Crimes Against Humanity

Children's Literature

People are capable of both great good and monstrous evil. A species that can produce amazing works of art, music and literature is also able to kill in the most brutal ways imaginable. In this study of war crimes and acts of genocide, the author traces some of these terrible examples of human cruelty and the legal efforts that are being made to address them. Genocide is a twentieth century term coined in response to the Nazi efforts to destroy the Jews of Europe. The Holocaust is the most striking example of crimes against humanity but, sadly, it is far from the only one. Efforts by the Turks to massacre Armenians, the mass murders of fellow Cambodians by the Khmer Rouge, Japanese atrocities in World War II, Serbian actions in Kosovo and the brutality wrought by Hutu's in Rwanda all are striking examples of mass murder committed for horrific reasons. Faced with these types of crimes, the United Nations and other international tribunals have taken responsibility for capturing, charging, trying and punishing the people capable of this depth of evil. The story of such war crimes is eminently well told in this work. This is a book that will both inform and move its readers. If there is one criticism, it is of the non-objective and disturbing artwork chosen for the covers of such a fine book. These grim presentations might dissuade potential readers from delving into what is an excellent study of man's attempt to deal with dark tendencies. 2001, Chelsea House, $19.95. Ages 14 up. Reviewer: Greg M. Romaneck

School Library Journal

Gr 8 Up-Campbell utilizes examples of real cases to illustrate tenets of the U.S. Constitution. Black-and-white photos appear throughout. It is unfortunate that in the fourth-amendment discussion the author does not mention one's computer hard drives and files, which are becoming as important targets for searches and seizures as an individual's body, home, and car. Claudine G. Wirths and Mary Bowman-Kruhm's Coping with Confrontations and Encounters with the Police (Rosen, 1997) explains a young person's rights in situations they are likely to encounter. The history and significant points connected to the Bill of Rights are more engagingly presented in Kathleen Krull's A Kid's Guide to America's Bill of Rights (Avon, 1999). Chippendale highlights historical agreements and laws that have sought to restrain barbarism while waging war. The bulk of the discussion focuses on 20th-century efforts to promote international cooperation and peace through alliances like the United Nations. The author admits that, while efforts to prevent genocide and various crimes against humanity have yielded meager results, international tribunals have succeeded in punishing some war criminals such as those connected to the Holocaust and Japanese atrocities during World War II. Genocide in Bosnia, Rwanda, Cambodia, and Turkey is discussed, but government persecution of segments of the citizenry in Argentina and South Africa is not mentioned. Since this was written before the fall of Slobodan Milosevic, the author's hope that he will be removed from office is dated. Black-and-white photographs of heaped bodies and skulls and human limbs in a concentration-camp oven tell a vivid story while the text offers some consolation in current efforts to bring perpetrators to justice.-Ann G. Brouse, Steele Memorial Library, Elmira, NY Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.