Making Enemies: Humiliation And International Conflict

When the statue of Saddam Hussein fell and Iraqis danced on the body, hitting it with their shoes, there was joy. Moments later, when an American soldier climbed the statue to place an American flag on the face, there was a national gasp, a moment of humiliation for the Iraqis. Americans had claimed to be liberating them, but the placing of the American flag was a sign of conquest. The flag was quickly removed and replaced with an Iraqi flag, but those tense moments were a brief example of the power and potentially far-reaching, volatile effects of humiliating acts, even when unintentional. In this fascinating work, Dr. Linder examines and explains, across history and nations, how this little-understood, often-overlooked emotion sparks outrage, uprisings, conflict and war.

Evelin Lindner is a Social Scientist and Founding Manager of Human Dignity and Humiliation Studies based at the Columbia University Conflict Resolution Network. She is also Guest Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Oslo, and a Senior Lecturer of Psychology at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology. She holds dual doctorates, in social medicine and social psychology. Her research on humiliation and its role in genocide, war and violent conflict began in 1996 and has taken her to locations including Rwanda and Somalia.