Systemic Humiliation in America Finding Dignity within Systems of De

This volume explores contemporary social conflict, focusing on a sort of violence that rarely receives coverage in the evening news. This violence occurs when powerful institutions seek to manipulate the thoughts of marginalized people—manufacturing their

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EDITED BY DANIEL ROTHBART

Systemic Humiliation in America

Daniel Rothbart Editor

Systemic Humiliation in America Finding Dignity within Systems of Degradation

Editor Daniel Rothbart School for Conflict Analysis and Resolution George Mason University Arlington, VA, USA

ISBN 978-3-319-70678-8    ISBN 978-3-319-70679-5 (eBook) https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-70679-5 Library of Congress Control Number: 2018934682 © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2018 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the ­publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and ­institutional affiliations. Cover design © Design Pics Inc / Alamy Stock Photo Printed on acid-free paper This Palgrave Macmillan imprint is published by Springer Nature The registered company is Springer International Publishing AG The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland

Preface

“Why can’t they treat us like human beings?” he asked me. He was a Sudanese peacemaker and referring to the violent treatment that his people—the Fur tribe—had endured as a result of decades of conflict with their government. He knew about many forms of violence—the bombs and bullets, the tactics of political oppression, and policies that foster extreme poverty. He knew also about an intangible sort of violence that is particularly corrosive to the soul of his people. This is a violence of orchestrated denigration that warps the self-image of the Fur, making them feel inferior and disgraced for being born as descendants of slaves. This is a violence of large-scale humiliation manufactured as part of the government’s divide-and-rule strategy in the conflict-ridden nation, implemented in government-sponsored campaigns to denigrate tribal culture, remove references to the past tribal glories from history textbooks, and severely limit their access to the channels of political power. My conversation led to my reflection later about the k