COLUMN: "It's Time to Wake Up, America"

From Andra Fogel and Darren Fogel's "He Got the Bigger Room," Fall '92 Over the last eight months, Serbian aggressors have been killing Bosnian citizens primarily because of their religious beliefs. The Bosnians are Muslim and the Serbians oppose their religious preference. This sounds like something that should be examined further. Aggression due to religion is something that our world knows all too well. For centuries, people have fought against one another in order to forward various religious ideals. The conflict between Serbia and Bosnia is no exception. What is taking place in these two Eastern European cities is frighteningly similar to what took place during the Holocaust. If you think this is an exaggeration, then maybe you should read on. Last spring the Serbians ransacked and destroyed the Bosnian city of Banja Luka. Prior to this attack, this city was a thriving metropolis with fine hotels, theaters and churches. And more importantly, the city contained a mixed population of Serbs, Croats and Muslims coexisting harmoniously with one another. However, this all changed following Serbian attacks. All non-Serbs who held high level, decision-making occupations were expelled from their jobs. Non-Serbs could no longer hold jobs where they might be able to make important decisions. At this point, you may be wondering how anyone could distinguish between those men who are Muslim and those who are not. Muslims are circumcised. When a question arises regarding a man's religious status, Serbian troops ask them to drop their pants. Does any of this sound familiar? Over time, Serbian forces have progressed from detaining Bosnians to butchering them. Bosnians are in constant fear of Serbian "ethnic cleansing." Every day people are driven from their homes, and every day, more and more innocent victims are killed. These military attacks in what was Yugoslavia have been going on for over a year now. The killings first took place in Croatia. Then, Serbians attacked the Bosnian city of Sarajevo. Through this entire experience the lives of over 14,000 Bosnians have ended. And why is this happening? Because of religion. The question now remains, while such atrocities take place, where does America stand? Our leaders have decided to straddle the issue. We have committed ourselves to relief operations, and we have joined the United Nations resolution to stop Serbian military planes from flying over Bosnia. But, we have not accepted very many refugees, or decisively committed ourselves toward military action. Our government stands against military action for many reasons. Some feel that the U.S. has no national interest in the situation as a whole. Others claim that unless we send tens of thousands of troops -- and put American lives at risk -- we won't be able to stop the fighting. And some believe that the geographic location and mountainous terrain of the region would make invasions even more difficult than invasions normally are. We, however, argue differently. We feel that our country's vested interest in Eastern Europe outweighs the factors that would keep us from intervening. First, America is the leader of the civilized world. In order to uphold this position, we must act as a leader. America must stand up to aggression, both at home and abroad, in order to preserve democratic ideals. Second, right-wing neo-Nazi Germans have turned to violence, fighting vehemently to keep out the wave of Yugoslavian refugees. Consequently, the religious persecution and killings in Bosnia threaten the stability of much of Eastern and Central Europe. The U.S. government needs to realize the necessity of stability in Europe. Third, if America chooses to continually neglect the situation, and watch history repeat itself, who will protect the underdogs of the world? No one. Thus, our status as the premier world superpower is undermined. Sitting back and watching such events unfold makes America look like a lame duck. Finally, do the recent events in Bosnia differ from the crisis in Kuwait during the Gulf War? Isn't the same situation unfolding? Although this could be considered a civil war, one extremely powerful government is still waging war against a country (or republic) that is much weaker. Innocent people are being subjected to the same kind of torture that took place in Kuwait. The only reason we can see for the U.S. government's apathy is that oil is not at stake. We have heard some people say that the lack of natural resources in this war zone is reason enough to remain distant from the problem. Other students claim that if we take serious military action, we will end up in a situation similar to Vietnam. But we believe that if the United States is going to call itself the leader of the modern world, the government must take action now. If we continue to sit back as Eastern Europe self-destructs, the rest of the world will view America as a nation that watches, as opposed to a nation that acts. It is time for America to reevaluate the situation. Right now, a new holocaust rages on before our eyes.