Dehumanization is a process by which members of a group of people assert the "inferiority" of another group through subtle or overt acts or statements. Dehumanization may be directed by an organization (such as a state) or may be the composite of individual sentiments and actions, as with some types of de facto racism. List of racism-related topics|Racism by country Racism, by its simplest definition is the belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that State-organized dehumanization has been directed against perceived racial or ethnic groups, nationalities (or "foreigners" in general), religious groups, genders, minorities of various sexual orientations (eg. Church (disambiguation A religious denomination is a subgroup within a Religion that operates under a common name tradition and identity homosexuals or pedophiles), disabled people as a class, economic [e. Homosexuality refers to sexual behavior with or attraction to people of the same sex or to a Homosexual orientation. The term pedophilia or paedophilia has a range of definitions as found in Psychology, law enforcement and the popular vernacular g. the homeless] and social classes, and many other groups. Social class refers to the hierarchical distinctions (or stratification) between individuals or groups in Societies or Cultures.

Nations and governments

U. S government poster from WWII featuring a Japanese soldier depicted as a rat

Sociologists and historians often view dehumanization as central to some or all types of wars. Governments sometimes present "enemy" civilians or soldiers as less than human so that voters will be more likely to support a war they may otherwise consider mass murder. Dictatorships use the same process to prevent opposition by citizens. A dictatorship is usually defined as an autocratic Form of government in which the Government is ruled by a Dictator. Such efforts often depend on preexisting racist, sectarian or otherwise biased beliefs, which governments play upon through various types of media, presenting "enemies" as barbaric, undeserving of rights, and a threat to the nation. List of racism-related topics|Racism by country Racism, by its simplest definition is the belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that Sectarianism is Bigotry, Discrimination, Prejudice or Hatred arising from attaching importance to perceived differences between subdivisions "Popular press" redirects here note that the University of Wisconsin Press publishes under the imprint "The Popular Press" Alternately, states sometimes present the enemy government or way of life as barbaric and its citizens as childlike and incapable of managing their own affairs. Such arguments have been used as a pretext for colonialism. See Colony and Colonization for examples of colonialism which do not refer to Western colonialism

The Holocaust of World War II and the Rwandan Genocide have both been cited as atrocities predicated upon government-organized campaigns of dehumanization, while crimes like lynching (especially in the United States) are often thought of as the result of popular bigotry and government apathy. The Holocaust (from the Greek el ''ὁλόκαυστον'' (el-Latn holókauston holos, "completely" and kaustos, "burnt" also known as World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including The Rwandan Genocide was the 1994 mass killing of hundreds of thousands of Rwanda 's minority Tutsis and the moderates of its Hutu majority Lynching is an Extrajudicial punishment meted out by a mob Lynching an enumerated Felony in some states in the United States, is defined by some The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The main cause behind the American mutilation of Japanese war dead has been stated to be dehumanization. During World War II, some United States military personnel mutilated dead Japanese service personnel in the Pacific theater of operations

Anthropologists Ashley Montagu and Floyd Matson famously wrote that dehumanization might well be considered "the fifth horsemen of the apocalypse" because of the inestimable damage it has dealt to society. Montague Francis Ashley Montagu (born Israel Ehrenberg on June 28 1905, East London England - died November 26 1999, Princeton New Jersey When people become things, the logic follows, they become dispensable - and any atrocity can be justified.

Dehumanization can be seen outside of overtly violent conflicts, as in political debates where opponents are presented as collectively stupid or inherently evil. Such "good-versus-evil" claims help end substantive debate. (See also thought-terminating cliché). A thought-terminating Cliché is a commonly used phrase sometimes passing as folk wisdom used to quell Cognitive dissonance.

Themes of dehumanization: scapegoating, ethnic stereotypes and racism

A common theme (or meme) is that of scapegoating, where dehumanizing the target provides a release from guilt for the person that scapegoats them, who typically begins to see themselves as a victim of the dehumanized person, rather than as a potential oppressor. A meme (miːm consists of any idea or behavior that can pass from one person to another by learning or imitation scapegoat was a Goat that was driven off into the wilderness as part of the ceremonies of Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement in Judaism during the times ---- Guilt is the Fact, state or Verdict (by a Court or other Tribunal) of an Offence, Crime, Violation

In war, the enemy is generally demonized, with ethnic slurs being used to dehumanize them to the point where killing them becomes morally acceptable. The following is a list of ethnic slurs that are or have been used as insinuations or allegations about members of a given Ethnicity or to refer to them in a derogatory (critical

Other topics

The empirically supported propaganda model of Herman and Chomsky shows how corporate media are able to carry out large-scale, successful dehumanization campaigns when that promotes the goals (profit-making) that the corporations are legally obliged to maximise. The propaganda model is a Theory advanced by Edward S Herman and Noam Chomsky that alleges systemic Biases in the Mass media and seeks Edward S Herman (born 7 April 1925) is an economist and media analyst with a specialty in corporate and regulatory issues as well as political economy and the media Avram Noam Chomsky (noʊm ˈtʃɑmski born December 7 1928 is an American linguist, Philosopher, cognitive scientist, Political A corporation is a separate legal entity usually used to conduct business The news media refers to the section of the Mass media that focuses on presenting current News to the public Government-controlled media, in either democracies or dictatorships, are also capable of carrying out dehumanization campaigns, to the extent with which the population is unable to counteract the dehumanizing memes. A meme (miːm consists of any idea or behavior that can pass from one person to another by learning or imitation

The Darwin Awards are considered by some to be dehumanization as entertainment. A Darwin Award is a Tongue-in-cheek "honor" named after Evolutionary theorist Charles Darwin. The death or sterilization of Darwin Awards honorees is celebrated because they have removed their un-fit genes from the human gene pool. Others think the Darwin Awards are merely funny, without involving dehumanization. Other forms of planned circus of past eras, such as the man-to-man mortal combat gladiatorial events of the Roman Colosseum, are more clearly dehumanizing since a human life is exchanged for entertainment. The Colosseum or Roman Coliseum, originally the Flavian Amphitheatre ( Latin: Amphitheatrum Flavium, Italian Anfiteatro Flavio

The dissections of human cadavers, such as in these videos was seen as dehumanizing in the Dark Ages (See Medieval anatomy), but now the benefits of well-trained physicians are more clearly understood. This article is about the phrase "Dark Age(s" as a characterization of the Early Middle Ages in Western Europe The history of Anatomy as a Science extends from the earliest examinations of sacrificial victims to the sophisticated analyses of the body performed by

See also

• Ethnic stereotype
• Life unworthy of life
• Objectification
• Nonperson
• Race
• Racism
• Sectarianism
• Second-class citizen
• Social defeat