Hutus and Tutsis - Rwandan Genocide
The Rwandan Genocide took place between two cultures - the Hutus and the Tutsis - both living in Rwanda. They had lived peacefully for hundreds of years together, with the only difference between the two groups bring the Tutsis' ownership of cattle. The Europeans changed all of that, putting first the Tutsis, then the Hutus in charge, and creating a great rift between the ethnic groups. The fighting after the Hutus were put in charge was chronic. Then, in 1994, the Hutu president of Rwanda was shot down in his passenger plane, and the outraged Hutus slaughtered between 800,000 and 1,000,000 Tutsis before the fighting was ended. The Hutus fled to other neighboring countries, and the conflict continued.
A Rwandan Romeo and Juliet would be even more fraught with danger than one from Verona, with the outraged Hutus massacring the Tutsis, and any Hutu who decided to side with - or fall in love with - the Tutsis. The play, Love's Death, has a few key changes to the common Romeo and Juliet. It introduces a new character, King Escalus, who represents President Juvènal Habyrimana. King Escalus speaks Prince Escalus' lines in the first couple of acts in the play, but is murdered partway through the play. The second change is at the end of the play. The conflict between the Hutus and Tutsis was never ended, so Lords Capulet and Montague do not shake hands and make up. Instead, their fighting is only made worse by their children's deaths.
A Rwandan Romeo and Juliet would be even more fraught with danger than one from Verona, with the outraged Hutus massacring the Tutsis, and any Hutu who decided to side with - or fall in love with - the Tutsis. The play, Love's Death, has a few key changes to the common Romeo and Juliet. It introduces a new character, King Escalus, who represents President Juvènal Habyrimana. King Escalus speaks Prince Escalus' lines in the first couple of acts in the play, but is murdered partway through the play. The second change is at the end of the play. The conflict between the Hutus and Tutsis was never ended, so Lords Capulet and Montague do not shake hands and make up. Instead, their fighting is only made worse by their children's deaths.