A Problem from Hell
Samantha Power | |
|---|---|
| Occupation(s) | Author, Professor of Human Rights Practice |
| Known for | "A Problem from Hell": America and the Age of Genocide |
"A Problem from Hell": America and the Age of Genocide (2002) is a work by American author Samantha Power, who was then serving as Professor of Human Rights Practice at Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government. The book explores how the United States has identified and reacted to genocides throughout the 20th century, ranging from the Armenian genocide to the ethnic cleansing episodes during the Kosovo War. It was honored with the J. Anthony Lukas Book Prize and the Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction in 2003.
Power contends that U.S. officials have repeatedly refrained from officially designating large-scale atrocities as genocide or initiating international military interventions. In the absence of significant public advocacy, they frequently avoid using the term "genocide," which emerged prominently after the Holocaust of World War II. Instead, policymakers often justify their stance by citing national interests or arguing that intervention would be ineffective or exacerbate conflict—rationales that Power critiques as largely unsubstantiated.
Summary
The book opens with an examination of global reactions to the Armenian genocide (Chapter 1), followed by an account of Raphael Lemkin's attempts to mobilize American action against Nazi crimes (Chapter 2). Power emphasizes the difficulties faced by those pushing for Allied acknowledgment of the Holocaust, attributing obstacles to wartime priorities and prevalent anti-Semitism (Chapter 3).
Afterward, Lemkin succeeded in placing genocide on foreign policy agendas after World War II, playing a key role in shaping the 1948 U.N. Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. Although progress was slow until his passing in 1959, figures like Senator William Proxmire championed genocide prevention and U.S. leadership on this front. Proxmire, alongside President Ronald Reagan, helped secure backing for ratifying the Genocide Convention (Chapter 7). The narrative then assesses American responses to genocides in Algeria, Cambodia, Iraq, Bosnia, Rwanda, and Kosovo.
Reviews
Martin Woollacott reviewed this title alongside We Did Nothing by Linda Polman for The Guardian, observing:
"It is ironic that earlier crises often saw broad consensus on their severity but lacked decisive action, whereas the Bush administration demonstrated resolve in confronting a crisis despite lacking worldwide agreement."
Stephen Holmes offered his critique together with War in a Time of Peace: Bush, Clinton and the Generals by David Halberstam for the London Review of Books, remarking:
"While halting atrocities represents a moral accomplishment, without enduring domestic commitment to reconstruction, such efforts are fleeting. The protection of human rights relies on politically stable local governance."
Charles V. Peña from the Cato Institute evaluated the book for Reason, concluding:
"Power’s account underscores that genocide transcends national interests as a moral dilemma. To avert another tragedy like Rwanda, U.S. involvement must be more judicious to prevent repeating failures akin to Somalia."
Laura Secor provided a review for The New York Times. Additional critiques appeared in Publishers Weekly.
Accolades
- Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction
- Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights Book Award
- J. Anthony Lukas Book Prize
- National Book Critics Circle Award in the General Nonfiction category
- Raphael Lemkin Award (presented by the Institute for the Study of Genocide)