The Many Roles of Dehumanization in Genocide

Abstract In genocide studies, dehumanization is commonly understood as a preparatory step on the path to mass killing. On this understanding, the perpetrator’s propaganda explicitly likens victims to animals, and these dehumanizing metaphors enable violence. The author argues that the role of dehumanization in genocide is considerably broader and more multifaceted than this account suggests. Subtle forms of dehumanization precede the tactical use of explicit animal metaphors, and dehumanizing metaphors are not always expressed in language or invariably animalistic in content. Dehumanization not only is a prelude to violence but also facilitates violent acts in the present and justifies and minimizes violence after it has been committed. Finally, an account that posits dehumanization as a stage of the genocidal process fails to recognize that some aspects of genocidal violence do not require the dehumanization of victims.