The Anthropology Of Genocide - WNLibrary

acknowledgments
Throughout history, entire populations have fallen victim to systematic genocide.
During the twentieth century alone, we have witnessed the intentional destruction,
in whole or in part, of such groups as Armenians, Jews, Cambodians, Hutus
and Tutsis, Bosnians, and indigenous peoples. Despite the urgent need to understand
the origins and effects of such devastation, anthropologists have not yet fully
engaged this topic of study. The present book arose from “The Anthropology of
Genocide,” an invited session (by the General Anthropology Division and the Committee
on Human Rights) at the 1998 meeting of the American Anthropological
Association. Like the panel, the book is devoted to stimulating anthropological debate
on genocide and pointing the way toward an anthropology of genocide.
A number of people have helped the book come to fruition. First, I’d like to sincerely
thank the contributors to the volume, all of whom are dedicated scholars who
have many commitments. From the onset, Naomi Schneider, our editor at the University
of California Press, expressed strong interest in and support for the volume.
We are all grateful for her efficiency, incisive comments, and commitment. Ellie Hickerson,
her editorial assistant, was also of great help, as were Annie Decker, Martin
Hanft, and Suzanne Knott. The anonymous reviewers of the manuscript provided
important feedback that strengthened the volume in several respects. I am grateful
to Michael Mattis for giving us permission to use the photograph Grief on the cover.
And thanks are due to Katie Joice of Berg Publishers and Eric Fichtl of the North
American Congress on Latin America for agreeing to allow us to include modified
versions of previously published works by Christopher Taylor and Carole Nagengast:
Chapter 4 of Christopher Taylor’s Sacrifice As Terror (Oxford: Berg Publishers,
150 Cowley Road, Oxford OX4 1JJ UK).
Carole Nagengast’s article “Militarizing the Border Patrol,” NACLA Report on
the Americas 32, no. 3 (1998): 37–41.
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