What responsibility do we have for our fellow human beings? What obligations result from our membership in a common biological or moral community? What right do we have to intervene in people’s lives to prevent them from hurting others? What can and should, or must, we do about injustice and oppression? Are we, in fact, our brother’s (and sister’s) keeper? This game prompts students to wrestle with these fundamental questions, asking them to respond to rapidly spreading genocidal massacres in Rwanda in April and May of 1994. Some players will, as part of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), have the authority and responsibility to debate proposals and make policy. Others, as leaders of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), journalists, or representatives of public opinion, will attempt to learn more about what’s going on in Rwanda and influence public policy based on this knowledge. All of this takes place in an environment complicated by inadequate information, the need to make rapid decisions, and outside demands on the time and intellectual energy of policy makers. During the game students will experience the intersection of policy making, the media, and public opinion in an environment of limited information. In addition, students will practice leadership and negotiation as well as critical reading, writing, and speaking.

Available in French Translation.