AP HUMAN Freed

Conflict Assignment

One of the most unfortunate side effects of religious diversification has been conflicts between groups loyal to different faiths. These can have many sources and very different points of contention. The purpose of this assignment is for you to become familiar with some major religious conflicts that have occurred in various parts of the world. Below you will find a list of 6 major outbreaks of religious violence. You will work in groups to produce a presentation and a white paper that will guide your classmates to a better understanding of the conflict. You will have all day Tuesday and Thursday to work in your groups and you will present on Tuesday November 14th.

You will work in groups of 3. Each member of the group will be graded separately and produce a differently formatted final product. Options include an Oral Presentation to the class of a Powerpoint or google slides doc, a poster presentation,or a 1-2 page essay/ White Paper You need to include the following information in your presentation.

  • Where the conflict takes/took place and the major groups involved. Include the names of major organizations and individuals involved. Make sure you identify the religious or ethnic differences at play.
  • The origins of the conflict (how did the conflict come about?), its major points of contention (what are they fighting over?), and what each side would like to see in its version of a successful outcome.
  • A brief summary of the major outbreaks of violence and the results of each concerning the control of land, loss of lives and property, etc.
  • In your opinion is the conflict cultural (religion, language, ethnic, religious), political (boundaries, etc.), or some combination? If so what are the largest factors? Be detailed about the conflict in a geographic way. IE identify the creation of borders and what form they took (geometric, relict, etc.)
  • Is there a refugee/ IDP situation involved? If so where did they come from and where have they gone to?
  • Is there or has there been an attempted solution to this conflict? What form did it take?

Research and source selection: These topics are controversial by their nature. Your goal should be to present as neutral of an interpretation a possible. Be on the lookout for bias in your sources and be sure to select opposing points of view. A source from the Anti-Defamation League had better be offset by something from the Palestinian side for instance.

Citation of sources: Make sure you properly cite your sources in MLA format. You may footnote on your presentation and create a references and works cited slide at the end. Same thing for the white paper.

Credit where credit is due: Attached to the copy of the white paper you give you me should be a credits page that lists what everyone did to help with the group. Work should be divided evenly.

Make sure you keep in mind that this is a geography project. Keep your focus on the geographic nature of the issue. This is more about the spatial implications of the issue rather than making religious, political, or social judgments of the groups involved. Try to use as many geography vocab words as you can, appropriately of course. Also, it should be obvious that the more maps you can come up with to illustrate the landscape of the conflict, the better.

Grading: This assignment will count as half of a test grade. You will be graded on the following criteria: coverage of the topic, appropriate selection and use of sources, and the quality of your presentation and white paper. They should be excellent guides to your classmates on these issues. See the rubric at the end of this document for grading guidelines.

Case Studies of Ethnic Conflict

1. Ireland

The English religious war of 1640’s took the northern part of Ireland and occupied it, making it protestant while the rest of Ireland was Catholic. They occupied the north for 250 years until the southern Catholics kicked them out. The north was afraid of Catholic control, wanted to keep it part of the U.K., so they drew a line to divide the country. For three decades the two sides fought for control, leaving over 3,000 dead and 30,000 injured.

2. Bosnia

Yugoslavia began to fall apart in the 1980s as national groups pushed for autonomy in tandem with declines in the power and legitimacy of the state. This situation resulted in a security and identity space filled by nationalist claims along ethno-religious lines: Catholic Croat, Orthodox Serb, and Muslim being the most pronounced in Bosnia and Herzegovina. So this is a flight between two sects of Christians and one Muslim group to control land and resources.

3. Myanmar/Burma: Karen or Rohinga Conflict

Two of the numerous ethnic conflicts in this Southeast Asia Country. Both involve ethnic or religious minorities and their interactions with the government.

4. Sudan

Religious conflict between Northern Muslim Sudan and Southern Christian Sudan. So they decided to draw a neat line to divide the country, make new states and millions of refugees as a as a result. Millions of people have been killed in this religious battle of culture, religion, and who controls the land. This also included the genocide in Darfur.

5. Columbia vs. the FARC This is a long running civil war involving major participation by drug cartels and the US Government through secretly funded rebel groups. There have been recent discussions of a peace treaty but success is not guaranteed.

6. Israel vs. Palestine

In the late 1800’s European countries encouraged Jewish emigration to Palestine. This cause much conflict from Palestinians. After WWII, there were millions of displaced Jews. The United Nations in 1948 decided redraw political lines in Palestine and make a Jewish nation of Israel. The Muslims could control one side and the Jews the other. This isn’t just about religious/cultural differences, this is about who controls land, waterways, trade and ultimately money/land in this Holy area.

7. Ukraine/ Russia Conflict

Josef Stalin relocated millions of ethnic Russians to all corners of the Soviet Union. The legacy of this migration in the Ukraine can be felt today. In the years since the collapse of the USSR Russia has tried to have as much power over its former republics a pro-Russian president of the Ukraine was defeated in an election by a candidate who wanted a more independent Ukraine. Russia began taking military steps to “protect” ethnic Russians in the Ukraine from persecution.

8. Boko Haram

Nigeria is a patchwork of ethnic groups divided in many ways including religion. In the last decade the terrorist group Boko Haram has emerged as a major presence in the country. To date they have killed more people than every other terrorist group combined. Their goal is to create an Islamic state in northern Nigeria. The Nigerian government fights them with the Nigerian armed forces.

9. Rwanda 1994

The Tutsis and Hutus of Rwanda have had several conflicts over the past decades. Many resulting in large scale violence. The genocide of 1994 resulting from the death of the country’s president was the worst outbreak, however. The country was ruled by Belgium for many years after the Partition of Africa and the legacy of their rule led in large part to the conflict between the two groups.

10. The Congolese Civil War

The Democratic Republic of Congo saw the largest war in recent world history and no one knew about it. Created at the Congress of Berlin, the nation was run by a private Belgian company owned entirely by King Leopold. From the late 1990’s to early 2000’s, as one political regime overthrew another the country’s ethnic groups engaged in widespread killing. Ultimately the death toll reached over 5 million.

Rubric

Content Area / 0-5 / 6-10 / 11-15 / 16-20
Centripetal and Centrifugal Force Assessment / Discussion of forces is missing or only mentions 1 or 2 of them by name / Only 1 of each kind of force discussed. Analysis is only to identify them. / At least 2 of each kind of force is discussed. Analysis is in depth but not connected to the conflict. / At least 2 of each kind of force is discussed. Analysis of forces shows depth of understanding and discusses its role in the conflict.
Geographic Issues / Discussion of geographic issues is missing or only mentions 1 or 2 by name. / Discusses only one political and one cultural geographic issue by name and definition. / At least 2 political and 2 cultural issues are discusses. Analysis in depth but not connected to the conflict. / At least 2 of each kind of issue is discussed. Analysis of forces shows depth of understanding and discusses its role in the conflict.
History of Violence / Outbreaks of violence are not discussed or only 1 or 2 are only mentioned by name. / Identifies only 1 or 2 outbreaks of violence by name and date only. No depth of discussion. / 3 or more outbreaks are identifies and discussed in detail. Connection to present situation is missing. / 3 or more outbreaks are identifies and discussed in detail. Shows clear connection between past and present situation.
Attempted Solutions / Attempted solutions are not discussed or only 1 or 2 are only mentioned by name. No possible solution given. / Identifies only 1 or 2 Attempted solutions by name and date only. No depth of discussion. No possible solution given. / Identifies 2 or more attempted solutions. Discusses their success or failure in depth. Offers a possible solution but does not go into detail. / Identifies 2 or more attempted solutions. Discusses their success or failure in depth. Offers a possible solution and goes into detail about how it would solve the conflict.
Presentation Mechanics / Presentation is missing, not posted on time, or shows minimal effort. / Presentation is present, submitted on time but only lists events. Does not use maps effectively. / Presentation is present, submitted on time. Issues are shown with depth of content. Maps are used. No links to further information given. / Presentation is present, submitted on time. Issues are shown with depth of content. Maps are used. Links to further information given and linked to relevant content.