death would you stay quiet or speak out? Thesis statement: Six million is a number that could have been stopped, as a humanitarian organization The Red Cross failed miserably. Background: “WASHINGTON, Dec. 18— The International Committee of the Red Cross today released copies of its World War II files, some of which provided verification that it knew of the persecution of Jews in Nazi concentration camps but felt powerless to speak out,” (Molotsky). The ICRC let numerous people down; and could have potentially helped save thousands of lives. The Red Cross was like a teacher that failed to DIVULGE the proper information