South African Apartheid/Genosha

South African Apartheid

In South Africa between 1948-1994 there was a system of legal racial segregation, and a classification of color. If you were African, Asian, or Indian you had your legal rights and citizenship taken away, and you were removed from your home, and forced to live in your "racial communities."

Definition of the crime of Apartheid

Article 7 of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court defines crimes against humanity as:

Article 7

Crimes against humanity

1. For the purpose of this Statute, 'crime against humanity' means any of the following acts when committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack directed against any civilian population, with knowledge of the attack:
   1. Murder;
   2. Extermination;
   3. Enslavement;
   4. Deportation or forcible transfer of population;
   5. Imprisonment or other severe deprivation of physical liberty in violation of fundamental rules of international law;
   6. Torture;
   7. Rape, sexual slavery, enforced prostitution, forced pregnancy, enforced sterilization, or any other form of sexual violence of comparable gravity;
   8. Persecution against any identifiable group or collectivity on political, racial, national, ethnic, cultural, religious, gender as defined in paragraph 3, or other grounds that are universally recognized as impermissible under international law, in connection with any act referred to in this paragraph or any crime within the jurisdiction of the Court;
   9. Enforced disappearance of persons;
   10. The crime of apartheid;
   11. Other inhumane acts of a similar character intentionally causing great suffering, or serious injury to body or to mental or physical health.

Later in Article 7, the crime of apartheid is defined as:

The 'crime of apartheid' means inhumane acts of a character similar to those referred to in paragraph 1, committed in the context of an institutionalised regime of systematic

 -Taken from the wikipedian page on Apartheid.



Genosha

Like its real world counterpart the nation of Africa during the Apartheid gave the outside world a false perception that it was a land of hope and freedom, though in reality it was a nation that segregated, and authorized the torture, and slavery of members of society who were deemed not "normal". At birth a baby was tested for the "X-Gene" the gene that makes mutants who they are, if they test positive for this gene they are immediatly made property of the state, and forced into slavery.

When fiction becomes reality Series 1

Tonight we will examine the real life of Pastor Fred Phelps, and a man he reminds me of the character Reverand William Stryker from the X-Men series.

Pastor Fred Phelps

Frederick Waldron Phelps, Sr. was born on November 13, 1929. He is the pastor and founder of the Wesboro Baptist Church (WBC) an independant Baptist church in Topeka, Kansas. Fred Phelps is a former lawyer that was disbared, his church is designated a "hate group" by the Southern Poverty Law Center. The WBC is well known for protesting at military funerals, funerals of homosexual men, women, and also at political rallies. As of 2006 the WBC is barred from protesting funerals in about 19 states. Pastor Phelps has many known quotes such as "God Hates Fags" which is also the name of his website, others include "Thank God for 9/11" , "Aids cures fags" , and calls people who support gay rights "fag enablers.

Reverand William Stryker

Stryker is a religious fanatic, with a military history which may have involved the Weapon X project (the same project which results in Wolverine being given his adamantium skeleton). Stryker is characterized by his unequivocal hatred of mutants. So strong is this hatred that Stryker goes so far as to kill his own wife and mutant-born son immediately after his birth. Crazed and outraged, Stryker then makes a failed suicide attempt. As time passes, he becomes convinced Satan has a plot to destroy humankind by corrupting prenatal souls, the result of this corruption being mutants. Additionally, Stryker eventually comes to see the birth of his mutant son as a sign from God, directing him to his true calling: ensuring the eradication of all mutants.

Is Magneto Right?

This is the question I ask of you:
Do you simply lie down and let everyone steam roll over you, and your rights? Or do you take a stand, and fight back? Don't get me wrong this isnt a call to action, or a call for violence, and wiping out everyone that's bad in the world. I'm just saying we have to fight for our survival!! Look at what's happening in Uganda, they're about to pass a "Kill The Gays" bill in about 72 hours as of today. It makes me angry that we live in a world that hates and fears us.

Professor Charles Francis Xavier's Dream 1963-2007

In 1963 the world was introduced to the X-Men, a group of mutant heroes who pledged to protect the people who hated, and feared them. The X-Men was lead by a man named Professor X, along with field leader Cyclops, and the other team members Beast, Angel, Marvel Girl, and the youngest member Ice Man.

                                       The 1960's:
 Had the team of mutants face their first threat, a mutant named Magneto, who was eventually found out to be a Nazi concentration camp survivor who blamed "normal" mankind for all the atrocities inflicted on "non-normal" mankind. The X-Men faced racism, and prejudice due to the affects of their battles with Magneto, and his Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, and various other superbeings.

The 1970's:

 Featured a brand new cast of characters, this time an international team of mutants, who reflected the changing times. The X-Men featured during this era were the Kenyan Storm, the Irish Banshee, the Russian Colossus, the German Nightcrawler, the Japanese hero Sunfire, and the Native American Thunderbird, and Wolverine, from Canada, who rounded out the team.

The 1980's:

The X-Men faced a threat against a newly formed  Brotherhood of Evil Mutants who attempted to assasinate then Senator Kelly. The X-Men were then tasked to stop The Brotherhood ,  to help stop this Kate Pryde(from this alternate future) time traveled via mind possession said that if the X-Men failed this would lead various superhuman, and mutants to concentration camps, and exterminate them.

                                                 The 1990's:

The X-Men were introduced to the island of Genosha, where children at birth were tested for the "X-Gene" and if they tested positive they were placed under mind control, and into forced labor. A story that would last from 1993-2001 titled "The Legacy Virus" would shatter the world of the X-Men, where mutants would get infected, and eventually die from the then uncurable disease, years later the X-Man Beast, would find a cure, and rid the world of the virus.

                    The 2000's:
The X-Men faced a decimation of 90 percent of the mutant population, and in the wake restored Reverand William Stryker's extermenation of the mutant race, he almost suceeded. The X-Men then relocated to San Francisco, California, where the X-Men deemed it a safe haven for mutants friend or foe. The X-Men later rejected the United States, and formed the Island of Utopia. During the final battle with the mutant hating Bastian(A villian from the 90's) it took the combined might of The Avengers, Fantastic Four, and the newly emerged "Messiah of The Mutant Race" at the end of this event the X-Men discovered The Five Lights, a group of newly emerging mutants post M-Day.