EDUCATOR COMMENTS
July 11, 2023: Tempe Preparatory Academy, Tempe, AZ
As a member of the Tempe Preparatory Academy school community, I would like to thank Dr. Tharcisse Seminega, a great scholar and survivor of the Rwanda Genocide for his poignant account. His narration of his experience left an indelible impression on the audience at Tempe Preparatory Academy. I am honored to provide a review on his impactful presentation that provoked not only strong emotions, but also later profound introspections and dialogues.
Dr. Seminega provides not only an emotional, but well founded scholarly presentation. Despite the barrier of it being over Zoom, he engages in a heartfelt Q&A session with students. It is an honor for all involved to listen to his firsthand account of the Rwanda Genocide. His decorum while speaking makes evident that he possesses immense strength, resilience and a lifetime commitment to justice. His storytelling along with images and historical context, provide a vivid image that serves to leave a lasting impression in the lives of those listening.
Dr. Seminega models courage as he continues to share his own experiences and emotions in order to highlight the importance of remembrance, reconciliation and justice. His commitment to these goals through education of new generations is admirable and emphasizes the need in education to provide learning experiences in the form of lived experiences to promote empathy, understanding and tolerance in order to prevent future atrocities.
I thank Dr. Tharcisse Seminega for this exceptional opportunity for our entire school community to learn from a survivor’s perspective what it means to confront and overcome the realities of humans who harm and even kill other human beings. I am honored, grateful and humbled by the bravery of his ability to recount his lived experiences and horrors of the Rwanda Genocide. I applaud his dedication to educating younger generations. I highly recommend Dr. Seminega’s presentations to any educational institute seeking to deepen the understanding of history and foster communal compassion. His visit reminded us of the importance of understanding past experiences in order to curtail potential atrocities in our lives, communities and world.
Dr. Olivia Salcido, Ph.D.
Tempe Preparatory Academy
1251 E. Southern Avenue
Tempe, AZ 85282
May 10, 2022: ASU Prep Stem Polytechnic High School, Mesa AZ
ASU Prep HS had the honor of hosting Dr. and Mrs. Seminega as guest speakers at our school in May of 2022. As a teacher, I can not stress the value in hearing the first hand account of the Rwandan genocide. Our students have learned about the 10 stages of genocide and were able to hear those steps in a first hand account – talk about primary sources through oral history! What truly stood out, after hearing the different atrocities, was the amount of love and complete lack of bitterness that came through the talk. This experience was important in so many ways – my students learned about resiliency, about forgiveness, about the beauty of the human spirit. Dr. Seminega also left students with wisdom keys – love conquers all, propaganda is dangerous and that true, good friends may just save your life. Our school hopes to recognize and prevent any early steps to genocide. Dr. Seminega gave us a path forward to that future.
Liz Purtell
American History/ Global Futures PBL
ASU Prep STEM ~ K12
Polytechnic
HS: 480.727.5769
https://asuprep.asu.edu/poly-high-school/
June 5, 2020: Tempe Preparatory Academy, Tempe, AZ
Dr. Seminega,
I am writing to thank you and your wife for meeting with us last month via Zoom to discuss your experiences in Rwanda and to answer our students' questions. 1994 Rwanda is not a time or place ordinarily included in our school's curriculum, and your visit gave the students an opportunity they might otherwise not have had to learn about what happened there. Without question, however, listening to you answer student questions educated us all in a way that no mere lecture or documentary could have done. To many of us, things like genocide seem almost unreal; they happen far away or long ago to people we've never met. We read and hear stories about the brutal violence and the heroic risks and sacrifices that some people take in the face of it, but it all sometimes seems distant. This is true even for me, even though I can remember hearing about what happened in Rwanda shortly after it happened. Our students, who had yet to be born at the time, are even more inclined to process lectures or articles about it as just more history. Hearing about it from you and your wife certainly gave it all an immediacy and vividness that it had not had before. To me, at least, the most powerful impression came from your stories about what people did to help, even at great cost to themselves. I often find it easy to believe that human beings are capable of things like the worst that people did in Rwanda; it is more difficult to remember that some are also capable of the sort of virtue you described, that it is not simply an ideal to which we habitually pay lip service, but at least sometimes a reality. Your emphasis on the need for moral education and practice to cultivate the habits that make such virtue possible was insightful and humbling. I cannot speak for all of the students, but I know that many expressed similar reactions and greatly appreciated your willingness to talk with us. You have our gratitude.
Best,
Dr. David J. Riesbeck
Classical Languages and Humane Letters Instructor
Chair, Classical Languages
Tempe Preparatory Academy
1251 East Southern Avenue
Tempe, AZ 85282
May 28, 2020: Elgin Community College, Elgin, IL
Dear Tharcisse and Chantal,
My students and I wanted to thank you for your willingness to meet with us via Zoom. After reading your book, we were excited to be able to talk with you and ask questions. My students felt that it was important to learn about the Rwandan Genocide and to learn the little-known history of Jehovah’s Witnesses during the Genocide. In their comments, journal entries, and essays, they were able to make broader connections to racism and discrimination that they see in their own lives. Here are just a few quotes from the essays they wrote about the book:
“I am studying to become a teacher and I think educators are the front lines to challenge the status quo regarding social issues…Having preconceived notions about groups of people is something every person does….my view (of Jehovah’s Witnesses) was completely reversed after seeing how they banded together to support and protect each other during this horrific genocide.”
“As a reader, you begin to reflect on how unethical the Rwandan Genocide was, people turning on their neighbors…simply because they belonged to another group.”
“This book helps us to remember that we are all humans and that racism should not exist, since the color of the skin, or how tall a person is, does not make her more ‘human’ than others. We should be proud of our diversity and not be mad at it since that is the only way to stop racism and prevent incidents like this one from happening again.”
“I am going to use this new understanding (from reading the book) to make sure I do not generalize or have an ethnocentric view. This will impact my interactions through allowing me to see each person as an individual and not as a member of an ethnic group. It will also allow me to see that my views aren’t necessarily correct and there are multiple ways to see and do things.”
In classroom discussions and journal entries, my students indicated that their experiences of learning through Tharcisse’s memoir was more impactful than simply learning through a history book. Here are a few of their comments:
“I felt more deeply about the experience by seeing things unfold through Tharcisse’s story and by being able to interact with actual survivors. It felt very personal to me.”
“Learning through literature is different (than learning) from other sources because it allows you to step into the head of someone else and see how they are experiencing their life. This allows us to take lessons from other people’s experience.”
One student who, herself, had been a refugee, wrote: “It also takes you back in time and makes you feel like you are the author, and you are reading your story. I believe literature not only informs us but also entertains and persuades…It is powerful.”
We want you to know that we appreciate your dedication to helping others learn through your experience. As you can see, you are making a real impact and an important contribution, touching lives through your story. Thank you again, and I hope to be able to continue sharing your story with my students in the coming semesters.
Sincerely,
Ginger Alms
Professor of English
Elgin Community College
1700 Spartan Drive
Elgin, IL 60123-7193
847-697-1000
elgin.edu